What is Microsoft Power Apps? It is fast solution development using the low-code/ no-code principles and toolkits that are currently taking the business world by storm. Why? Because, low-code/no-code introduces a ton of benefits to the business that can reshape how it deals with legacy architecture and infrastructure, and how it can embrace innovation at speed.
Why Microsoft can Change Business
The low-code/no-code capabilities of Microsoft Power Apps allow for users throughout the organization to build professional-level applications and solutions easily and quickly. This can introduce immeasurable agility throughout the business as users can creation solutions that address their unique problems – solutions that can then be leveraged throughout the business as best practice options that fit your unique environment and situation.
Using this platform, you can increase agility, modernize processes, solve complex challenges and redefine processes. A recent case study by Microsoft with Toyota North America saw the company use Power Apps to create more than 400 apps! That’s apps for product quality control, dealer surveys, field visits, COVID-19 management and customer engagement all thanks to employee ingenuity and the low-code/ no-code functionality in Power Apps.
Solve Unique Business Challenges
The sheer scale of the app development done by Toyota in the case study above isn’t exclusive to them. Any organization can tap into this level of ingenuity using the Microsoft Power Apps platform. If an employee at any level of the business has an idea that could potentially solve a nagging problem or give you a competitive edge, they can build a custom app in the platform and test it out with minimal risk to the business or its existing architecture.
The platform is designed to make it as simple as possible for users who live and breathe the business to come up with ideas that will make their lives easier. Anyone can automate a process, create a smart analytics tool that’s unique to a specific department or role, leverage artificial intelligence to streamline certain functions, or simply make life easier through customization. And the best part is that these business challenges can be solved by anyone – this is not a platform that demands high levels of developer skills or intensive training.
Accelerate Business Digital Transformation
Sure, digital transformation has become such a tired phrase that even IT is over it. Sure, business digital transformation has long been on every boardroom table and is now part and parcel of the modern organization’s basic strategy. But…what if digital transformation has moved into entirely new realms of functionality and is now something anyone within the business can introduce?
This is what Microsoft Power Apps does – it takes app development and digital transformation initiatives out of the exclusive realm of the developer and makes it accessible to anyone within the business. Now, Susan in accounting can create a professional application that handles her cumbersome admin and saves her time and improves her accuracy and saves the business money.
This technology makes use of the drag-and-drop interface and pre-built templates to make solutions that meet very specific criteria. It means that people work less to do more, and helps your business take charge of its business goals.
Low-code / No-code
There are numerous benefits to introducing the simplicity of low-code / no-code solutions into the business. The first, says McKinsey, is that it can help reduce the complexity and the security risk of shadow IT. People introduce tech that they need to solve their problems behind the back of IT and this can potentially shove the security door wide open by introducing vulnerabilities that IT and security know nothing about.
The research firm believes that low-code / no-code can turn the shadow IT complexity into an opportunity – it gives people the chance to create the solutions they need but within the existing organization’s infrastructure and security. It then adds to the organization as a whole, becoming part of its capabilities.
For development teams, low-code / no-code is, as Readwrite explains, a way of avoiding the pitfalls of ‘digital Darwinism’ by allowing for teams to evolve the technology they have at the rate they need so they can maintain their digital maturity and strategy without collapsing under the weight of change. Teams can create apps, add to the organization’s overall digital transformation capability and do all this without having to invest heavily into IT.
Then, to add to the pile, there is the extra value-add of easy integration within Microsoft 365 and all other Microsoft applications. It’s the same ecosystem so it brings in high-speed agility and no-code simplicity and it does so, wait for it…holistically.
Happy Employees and Improved Team Productivity
Finally, another factor to consider with Microsoft Power Apps is how it directly influences the employee. The first benefit is obvious – employees no longer have to resort to secretive shadow IT solutions to solve their problems. They can either create an app or engage with the development team to build one at no extra cost to company. Plus, with its integration into Microsoft Teams, Power Apps can fundamentally increase productivity by giving users access to more tools and solutions. This means that any app developed by employees can be found within Teams so that anyone can potentially use them to enhance their own workflows and productivity.
The solution transforms productivity and employee wellbeing through its accessibility and ubiquity, both essential qualities in the hybrid workforce. People can create apps and use apps to improve how they connect and collaborate across multiple locations and systems, and because the tool is self-service, they can confidently embrace their own ingenuity.
Mint can help you build a culture of creativity and connectivity with our Microsoft Power Apps expertise. We have helped hundreds of companies convert their ideas into working solutions really easily and see measurable cost savings, improved productivity and an impressive return on investment.
Mint can help you completely change the way your approach apps, data, and development with our Microsoft Power Apps expertise. We know that apps built using this platform can provide you with rich business logic and workflow capabilities and that you can transform manual to digital at a speed you like.
Contact us to get the benefit of working with Microsoft Power apps, and we’ll help you go faster.
