Power Platform Training for App Makers August 2023

Embrace the future of digitization with Dynamics Edge Microsoft Power Platform training for App makers. Learn all about Microsoft’s transformative platform capable of revolutionizing your business processes. Witness a newfound efficiency and create powerful solutions, all while saving resources. Power Platform, with its robust features and user-friendly interface, can guide your business into an era of digital transformation.

Power Platform is an innovative technology from Microsoft that allows businesses to analyze data, build applications, automate processes, and create virtual agents. It plays an instrumental role in the digital transformation journey of a company, offering flexibility and control to customize and extend capabilities of Office 365, Dynamics 365, and Azure.

Power Platform consists of four primary components – Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power Virtual Agents. Each serves a distinct purpose. Power BI simplifies data analytics and shares insights, Power Apps allows the creation of custom apps, Power Automate simplifies workflow automation across applications and services, and Power Virtual Agents allows for the easy creation of chatbots.

When we talk about a solution in general terms, we usually refer to a method or means of solving a problem or dealing with a difficult situation. In the realm of Power Platform, however, the concept of a solution takes a specific form. It encompasses a container for storing system customizations and components.

There are two types of solutions in Power Platform – managed and unmanaged. So what is the difference between managed and unmanaged solution in powerapps anyway?  Unmanaged solutions are the ones in development, allowing you to make changes, edit the components for it to be modified sharing the same unmanaged layer. Conversely, managed solutions are finalized, intended for distribution and are read-only. They are ideal for production environments, encapsulating fully developed and tested components. To learn more about managed vs unmanaged solution powerapps contact Dynamics Edge and inquire about our Power Apps training offerings.

Let’s now shift focus to Dataverse, another powerful aspect of Power Platform. Dataverse acts as a unified and scalable data service, helping businesses to consolidate their data, thereby eliminating data silos. An example that comes to mind involves a US federal government agency struggling with numerous legacy Oracle databases and other scattered databases. This scenario, unfortunately, leads to data duplication and managerial challenges. Implementing Dataverse can dramatically transform this situation by unifying all data into a single, well-managed service. This step eliminates redundancy and promotes efficient data management, streamlining the agency’s operations.

Implementing Dataverse can dramatically transform this situation by unifying all data into a single, well-managed service. This step eliminates redundancy and promotes efficient data management, streamlining the agency’s operations.

Let us take a closer look at SharePoint for collaboration and content management in contrast with Dataverse for data storage and management in terms of dataverse vs sharepoint list to illustrate how Power Platform tools like Dataverse can significantly enhance data management. SharePoint lists serve as simple, customizable repositories for storing and sharing data, with each item in a list composed of columns. These lists come in handy for tracking orders, inventory, processes, and much more, providing users with versatile functionality.

However, when we bring Dataverse into the picture, the advantages become clear, particularly for large organizations like a United States federal government agency. Where SharePoint lists might start to lag or be complex to manage due to large quantities of data or multiple lists scattered across different sites—Dataverse shines with its centralized, scalable, and highly efficient data management. By consolidating scattered SharePoint lists into Dataverse, the agency can avoid data duplication and reduce managerial complexity.

Power Apps, with its impressive roster of over 1400 out-of-the-box connectors, including SharePoint and Dataverse, makes it even more compelling. With these connectors, a Canvas App can directly connect to various data sources—like SharePoint lists and Dataverse—enabling advanced data management without any need for data migration.

Take, for example, an app that tracks the procurement processes of our government agency. With SharePoint lists containing vendors’ data and Dataverse storing procurement rules and historical data, the Canvas App can access both sources simultaneously. Consequently, the agency can cross-verify vendor eligibility against the procurement rules in Dataverse, ensuring the compliance of every transaction. The low-code capabilities of Power Fx further simplify this process, making the app easy to build and maintain.

Consider another scenario where a U.S. Federal Government agency needs to track the productivity and effectiveness of its various departments. With performance metrics stored in SharePoint lists and departmental data in Dataverse, a Canvas App could pull this information together. Using this app, leaders can gain insights into each department’s performance, identify areas of improvement, and make data-driven decisions. The seamless integration of different data sources demonstrates the profound versatility of Canvas Apps in managing complex data scenarios.

Now, Power Apps, one of the core components of Power Platform, is a low-code platform that allows you to create custom business apps quickly. This ability to streamline and simplify data management, coupled with the robustness of Dataverse and the flexibility of Power Apps, exemplifies how Power Platform is a game-changer for businesses aiming for digital transformation.

There are two types of Power Apps – Canvas apps and Model-Driven apps. Canvas apps start with a blank canvas and let you design the app exactly how you want it, using a drag-and-drop interface. Model-Driven apps, on the other hand, are built by defining the data model and relationships between fields, with the user interface automatically created based on this model.

Power Automate is another integral part of Power Platform, focusing on workflow automation. It offers two types of flows – Cloud Flows and Desktop Flows. Cloud Flows automate tasks and processes across various online services, while Desktop Flows automate tasks on a local machine, typically leveraging Robotic Process Automation (RPA). RPA differs from traditional automation in that it’s designed to mimic how humans interact with software at the user interface level.

Turning our attention to certifications, the PL-100, or the Microsoft Power Platform App Maker certification, verifies a candidate’s ability to design, build, and implement apps using Power Platform. It proves a candidate’s competency in data modeling, user interfaces, business processes, and security.

Power Fx forms the backbone of the Canvas Apps, allowing for the creation of low-code solutions and rapid development. Power BI, on the other hand, is a business analytics tool that enables interactive visualizations and business intelligence capabilities with an interface that’s intuitive for end users to create their own reports and dashboards.

The differences between PL-100 and PL-900 Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Fundamentals, are that the former focuses on the skills needed to create apps with Power Platform, while the latter is an entry-level certification that provides foundational knowledge about the platform.

Power Platform’s ease of learning largely depends on the user’s background. Still, it has a shallow learning curve for beginners, given its low-code approach and intuitive user interface. The business value and product capabilities of Power Platform lie in its ability to enable rapid application development, automate business processes, and drive data-driven insights.

PowerApps and Power Apps refer to the same component of Power Platform, and while both are commonly used, Microsoft officially uses the term “Power Apps”.

As business leaders, adapting to market changes requires agility and efficiency. Power Platform offers the ability to create and modify business apps swiftly, paving the way for digital transformation. The platform aids in digitizing business processes, fostering efficient operations, and promoting paperless solutions. Power Automate, as your business service, empowers your teams to build automated workflows with intuitive interfaces. The low-code nature of Canvas Apps development also introduces immense possibilities for building powerful business apps.

So, leverage Power Platform to digitize, optimize, and transform your business processes, providing you with the edge in today’s rapidly changing digital landscape. Harness the power of modernization and embrace the future. Power Platform is more than a tool; it’s a catalyst for change, unlocking possibilities and unleashing potential. It may be August 2023 as of this writing, but with Power Platform, you’re already stepping into the future!