Microsoft Power Platform is a dynamic combination of cloud tools that allows users to craft business applications, automate mundane processes and analyze data. Power Platform can collect data and gain analytical insights to help businesses progress. Microsoft Power Platform has an intuitive graphical user interface. It is versatile as it is a collection of different components.
The main Power Platform components are:-
- Power Apps: A low code platform to develop apps.
- Power Automate: Allows business process automation.
- Power BI: An analytics service.
- Power Virtual Agents: Helps in creating powerful chatbots.
There is a growing need in today’s world for business process automation to increase the company’s operational efficiency and overall performance. Document management, help desk, and many other menial responsibilities are tasks that consume too much time and labor. Due to the need for expertise, the systems put in place in these companies are difficult to change. Low-code platforms like the Microsoft Power Platform are, hence the way forward.
Microsoft Power Platform is used by many businesses worldwide looking to make their organization more efficient; one such company is the Blackmores group. Tjin Tacke, head of application at Blackmores, once explained that crafting a product is a delicate and cumbersome process. By bringing all the available data together in one app, their product development teams could accelerate a product idea from conception to mass production. Other companies like Virgin Atlantic and T-Mobile have also increased automation and become more productive by using the Microsoft Power Platform. Microsoft Power Platform is believed to be a leader in the arena of low-code development programs.
Microsoft Power Platform: Why Should It Be in Your Enterprise Toolkit?
The benefits of Power Platform are revolutionary, especially for small and emerging businesses helping them automate and reduce development costs. Microsoft Power Platform aids in:
Cutting development costs:
A 2019 study conducted by Forrester showed, the average expense to develop an application with PowerApps and Power Automate is 70% less than the cost of conventional strategies due to the usage of fewer professional IT developers.
- Cutting licensing costs:
The same study also showed that creating new applications, such as an expenses application, reduces the money spent on third-party subscription-based applications by 50%.
- Save time:
The projects undertaken by the users consisted of automated processes. For example, Power Virtual Agents reduced the time taken to send emails. Consequently, the study found that some organizations saved up to 5 hours of work a week.
- Faster, more accurate decision-making:
Power apps and Power Automate allow the user to gather accurate data rapidly. Further, the use of Power BI to visualize and interpret this data gives the users the tools to make quick decisions.
- All business processes on a single platform:
Using Data Connectors allows users to securely store and manage information from multiple sources and collectively analyze the data to ensure simplicity of use. For example, you can have Power Automate on one device and Power BI on another and still be able to pool the data received from Power Automate into charts through Power BI.
- Low code or no-code platform:
The Microsoft Power Platform gives you the ability to build apps quickly using a drag and drop interface and configuration-based app controls.
- Automates compliance management:
Power Automate and other customized apps allow members of organizations to prove compliance more easily as the data provided by automation follows a workflow and is more accurate than recorded data.
- Integration with Microsoft applications:
Users currently utilizing Microsoft Dynamics 365 and transitioning to Power Platform can seamlessly gather data from excel sheets, etc. The Microsoft Power Platform also integrates Dynamics 365.
- Security:
The applications built using Power Apps tie into the Azure Active Directory and various Microsoft Power Platform security solutions like the database, which issue a role-based security model. Meaning, the members of your organization will only see the information which is relevant to their role. The apps created using the Power Platform are also GDPR compliant. GDPR is a legal framework for the handling of personal information by businesses.
Microsoft Power Platform Integration with Dynamics 365: Main Pillars, Features, and Working Methodology
Microsoft Power Platform has four core products.
1. Power BI or Business Intelligence:
Microsoft Power BI is an analytical tool that comprehends the analyzed data and can provide it through easily understandable visual representations. It has an in-built security system, so the users do not have to worry about data management. It combines applications and data connectors, allowing users to develop dashboards, blend multiple data sources, and construct data charts.
Power BI also has many attractive features, one of them being its myriad of visualizations. Another feature is, the ‘get data’ option, which allows you to get data from different sources and compile it. The Q and A box is also a distinctive feature of Power BI, which allows you to ask questions to search for data in the system.
In a new report by Forrester, a market research company, it is suggested that Power BI is the best when it comes to data-analyzing tools. The report also evaluated Power BI’s ability to enable users to make data-driven decisions and gave it the highest score of any other competitor.
