Do you spend a lot of time on manual tasks that could be automated? If so, you need to check out Microsoft Power Automate. This powerful tool, which was previously known as Microsoft Flow, lets you automate business processes quickly and easily. In this blog post, I will give you a basic overview of Power Automate, and show you how it can help streamline your workflow.

What is Microsoft Power Automate?

Microsoft Power Automate is a cloud-based service that enables you to automate tasks and processes. With Power Automate, you can easily create workflows that automate repetitive tasks, such as sending email notifications or performing repetitive data entry. You can also use Power Automate to connect different applications and services, so that data can flow between them automatically.

Power Automate is simple to use and does not require any coding skills. It includes a library of pre-built connectors that make it easy to connect to popular applications and services, such as SharePoint, OneDrive, Twitter, and Salesforce. You can also create your own custom connectors.

Power Automate is a great way to improve your productivity and save time on manual tasks. It is also very cost-effective, as it is included in many Microsoft 365 plans. If you are not already using Power Automate, I encourage you to give it a try. You may be surprised at how much it can help you streamline your workflow.

Power Automate is part of the Microsoft Power Platform suite of tools, which also includes Power BI, Power Apps, and Power Virtual Agents.

Microsoft Power Automate vs Zapier and IFTTT

Automation services have been around for awhile and you may be familiar with a few that have been available to consumers and businesses such as Zapier and IFTTT.  So what is the difference between those tools and Microsoft Power Automate?

Services like Zapier and IFTTT have their place in the market and are great for building simple flows. Power Automate gives you more complexity to build enterprise-level automations, but yet being simple enough for just about anyone in your organization to use.

Also, if your company runs on a Microsoft 365 license, Power Automate is free compared to Zapier and IFTTT which have hefty monthly fees.

Creating a Power Automate Flow

After you have determined what process you want to automate, jump into Power Automate and get started.

3 Ways to Make a Power Automate Flow

There are three ways to get started making an automated flow.

Start From a Blank Canvas

If you are just getting started with Power Automate, I recommend skipping this option and actually using the next option, but once you get familiar with the Power Automate environment and everything you can do, creating from a blank slate is a great option. Power Automate gives you six different ways you can get started.

Start From a Template

This is the best option for Power Automate beginners. Power Automate has hundreds of different pre-built templates that you can browse and choose from. Below is some examples of the templates you can use to get started.

Start From a Connector

Do you have a tool you use regularly that you want to automate? Power Automate has over 300 built-in connectors you can browse through and get started with one.

Steps for Creating Your First Power Automate Flow

The first step to using Power Automate is to create a flow. A flow is a series of steps that are performed in order to complete a task.

There are two types of flows: automated and button. Automated flows are triggered by an event, such as a new email arriving in your inbox, or a file being added to OneDrive. Button flows are manually triggered by the user, and can be started from within an application or service, or from a mobile device.

To create a flow, you will need to log in to the Power Automate website and select the 'Create a flow' option. You will then be prompted to choose a trigger, which is the event that will start the flow. After you have selected a trigger, you will need to specify what actions should be performed when the trigger occurs. Power Automate includes a wide range of actions that can be performed, such as sending an email, creating a task in SharePoint, or posting to Twitter. You can also add conditions to your flows, so that certain actions are only performed if certain criteria are met. For example, you could add a condition so that an email is only sent if a file is added to OneDrive.

After you have configured the trigger and actions for your flow, you will need to give your flow a name and description. You can then save your flow and run it manually, or wait for the trigger event to occur.

Microsoft Power Automate is a great way to streamline your workflow and save time on manual tasks.

Examples of Power Automate Flows

Wondering where to get started in your automation journey? Here is a list of some possible flows you could build to give you some inspiration.

• Save an Outlook email attachment to OneDrive

• Send an email for new tweets on Twitter that contain a certain keyword

• Create a task in Microsoft Planner based on a calendar event

• Email yourself a list of upcoming calendar events

• Save a Microsoft Teams message to OneNote

• Run a sentiment analysis on a series of tweets and push the data to Power BI

• Receive a notification when a Salesforce opportunity is won

• Create an O365 contact when a new Mailchimp subscriber is added

• Post a message in Microsoft Teams when a new YouTube video is published

• Create a Microsoft To Do item when you are assigned an issue in Github

What is Robotic Process Automation (RPA)?

Robotic process automation (RPA) is the application of technology that allows workers to configure computer software or a “robot” to capture and interpret existing applications for processing a transaction, manipulating data, triggering responses and communicating with other digital systems.

RPAs can be deployed within days or weeks, are non-intrusive (meaning they do not change the underlying application or system), and can be easily integrated with other enterprise applications. RPAs are typically used to automate high-volume, repeatable tasks that are time-consuming, rules-based and require little or no human intervention.

Power Automate for Desktop is an application you can download for free to build your own robotic process automation right within your desktop or laptop computer.

The Benefits of Robotic Process Automation

The potential benefits of deploying RPAs are significant. In addition to reducing or eliminating the need for manual processing, RPAs can also improve accuracy (by eliminating human error), increase consistency and compliance (by following rules-based processes), and free up employees’ time from mundane tasks so they can be redeployed to more strategic initiatives.

Is Robotic Process Automation Right For Your Organization?

Despite these potential benefits, there are a few things to consider before implementing RPAs within your organization, such as:

• Are the tasks you want to automate well-suited for RPA?

• Do you have the right people and skills in place to support an RPA initiative?

• Do you have the necessary processes and infrastructure in place to deploy and manage RPAs?

If you’re considering implementing RPAs within your organization, it’s important to do your homework and ensure you have the right people, processes and infrastructure in place to make the most of this technology.

Robotic process automation has been around for a while, but is only now starting to gain traction due to advances in technology and a better understanding of the benefits it can bring.

How Much Does Microsoft Power Automate Cost?

Power Automate is free for most Microsoft 365 license plans. Power Automate for Desktop is free for anyone who wants to download it to automate desktop applications and processes.