Power Automate: Get Routine Processes Moving

Companies have long struggled with how to define and automate business processes: what could be a simple automated workflow ends up including many manual steps. Often business processes cross multiple applications or systems which makes automation even more problematic. Microsoft’s answer to this is Power Automate, one of the pillars of the Power Platform.

Microsoft Power Automate is designed to be used by power users, not developers. In fact, the user interface is visual, guiding users through each step of creating a workflow. Power Automate allows you to complete repetitive, admin-based tasks across applications and systems whenever specific triggers are met.

Works for both Office 365 and Dynamics

You can use Power Automate with the Microsoft 365 family of applications. You can also use it with the Dynamics 365 products (CE, FO, BC) and integrate the workflow between the two platforms. Power Automate promises to bring a lot of power and flexibility to Dynamics 365, and how it interacts with other services.

It’s important to remember that Dynamics 365 background workflows still have advantages in some cases, so you’ll need to consider whether a flow available in Dynamics already meets your needs. Ideally, Power Automate and Dynamics 365 background workflows can both be used as each method has its advantages.

Options are extensive

Whether you are a Microsoft 365 customer, a Dynamics customer, or both, the possibilities for using Power Automate are wide-ranging. Here are just a few; they may spur ideas for additional workflows you can use in your organization:

Templates and Connectors

Microsoft offers a large set of example flows, so you can start automating common processes (such as those listed above) immediately with pre-built templates.

Additionally, Power Automate has hundreds of different data sources and services, which are called “connectors” and isn’t limited to Outlook, SharePoint, Teams, Dynamics 365, and Excel. It’s also available for dozens of third-party services, like Dropbox, Google Drive, Gmail, and GoToMeeting.

These connectors contain triggers and actions. A trigger launches the flow, and the actions are the steps to be followed. The connector defines the data required by the integration, but more importantly what data will be returned.

For Dynamics products, such as Dynamics 365 Sales, Dynamics 365 Customer Service, Dynamics 365 Field Service, Dynamics 365 Marketing, and Dynamics 365 Project Service Automation, you’ll need to use the Dataverse connector, as outlined here. For creating a flow in Dynamics Finance and Operations, you’ll need to use the finance and operations connector, which provides access to the data entities you’ll need.

But there are many pre-built templates for Dynamics integration already available in Power Automate:

For Custom Work

Professional developers can easily extend the functionality using Azure Logic Apps. So, if a workflow gets more complex than what can be configured in Power Automate, developers can migrate it to Azure Logic Apps, and expand the functionality using Visual Studio.

Power Automate Plans

• Per User: Power Automate per user plan which equips a user to run unlimited flows (within service limits) with the full capabilities of Power Automate based on their unique needs for $15/user/month.

• Per Flow: Power Automate per flow plan which enables organizations to implement flows with reserved capacity that serve teams, department, or the entire organization without having to license each end user. This plan starts at $500/month for 5 flows.

• For Dynamics 365 users, your license includes rights to use Power Automate with D365. However, there are some daily API limits to consider. In case of need, add-ons can be purchased to extend these limits.

More details can be found at Power Platform licensing FAQ.

How to Get Started

The easiest way to get started using Power Automate is to have a discussion with your partner. Axtegrity can work with you to determine three or four workflows that would provide value to your organization, such as expense approval, time tracking, new hire onboarding and more. When it’s a process your company uses often, even a small workflow can generate a significant time savings for your company.

Microsoft invests a lot in Power Automate so it should get more powerful release over release. Contact us today to find out more.