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( votes)Business Process Management (BPM) is more than just improving operations—it’s about designing, executing, and continuously enhancing how your organization runs. While BPM provides the strategic roadmap, automation is often the engine that puts those process models into action.
But every journey starts with a first step — and to automate BPM processes, that first step is organizing your data. Specifically for BPM processes that involve documents, it means enriching your documents with structured, well-thought-out metadata. With such metadata, automation gains the clear context it needs to trigger consistently and execute your defined processes.
Getting your metadata right is critical for meaningful automation—because without structure, automation can only replicate chaos. As Michael Hammer, co-creator of Business Process Reengineering (BPR), famously said,
“Automating a mess yields an automated mess.”
Once you have the metadata structure well set up, there is the question of the data within that structure. Because, let’s face it, what good is having perfect metadata fields if the users are not putting information into them? Drag & Drop and Metadata for Dynamics 365 CE by Connecting Software comes in precisely to help with this point.
In Short: Drag & Drop and Metadata for Dynamics 365 CE
Drag & Drop and Metadata for Dynamics 365 CE allows users to upload documents through Dynamics 365 CE via a drag-and-drop interface, which supports uploading several files at once.
Assuming you have the Dynamics to SharePoint integration correctly set up, those documents will be transferred to SharePoint as soon as they are uploaded.
Users can assign relevant metadata fields immediately after the upload. The tool supports the following metadata types: DateTime, Text, Yes/No (Boolean), Choice, and Managed Metadata fields. Multi-value selection is supported for each field type, allowing more flexibility in tagging documents. Metadata field names vary and are custom — such as Document Type, Region, or Approval Status.
It is important to note that the solution manages the metadata within SharePoint. It does not alter what happens inside D365 CE directly; instead, it enriches the documents once they are stored in SharePoint.
Let’s now explore how metadata serves as the foundation for BPM execution and how this solution helps you get there faster.
Why Metadata Matters: It Powers Automation
Metadata is what transforms plain documents into process-aware content. It provides the context that automation tools like Power Automate, Logic Apps, and Dynamics 365 workflows need to trigger, route, and process tasks intelligently.
More and more businesses choose to automate their processes. In fact, the percentage of businesses automating at least one process is projected to grow from 66% in 2024 to 85% in 2029.
When implementing BPM, automation is one of the most effective ways to increase process speed and productivity. Additionally, by reducing manual effort, you also reduce manual error and enforce consistency.
Let’s see how this all works by looking at specific use cases.
Metadata: Use Cases for BPM within Dynamics 365
The following use cases illustrate how metadata supports smarter, more flexible business processes.
Process Customization by Document Type
Metadata classifies documents by type (e.g., quotes, contracts), ensuring each triggers the right workflow. Type can also be combined with other criteria.
Example:
When the user uploads a quote document, he sets the metadata field QuoteValue to High if the quote exceeds $10,000. An automated flow can check for QuoteValue and ApprovalStatus and trigger necessary actions, such as sending an e-mail to the person who should approve the quote.
Metadata Used:
QuoteValue (Choice), ApprovalStatus (Choice)
Audit Trails and Tracking
Metadata can be used to maintain a thorough audit trail to support compliance and transparency.
Example:
When a signed contract is uploaded, users add the signer’s name and signing date as metadata. This information can automatically trigger compliance workflows, such as notifying the legal team for review, ensuring every contract receives the required scrutiny without manual follow-up. This audit trail provides clear evidence of who signed the document and when, supporting compliance requirements during audits.
Metadata Used:
SignedBy (Text or Managed Metadata), SignedDate (DateTime)
Automated Retention and Compliance Policies
Metadata can enable precise, automated retention policies in SharePoint, helping organizations comply with regulatory and internal data governance requirements.
Example:
When a file is uploaded in Dynamics (and placed in SharePoint by the existing Dynamics/SharePoint integration), users can add metadata that indicates how long it should be kept, such as Retention Category. Based on this metadata, automated workflows can be triggered—using tools like Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager—to archive or delete files when they reach the end of their retention period, ensuring consistent policy enforcement without manual effort.
Metadata Used:
RetentionCategory (Choice or Managed Metadata)
Productivity and Dashboards
Use metadata to make sure documents build dynamic dashboards that monitor process progress.
Example:
Documents tagged with Status = Pending Approval for more than 48 hours can trigger alerts for supervisors, keeping processes on track.
Metadata Used:
Status (Choice)
Document Prioritization
Ensure the documents have separate processing depending on their priority.
Example:
Invoices tagged with Priority= High are automatically routed for prioritized review and handling, reducing bottlenecks while still maintaining necessary approvals.
Metadata Used:
Priority (Choice)
Document and Task Assignment
Use metadata to automate sorting and task assignment.
Example:
Onboarding documents tagged with Region = EMEA are automatically e-mailed to the appropriate HR team—no manual sorting needed.
Metadata Used:
Region (Choice or Managed Metadata)
How the Tool Helps
Users tag documents with metadata as they upload them, enabling automated routing through Power Automate or custom workflows. This ensures each file is processed accurately and efficiently, without manual intervention.
Drag & Drop and Metadata for Dynamics 365 CE simplifies this first — and most important — step: capturing high-quality metadata at the moment documents are introduced into your system.
Here’s what makes it different:
- A streamlined drag-and-drop interface inside Dynamics 365 CE
- SharePoint Metadata assignment right after upload and within Dynamics 365
- Support for custom metadata fields relevant to your unique processes
- No need to switch platforms or retrain users — it works right where your teams already do, with the UI they are familiar with
In Summary
BPM = Strategy
Automation = Execution
Metadata = The First Step
Think of BPM as designing a race track, automation as the self-driving car, and metadata as the GPS that tells it where to go.
Without metadata, automation doesn’t know what action to perform, what rules apply, or where the process stands. That’s why kicking off your BPM journey with a metadata-first approach pays dividends.
Whether you’re looking to simplify workflows, improve compliance, or power RPA and process mining down the road, Drag & Drop and Metadata for Dynamics 365 CE helps you start strong — with the structured data that automation depends on.
Ready to take the next step in transforming your business processes?
Discover how Drag & Drop and Metadata for Dynamics 365 CE can empower your team to manage metadata seamlessly and launch your BPM strategy with confidence.
About the Author
Ana Neto is a Senior Technical Marketing Specialist and software engineer with more than 25 years of experience.
She uses her technical knowledge to create insightful articles and resources for Connecting Software. These resources help organizations improve their workflows, their security and eliminate data silos.
Read more of her insights on the Connecting Software blog.
Connecting Software is proud to be an active publisher in the CRM Software Blog since 2019.
References:
Michael Martin Hammer (Wikipedia)
The post The First Step to Smarter BPM in Dynamics 365: Enriching Documents with Metadata appeared first on CRM Software Blog | Dynamics 365.
