Power Automate
Microsoft's cloud-based automation platform for creating workflows across Microsoft 365 and third-party applications.
In-Depth Explanation
Power Automate (formerly Microsoft Flow) is Microsoft's workflow automation service, deeply integrated with Microsoft 365 and Azure. It enables automating business processes across hundreds of apps without coding.
Power Automate types:
- Cloud flows: Automated, instant, or scheduled
- Desktop flows: RPA for desktop automation
- Business process flows: Guided processes
- Process mining: Discover automation opportunities
Key capabilities:
- Microsoft 365 deep integration
- 500+ connectors
- AI Builder for AI capabilities
- Robotic process automation (RPA)
- Approval workflows
- Document processing
AI Builder features:
- Form processing
- Object detection
- Text recognition (OCR)
- Sentiment analysis
- Custom AI models
Business Context
Power Automate is often the natural choice for Microsoft-heavy organisations, leveraging existing licenses and deep integration.
How Clever Ops Uses This
We implement Power Automate solutions for Australian businesses using Microsoft 365, often combining with AI Builder for intelligent automation.
Example Use Case
"Automating invoice processing: emails received in Outlook trigger Power Automate to extract data with AI Builder, approve via Teams, and record in SharePoint."