The U.S. Small Business Administration integrates Azure Communication Services, sending critical information to millions of Americans more quickly

At the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), we faced significant challenges with our existing mass communications solution. Our organization is the only cabinet-level federal agency fully dedicated to small business counseling, capital, and contracting expertise. We also offer disaster assistance for homeowners, renters, nonprofits, and businesses of all sizes affected by disaster recovery-related assistance, so we needed a scalable platform that could efficiently send critical information to millions of Americans, especially during times of disaster recovery and urgent business support.

We also required a platform that could do this quickly and was cost-effective, while also allowing us to further centralize operational capabilities within Dynamics 365, which would help teams internally. Centralizing capabilities means finding ways to consolidate information in one system, creating a single-pane-of-glass experience, so people here don't have to leave Dynamics 365 and can have everything they need without jumping from one system to another to get their work done.

How the U.S. SBA implemented Azure Communication Services into their existing systems

After evaluating various options, we decided to implement Microsoft Azure Communication Services for email mass communications.

It was an easy decision for us because Azure Communication Services meets our needs in the following ways:

1. Speed: We can send out one million emails in under 20 minutes.
2. Cost: Azure Comms is significantly more affordable than competing solutions.
3. Integration: Azure Comms seamlessly integrates into Dynamics 365 as a complementary feature.

How SBA implemented Microsoft Azure Communication Services into Dynamics 365

To implement Azure Communication Services, we worked closely with the product group to integrate it into Dynamics 365, which we use to handle large campaigns. Dynamics 365 also centralizes knowledge base reference materials for agents and customer service representatives. With the Azure Comms integration into Dynamics 365, we focused on refining the system’s outbound email velocity over the course of several months. 

Within 30 days, we successfully transitioned over 50 campaign teams to Dynamics 365 while collaborating with Microsoft to integrate Azure Communications Services into the platform. Some challenges arose, but we collaborated with the product group to incorporate improvements and refine its capabilities over time.

We are also leveraging AI for sentiment analysis and process automation to meet various internal and external requirements. We recently implemented Copilot in Dynamics 365, for example, which is safe, secure, and free within our D365 licensing. We've done so much work in bringing people’s knowledge base materials into the platform that employees have been able to immediately see the benefits of using Copilot:

• Ask feature on Copilot makes it easy to submit a prompt and get help with a specific task.
• Automatic summarization of a specific case, which helps our agents and service representatives get up to speed immediately and be more responsive.
• Email drafting is now much easier and faster with Copilot because it allows anyone to write an email from scratch in a fraction of the time.
• Language translation via Copilot allows us to toggle on the fly between different languages and translate a different language into English--and vice versa. 

A crucial skill set in our organization is language proficiency, particularly in Spanish. Historically, we've had to either hire representatives with Spanish language skills or rely on contracted services to meet this need. If we receive an email in Spanish, an English-speaking team member can translate it into English and respond in Spanish, helping to reduce our reliance on individuals with specialized language skills.

"It’s difficult to predict when we’ll receive an email in a different language. But now, we can translate messages instantly and respond in the sender’s native language—removing barriers and streamlining communication like never before. It’s an incredible advantage—one that doesn’t get nearly enough attention. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Copilot’s translation capability isn’t just convenient; it’s a game-changer.""

The results of implementing ACS into Dynamics 365 

There are many benefits to using Azure Communication Services and integrating it into Dynamics 365. ACS has empowered our campaign teams to address time-sensitive requests efficiently, enabling us to send out critical communications within minutes or a few hours—rather than days. We have sent over 300 million emails through Azure Comms since its implementation in March 2023.

Azure Communication Services has transformed our ability to respond promptly to diverse mass communication needs, even with minimum notice. Our journey with ACS showcases the power of cloud-based communication solutions in enhancing organizational efficiency and effectiveness, shares Brian Quay, U.S. SBA Program Manager.

Looking ahead 

We plan to extend the functionality of Azure Communication Services to support internal-facing communications in the near future, including: 

• Exploring additional communication methods (e.g., SMS, phone) to provide omnichannel, preference-oriented campaigns.
• Leveraging virtual appointment options to enhance service delivery.
• Developing more refined metrics, such as open and click rates, for better insights into the impact of our mass communication efforts.

Azure Communication Services has transformed our ability to respond promptly to diverse mass communication needs, even with minimal notice. Our journey with Azure Comms showcases the power of cloud-based communication solutions in enhancing organizational efficiency and effectiveness.

The more people grasp the features of Dynamics 365 and its ease of integration with systems like Azure Communication Services, the better they understand its quantifiable benefits and true value. A common misconception is that adopting Dynamics 365 means being restricted to Microsoft-only systems—but that’s not the case. You can integrate a different phone system, leverage various databases, and customize the platform to suit your needs. Whether it's delivering crucial information to frontline workers or enabling responsive services, Dynamics 365 is far more than just a customer relationship management (CRM) system—it's a versatile, customizable solution designed to support a wide range of business requirements and operational needs.