Microsoft Dynamics 365 Implementation at Hoval: One CRM for Marketing and Sales

Rising market demands, increasing competitive pressure and a fragmented tool landscape forced the Hoval Group to rethink its approach to marketing and sales. To replace data silos and bring both areas together on a shared platform, the company decided to implement Microsoft Dynamics 365. Together with ORBIS, Hoval rolled out Dynamics 365 Sales as its new CRM and Customer Insights – Journeys for marketing group-wide – cleanly integrated into the existing SAP landscape. This laid the foundation for more efficient workflows, greater transparency and a future-proof setup of marketing and sales.

• Starting point: Historically grown CRM and marketing tools, data silos and a lack of cross-departmental processes were slowing down growth in marketing and sales at Hoval.
• Solution: Group-wide implementation of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales as CRM and Customer Insights – Journeys for marketing, realized with ORBIS.
• Distinguishing feature: Seamless integration into the existing SAP landscape via SAP Cloud Integration.
• Result: Over 80% satisfaction in the pilot market Switzerland, 360° view of customers, mobile access for around 50 field sales employees and completed rollout across all countries.

Hoval is a leading provider of heating, cooling and indoor climate solutions and has stood for innovation and quality for over 80 years. The family-owned company combines technical expertise with a strong focus on individual consultation and excellent customer service. With around 2,500 employees in more than 15 countries, Hoval develops heating and indoor climate solutions that make people and spaces sustainably more comfortable – always with an eye on energy and the environment.

The Starting Point: Data Silos Slowing Down Marketing and Sales

With the growing demand for heat pumps over recent years, Hoval invested around 80 million euros in expanding its production capacities at both the Vaduz site and in Istebné, Slovakia as well as in Hoyerswerda, Germany.

But that alone was not enough: The organization itself – above all marketing and sales – also had to position itself better to handle the growing demands. Historically grown CRM and marketing automation tools across the various subsidiaries, data silos and a lack of cross-departmental processes threatened to hinder revenue growth.

In April 2023, Hoval therefore began searching for a strong partner and a new solution to eliminate the fragmented tool landscape and bring marketing and sales closer together with a unified system. The choice ultimately fell on ORBIS, who stood out with a well-structured approach, extensive know-how and proven expertise.

"ORBIS brought what we were looking for: in-depth Dynamics and SAP knowledge as well as many years of project experience," says Pavlov.

The Solution: Dynamics 365 Sales and Customer Insights – Journeys

Hoval had clearly defined requirements: A solution cleanly integrated into the existing IT architecture that creates a shared data foundation for sales and marketing and enables better collaboration – also across departmental and subsidiary boundaries.

After an intensive comparison of various systems, Hoval chose Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales as its new CRM and Dynamics 365 Customer Insight Journeys as its integrated marketing tool. Iliyan Pavlov: "The package had to be functionally convincing, economically viable and offer high usability. Microsoft's Dynamics applications were a perfect fit."

The Implementation: Dynamics 365 Cleanly Connected to SAP

The project comprised three core workstreams that were implemented in parallel: the connection to the existing SAP ERP system, the rollout of Dynamics 365 Sales and the implementation of the marketing solution including training.

A particular challenge was the integration of Dynamics 365 into the existing SAP landscape. Hoval's large data volumes required a high-performance interface. Using SAP Cloud Integration, ORBIS succeeded in ensuring stable and efficient data exchange between ERP and CRM. Today, Hoval benefits from a seamless connection between both systems.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales: 360° View and Mobile Field Sales

With Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales, the sales team now has a central 360° view of accounts and contacts. Dashboards such as "MyWork" provide a quick overview of activities, quotations and orders. The field sales team also benefits: Around 50 employees access all relevant customer information on mobile devices and capture sales opportunities directly after customer meetings in the CRM.

"In the pilot market Switzerland, the new applications achieve a satisfaction rate of over 80 percent according to an internal survey. Product and project managers are now even actively requesting licenses," reports Pavlov.

A forecast-capable stakeholder management additionally increases transparency in complex projects. Roles such as architect, planner or operator are mapped in a structured way, communication histories are linked and next steps are specifically supported. This enabled Hoval to significantly improve the coordination and tracking of sales opportunities.

CRM and Marketing Automation on One Platform

Collaboration between marketing and sales has also noticeably improved. A standardized lead-to-opportunity process supports the structured qualification of leads. Marketing accompanies this process with targeted measures such as follow-up emails or event invitations – all within a shared platform.

AI in Dynamics 365: Sales Copilot in Use at Hoval

The AI tools in Dynamics 365 are already being evaluated and tested at Hoval: Sales Copilot demonstrates how customer conversations or meetings can be automatically summarized and meaningful next steps derived. Naturally, AI can also assist with execution, for instance by drafting appropriate emails to customers. For data entry, Copilot can also be controlled using natural language commands to capture leads, opportunities or notes even faster. Iliyan Pavlov sounds accordingly positive: "The introduction of Dynamics 365 and the ORBIS tools is a real win for the quality of our work. And we are also pleased about many unexpected benefits. For example, that colleagues from sales, marketing and customer service now jointly plan and successfully execute initiatives. With the old CRM, that would have been unthinkable."

The Result: Group-Wide Rollout and Better Forecasting

The rollout of Microsoft Dynamics 365 is now completed across all Hoval countries. Today, the company benefits group-wide from a unified system landscape that enables better forecasting and more reliable resource planning.

At the same time, Hoval relies on a cloud-based standard system that is continuously developed further and offers long-term security for innovation and growth.