Some benefits and other features of Power BI:
- Scalable
As the performance and storage of Power BI are scalable, which allows data access and analysis to be performed more quickly. Integrates well into your existing business environment and effectively leverages data sources to generate custom reports and dashboards.
- Dataset filtration
A dataset is a mix of data collected from different sources and pooled into one. With Power BI, these datasets can be filtered through to find even more nuanced and relevant data. With many in-built data connectors, users can connect to many data sources and make datasets.
- Flexible tiles
A tile is a single piece of visualized data. In Power BI, the dashboard contains numerous tiles, each with its visualization, like a collage of data. BI allows you to move these tiles around according to your will and convenience.
- DAX Data Analysis Function
DAX stands for Data Analysis Expression. They are predefined codes to perform analytical functions on data. There are currently more than 200 analytical functions on Power BI.
2. Power Apps:
Microsoft Power Apps provides a low code or no-code development platform to develop apps for intricate business needs. Due to its connectors, scalable data service, and app platform, it is easy to integrate with existing data. Power Apps encourage the development of applications that run on all devices. Off-the-counter apps often don’t meet the business’s needs, so Power Apps allow users to create their apps according to their needs.
Some benefits and features of Power Apps:
- Build apps quickly
Power Apps give the users the means they need to build applications they require with high functionality —including pre-built AI components.
- Building apps directly through data sources
Power Apps now allow you to create apps directly through Microsoft Teams, allowing you to save time on transferring data.
- Convenient for multiple devices
Applications built using Power Apps have a responsive design meaning, it makes them render well on a plethora of devices, and thus, the custom apps function smoothly on your mobile devices and desktops.
- Cost-effective
Microsoft Power Apps is very affordable, even for an emerging business. They assist you in reducing your expenditure on third-party service providers and app development from scratch by enabling you to create your apps.
3. Power Automate:
Microsoft Power Automate is dedicated to streamlining processes, automation, and improving workflows using artificial intelligence. It automates through five different types of flows.
- Automated flows: One action or more will automatically be performed after an action has triggered it.
- Button flows: repetitive tasks will be automated once a button is tapped.
- Scheduled flows: tasks will be automated based on the schedule.
- Business process flows: automating business processes like compliance checks.
- UI flows: uses RPA in workflows to automate repetitive tasks.
Power Platform features of Power Automate:
- It narrows your daily activities.
- It is good at Power Platform Data Integration.
- Reduces the risk of human error.
- Power Automate also has templates of workflows.
- With Power Automate’s mobile, any organization member can work from anywhere.
4. Power Virtual Agents:
Power Platform Virtual Agents enable users to create a fully functional chatbox and manage it without technical experience. It has an accessible interface and pre-made templates to help users get started on their first chatbot right away.
Benefits and features of Power Virtual Agents:
- Reduce operational costs.
- Automating basic inquiries and redirecting labor-power towards more complex issues can save operational costs.
- Improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Answering queries 24*7 through the chatbot will build customer satisfaction.
- Measure and improve accuracy.
- Every interactive chatbot will be a learning experience. You can observe and continuously improve the chatbot through the insights in your dashboard.
- Power Virtual Agents allow you to pick your icon in the chatbox.
- Being able to use chat boxes in Microsoft Teams.
- It can host multiple AI models on a single platform, making it easier for all members of the organization to become involved.
These are the four Power Platform Apps. However, something that acts as the backbone running through these apps is the Dataverse. Dataverse is where all the data you use is stored. Another essential component is the Data Connectors like Dropbox, for example. They allow you to switch between devices without having to start all over again. AI Builder is a helping hand designed to help you navigate the Power Platform.
- Power Platform AI Builder:
AI Builder is a Microsoft Power Platform that allows your organization to use Artificial Intelligence to automate processes. With AI Builder, you do not need coding skills to access the efficiency of AI. Users can build custom models tailored to their needs or choose a pre-built template perfect for various uses. The AI Builder also comes with templates so users can start working on business solutions right away. You can customize your own AI models to suit your needs best.
- Dataverse:
Dataverse allows you to store and manage data used by applications. With this, the data is stored within groups of tables. The tables are no different from normal tables having rows and columns. The Dataverse already includes a base set of standard tables that apply to typical scenarios. The users can also create custom tables according to the needs of their organizations. It is, put simply, the spine of data-driven organizations.
