Many of the organisations we have worked in have migrating to Microsoft 365 typically utilise email and the well-loved Microsoft Office apps first; they make use of OneDrive, Teams, and SharePoint for content management and collaboration. However, not many realise the power they can harness from utilising Power Apps and Power Automate to build custom applications quickly.
Forming two of the Power Platform’s roster of products (Power BI and Power Virtual Agent being the other two), Power Apps and Power Automate can help you in building apps that can automate your repetitive business processes, even without coding skills. Gone are the days of waiting for IT to develop an app for you with Microsoft democratising application development using Power Apps and Power Automate.
In this blog, we discuss some of the real-world examples and use cases of how we have helped our clients solve their business process automation issues using Power Apps and Power Automate.
Recruitment
The Problem: Any recruiter dealing with a large candidate pool going through multiple steps of approvals can relate to the fact that a recruitment process can get complicated when done manually. Such is the case of Diabetes Victoria where we helped with their manual recruitment process that used to take an average of three weeks to complete.
The paper-based form was often routed from one approver to another, and sometimes even sent between office locations. The forms would take time to complete, meaning a high probability that it would become outdated by the time it reached the final approval, or would get lost in transit.
The Solution: Using the existing Office 365 subscription, Professional Advantage implemented a SharePoint Intranet in Diabetes Victoria and developed a recruitment application using Power Apps and Power Automate.
The Outcome: The digitised forms on Power Apps and Power Automate enabled Diabetes Victoria to streamline their recruitment process improving turnaround from request to approval to less than one week.
Related content: Diabetes Victoria case study
Uniform Request
The Problem: Queensland’s major indigenous community healthcare organisation ATSICHS Brisbane turned to Professional Advantage to help them further their digital transformation. One of the key undertakings to this was the conversion of their old-fashioned pen and paper-based processes to online. Several forms and checklists were all manually filled out by employees and processed by their administrative personnel. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic requiring some of their staff to work remotely, it made it difficult to process requests such as a uniform using the paper-based forms.
The Solution: ATSICHS Brisbane’s digital transformation included a SharePoint Intranet and Microsoft Teams deployment as well as app development using Power Apps and Power Automate from Professional Advantage.
The Outcome: What used to be an old-fashioned paper-based uniform ordering process is now automated using an online form on Power Automate. Staff can now request uniforms from their mobile devices anytime, anywhere. Uniform requests are logged into a SharePoint list making it easier for their admin staff to manage the requests and keep track of uniforms already availed by their staff. With this application, at least five manual steps of admin tasks were removed, allowing for more bandwidth for more valuable charitable work for ATSICHS.
Timesheet
The Problem: A not-for-profit organisation had no HR system to manage and track the number of hours worked or rendered by staff. The paper-based timesheets were hard to manage and prone to errors, especially in times when staff members render additional working hours to the timesheet.
The Solution: Professional Advantage automated this crucial step for the HR team by providing a simple timesheeting application developed on Power Apps and Power Automate.
The Outcome: Timesheets are now accurately reflected, and overtime is properly accounted for with the new timesheeting application. This app was launched in only a matter of days, allowing the company to automate quickly an otherwise highly manual and repetitive routine.
Elder Support Program Checklist
The Problem: After seeing how rapidly applications can be developed in Power Apps and Power Automate, this same not-for-profit organisation turned to automating their elder support program checklist next. Using paper-based forms worked previously, but their aspiration to transform digitally paved the way to automate this checklist.
The Solution: Professional Advantage developed an application powered by Power Apps to manage the checklist for this not-for-profit organisation’s elder support program.
The Outcome: Accessible on mobile devices, the app now allows the drivers to easily log in their visits, monitor the delivery of meals, and other activities with which the elderly would need assistance. The app made it more convenient and efficient for their staff to support their elders.
Team Member Request
The Problem: A not-for-profit organisation for vision care wanted to simplify requests for new team members and make it auditable through an online form. They wanted to digitise this paper-based process and manage the requests through a list on their SharePoint Intranet.
The Solution: The Team Member Request Form was developed using Power Automate to manage the process. This form connects to a SharePoint Intranet that Professional Advantage also developed for this not-for-profit organisation, which then deposits the data into a SharePoint list.
The Outcome: With the form now accessible online, any manager can request for a new team member anytime, anywhere. All new requests are managed through their SharePoint Intranet, which enables their HR team to get better visibility on the total number of requests.
Harness the power of automated business processes now
Organisations are turning to business process automation to empower their people to do more with fewer resources. In today’s business climate, the companies that digitise their manual business processes improve efficiencies, and save time and effort. Those that use the applications already existing in their Microsoft 365 subscriptions are able to maximise their IT investment, save on software costs, and reap the benefits of automation.
The real-world use cases in this blog are just a few examples of what we have done for our clients, but the true potential of Power Apps and Power Platform is only limited by your use case and imagination! If you have the vision but don’t have the bandwidth to make your dream app a reality, we can help! Leave a comment below or contact us on 1800 126 499.
