version: "1.0" author: Klemens Stelk

CRM Best Practices

Follow these standards when working with Dynamics 365/CRM, Dataverse, or Power Platform.

Publisher

Always use the sic_ prefix (SmartImpactCustomer publisher).

Table Naming (MUST)

• •Never use 'Organisational' ownership - always use 'User or Team'
• •Use all lowercase for schema names
• •Reference data tables: use sic_ref_ prefix (e.g., sic_ref_typeofestablishment)
• •BAU tables: use sic_ prefix (e.g., sic_application)

Column Naming (SHOULD)

• •Lookups: sic_{target_table_name}id (e.g., sic_contactid for Contact lookup)
• •All others: schema name matches field name, all lowercase (e.g., Display: "Start Date" → Schema: sic_startdate)
• •Avoid booleans unless absolutely necessary
• •DateTime: use 'Time Zone Independent' unless multi-timezone CRM

Option Sets / Status Columns (SHOULD)

• •Do NOT use OOTB state/status reason unless deactivation or status transitions are part of business process
• •Default to global option sets for simplicity and reusability
• •Use RefData tables only when:
  • •Status logic must be data-driven or extensible
  • •Additional metadata, transitions, or role-based rules are required
  • •Many options exist or different teams use different status sets

Required Columns for New Tables

All tables (except RefData) must have:

• •sic_updatedbyprocess (Single line text, 4000 chars) - "This field is updated each time an automated process updates this record."

RefData tables additionally need:

• •sic_startdate (Date only, TZ independent) - "The date this reference data record started being used."
• •sic_enddate (Date only, TZ independent) - "The date this reference data record stopped being used."
• •sic_description (Multi-line plain text, 20,000 chars)
• •sic_code (Single line text) - "Code to identify the record instead of GUID"

Data migration columns (when applicable):

• •sic_externalkey - "Unique identifier from original source system"
• •sic_externalsystem - "Original source system"

New Table Checklist

1. •Creation: Set schema name with correct prefix, uncheck unused table features, rename primary column schema to sic_name
2. •Columns: Add client columns per wireframes, add generic columns (updatedbyprocess), add RefData columns if applicable
3. •Customization: Copy/rename SI-Product forms, enable Power App Grid Control for colored option-set statuses, customize Active records view
4. •Grid Colors: Orange ffd175, Green 8ed483, Red ff8c8c, Grey d1d1d1
5. •Views: Name column first, then relevant columns, created on/by, modified on/by, status
6. •Timeline: Reduce activity types to <10 for performance
7. •Icon: Add 16px SVG as web resource
8. •Security: Add table to MDA, update sitemap, add/update security role

Validation

Use the validate-dataverse-best-practices tool with publisherPrefix: "sic_" to check entity compliance.