- Data connectors:
A data connector is simply a bridge for information between places. Connectors enable the users to connect apps, devices, and data in the cloud. It acts as an underlying service to connect to Azure Logic Applications, Microsoft Power Apps, and Microsoft Power Automate.
Microsoft Power Platform Integration with Dynamics 365 and Others – Setup and Basic Prerequisites
Prerequisite knowledge
- The functionality of the Dataverse
Dynamics 365 Apps like Dynamics 365 customer service already use Dataverse to manage their data. This allows you to build apps with the data from Dynamics apps without the need for integration of the data.
Business rules that are provided in the Dataverse tables are also applied to the apps developed using Microsoft Power Apps to guarantee uniform data when it moves from the Dataverse tables to your apps.
- Overview of developing apps
Power Apps are a high functionality design platform for business applications and have four important parts.
- Canvas Apps – Canvas apps provide you with a highly tailored experience. You can build apps for any device and choose more than 200 data connectors.
- Model-Driven Apps – In a Model-Driven App, you start from your data model and build up from there into different models and visualizations.
- Portals – Portals help you create websites to attract the target audience, enable them to sign in with various identities, enter data in the Dataverse or just peruse nonchalantly.
- Microsoft Dataverse – It securely manages your data into customizable tables.
Let us now study the integrations of the Microsoft Power Platform.
Microsoft Power Platform Integration
Power Platform easily pairs up with Dynamics 365. It can integrate with Dynamics 365 modules like Finance, SCM, and Microsoft Teams.
- Integration with Finance and Operations:
Power Platform could integrate with the Finance and Operations module of Dynamics 365 to respond to business events. The events can be held using any app, and the Microsoft Power Platform business logic could handle it conveniently. Virtual entities, dual rights, and data events together with business events allow one to build applications and business processes that stretch across the boundaries between native Dataverse Apps and Finance and Operations applications.
- Integration with Microsoft Teams:
Microsoft Power Platform can form many integrated capabilities with Microsoft Teams. Reports and apps can be created and shared in the Teams workspace using Power BI. This encourages data-driven decisions. With Microsoft Teams, experts can automate laborious procedures within the platform without leaving Teams. The 300+ connector links are crucial for integrating third-party services and apps to automate business processes.
Why prefer DynaTech Solutions for Microsoft Power Platform?
Power Platform helps a business store, analyze and integrate data to help it understand its material reality. The four core services of this platform, namely, Power BI, Power Automate, Power Apps, and Power Virtual Agents, help ease out the business’s operations. They improve efficiency by manifolds with the help of AI Builders, Data Connectors, and Common Data Services.
In short, Microsoft Power Platform is a one-stop solution to reaching the maximum efficiency possible. Likely, it won’t be wrong to say that DynaTech Systems shall be your one-stop for solutions to all your queries related to the Microsoft Power Platform.
DynaTech Systems is a Certified Gold Partner of Microsoft with CMMI Level 3 certification for delivering quality services to its customers. We hope to assist you in your digital transformation journey with such expertise with the best Power Platform solutions.
So if you are looking for an authenticated service provider to help you with Microsoft Power Platform or wish to inquire about the same from a Power Platform consultant, feel free to reach out to DynaTech Systems at sales@dynatechconsultancy.com.
FAQs on Power Platform: All Your Queries Answered
1. What is Microsoft Power Platform?
Microsoft Power Platform is a collection of app-developing and data analyzing software applications. You can use it to automate your business processes, collect data from various sources, pool the data and visualize the results, and much more.
2. Is Power Platform SAAS or PaaS?
Power Platform is a PaaS offering, which is a Platform-as-a-Service offering.
3. Can Microsoft Power Platform function with Dynamics 365, Office 365, and Microsoft Teams?
Yes, Microsoft Power Platform can work with Dynamics 365, Office 365, and Microsoft Teams with an easy integration process, as detailed in the above sections.
4. What is the Microsoft Power Platform’s licensing model?
Companies can get licenses by specifically licensing certain apps or by being included in a license for a larger Microsoft Product, e.g., Dynamics 365. For details on that question, check Microsoft’s licensing guide. If you are still doubtful, reach out to DynaTech Systems for assistance.
5. What are the benefits of building a Model-Driven App?
Building an app through a model-driver approach helps you access the easy user interface that is accessible across various devices ranging from a mobile phone to a desktop.
