03 Aug Looking Beneath the Surface – Exploring the hidden depths of Power Apps
Power Apps
“If only there was an app for that”
We live in an increasingly automated world, but despite the proliferation of automation, many business owners find themselves bogged down with the same mundane, repetitive tasks day in, day out.
“Power Apps” is a platform featuring a range of tools that empowers the user to create their own custom applications. Such applications could save your business time and money by getting rid of time-consuming repetitive tasks, and freeing up staff time to focus on more productive endeavours.
Are your business’ processes optimised for efficiency?
Business processes are all about streamlining complex procedures, maintaining smooth operation and ultimately using resources (both time and money) optimally.
Achieving the above can be easier said than done however when staff have to juggle data stored in a large number of siloed applications and data storage locations that seemingly have no ability to communicate with one another. Additionally, many managers believe that automation is ‘above their heads’- it’s seen as a technically complex process requiring computer science wizardry that would be too difficult or expensive to implement in any value-adding way.
Many proprietary applications seek to address some of the common business process areas – there are lots of accounting applications, out there and sales and marketing teams have a multitude of Customer Relationship Managers (CRMs) to choose from. While these are great, they don’t offer the flexibility and customisation potential that many business owners crave – they need applications tailored to their unique operational challenges.
That’s where Power Apps comes in. This app creation platform lets users craft their own applications (often in minutes) to streamline unique business processes. It’s a cost-effective shortcut to app development and requires no technical expertise to get started.
Introducing your new productivity partner – Microsoft Power Apps
Power Apps is basically a platform that allows users to build apps using a huge collection of pre-built components and templates. The ‘plug and play’ nature of Power Apps removes the legwork (the coding) from app development, fast-tracking what would otherwise be a lengthy and often expensive process.
Businesses use the platform to streamline, eliminate altogether or at very least simplify the menial manual tasks that plague everyday office life. Here are some key points to note:
- It’s easy to use. ‘App development’ is a daunting concept for SMEs. Custom apps are often seen as the preserve of high-revenue firms with deep pockets, as the technical expertise required for app development doesn’t come cheap. Thanks to Power Apps however, smaller firms can gain cost-effective access to the world of app development and build their own custom applications on an intuitive interface using a vast bank of pre-constructed parts and templates. No technical expertise is required and there isn’t even much pre-training required to use the platform.
- Create task-based ‘Canvas apps.’ Perfect for error-free data gathering and situations that require a slick user experience. Canvas Apps are infinitely customisable; specify data fields and visuals to create a great first impression. Make apps that can be accessed on any device – mobile, desktop or tablet.
- Gain Business insights using ‘Model-driven apps.’ Model-driven apps consolidate multiple data sources and allow you to visualise the ‘hidden meaning’ contained in your business’ data. These are also apps that let you connect applications and streamline menial tasks.
- Impress your web visitors with immersive and visually stunning user experience. Improve customer engagement with web-integrated Canvas apps, or embed model-driven apps in your website to create impressive visual dashboards that harness your data to provide real-time insights. Incorporating simple applications into your website is sure to impress visitors and will give your web presence an air of sophistication.
So why not free your team from the tedium of time-consuming, repetitive tasks and give PowerApps a try today? Investing a little time exploring this empowering platform could save you vast amounts of time and money in the long run.
How can we help?
Here at VaraTech, we offer a broad range of IT support and consultancy services that aim to help small businesses extract maximum value from their IT. From proactive network monitoring/maintenance and hardware leasing to Cloud services, VoIP telephony and much more, we help our clients identify and roll-out the best-fit solutions for their businesses.
We’re cloud computing experts! We can help your business leverage the potential of some of the most empowering Cloud services, such as Microsoft 365. Why not get in touch today, to discover how the flexibility, scalability cost-efficiency, convenience and security of Cloud services can help your business realise its potential.