Drive Efficiency with Power Platform Updates
Microsoft’s Power Platform helps organizations accelerate innovation and reduce costs by enabling them to analyze data, automate processes, and build apps and websites. There are numerous updates being made available for Power BI, Power Apps, Power Pages, Power Automate, Power Virtual Agents, AI builder, and Microsoft Dataverse, but we will focus on the most noteworthy ones.
The Power Platform updates in 2023 release wave 1, which are the majority of what we will cover here, began rolling out in April 2023 and finished rolling out in September 2023.
Power Pages Updates
One major update rolling out for Power Pages is the ability to use cloud flow with sites. By using an API, professional developers can use Power Automate cloud flows to integrate with external applications or automate processes to meet business needs. Although this is a higher-code scenario, it provides developers with more flexibility in terms of what they can accomplish.
Power Automate Updates
There are a few updates coming to Power Automate, with a major one being sequential approvals. Users can now create more complex workflow approvals within Microsoft Teams and Power Automate flows. Previously, extra logic needed to be built in for approvals but now the process can be largely automated, and multiple people can be involved in the approvals process. In addition to this, admins can now manage bulk abandoned cloud flows and get rid of them all at once rather than one by one, improving efficiency.
Another important feature related to Power Automate is native integrations for flow being introduced to Excel. Users can now create and execute flows directly from within Excel, making it easier to work with Power Automate flows, and potentially make it easier to move to Power Platform.
Power Virtual Agents & Microsoft Dataverse
Power Virtual Agents, the platform that allows users to test and deploy chatbots, is seeing quite a few updates as well. Power Virtual Agents is offering a new unified authoring canvas that will serve as a single source for all bot-building needs, making it easier to create logic and generative AI outcomes that you want from your bots.
By using information stored in Microsoft Dataverse, your organization can take advantage of:
- Bot makers: Reduce time to create or update chatbots, from days to just minutes.
- System and bot admins: Keep data inside the organization and reduce data exfiltration concerns.
- Support centre and helpdesk: Improve deflection rate and efficiency.
- Bot users: Generate answers directly from the organization’s existing knowledge base.
AI Builder
One major update to AI Builder is the feedback loop, designed to automate the process of improving your data regularly. The process of ensuring quality data in AI builder consists of:
- Continuous learning: AI builder is dynamic and constantly learning and evolving with new data.
- Feedback loop: If AI builder is unsure of the results, it flags data for review.
- User involvement: Users can see which data has been flagged and help train the system.
- Staying accurate: Regular updates ensure that AI builder remains effective and trustworthy.
Power Apps
There are a couple important updates rolling out for Power Apps as well, including virtual tables which allow organizations to integrate data residing in external sources, like SQL, without replicating the data or writing custom code. Another major update is the use of Copilot in Power Apps, which can help build apps from scratch with test data and can be used to analyze data within apps.
In addition to this, building responsive pages is becoming simpler. Responsive layout containers are now easier than ever to use, with drag and drop functionality, and there is a new look and feel for model-driven apps. Co-authoring, an update coming in wave 2, will allow multiple makers to work on the same app in real-time.
Maximize Your Investment in Power Platform with Klarinet Solutions
We have only scratched the surface with these Power Platform updates – there are numerous others, but it can be challenging to keep up with them all. To learn more in-depth about all of the updates and how they can help empower your organization, get in touch with our digital workplace experts today.
