Charitable organizations are constantly faced with the necessity to achieve greater results with limited assets, uncover innovative strategies to slash expenses or enhance staff productivity and effectiveness. Yet, as many organizational tasks are still performed manually, this goal remains elusive. Further, tailor-made solutions that cater to specific needs are rare, and the ones that do exist often lead to disjointed systems or procedures that clash with existing platforms or governance frameworks. Hence, to elevate the quality of service while minimizing expenses, charities should consider the implementation of process and workflow automation with the existing tools at their disposal.
The surge of platform-based business models is impactful and on the rise. Conventional business methods are undergoing transformation. A pipeline model of commerce involves the creation and production of a good or service by an organization, which is then offered to consumers. The consumers are positioned at the opposite end of the pipeline from the creators.
This article will bring to light several topics, including:
Power Platform
Comprising three instrumental tools – #PowerAutomate (previously known as Microsoft Flow), #PowerBI, and #PowerApps – the Power Platform was architected by Microsoft to empower enterprises with the capability to swiftly and effortlessly devise custom apps and govern their data without requiring extensive development expertise. While Power Automate, Power BI, and Power Apps are potent standalone tools, their collaborative functionality is unparalleled. Organizations like LifeWorks can harness the Power Platform to obtain bespoke app and data management solutions at a mere fraction of the cost associated with custom software creation.
Built upon the secure, #AzureCloud-driven Common Data Services for Apps (CDS), the Power Platform enables the seamless integration of apps created within the platform with Microsoft offerings such as #Dynamics365 CRM, as well as external applications, owing to the comprehensive data schema furnished by CDS.
Power Platform Revolution
Platform Revolution elaborates on how to detect optimal markets and capitalize on network effects as it instructs newcomers on the art of launching and stewarding a thriving platform enterprise. Aimed at contemporary business leaders, the authors unveil the commerce blueprints of fresh platforms like Tinder and SkillShare, delineating how traditional businesses can adapt to the evolving marketplace. Examining sectors poised for a platform metamorphosis such as healthcare, education, and energy, the book also confronts vital concerns tied to safety, legalities, and consumer trust.
Enterprises excelling in harnessing the platform’s potential will prevail as digital networks gain ubiquity. Platform Revolution stands as an essential guide depicting a prosperous horizon for platforms, concurrently highlighting the profound alterations that will ensue in the lives and occupations of multitudes. While platforms have radically morphed the economic landscape in the past decades, the wave of change is set to continue. The book offers the inaugural comprehensive blueprint for platform strategies, discerning the victors and casualties of impending disruptions.
Revolution.
In essence, the Power Platform equips organizations to craft solutions suited to their needs within any financial constraint. What stands out is the compatibility of Power Platform applications with existing software infrastructures, which means organizations don’t need to switch over their CRM systems or software platforms.
Influence of Power Apps and Power Automate in the Nonprofit Sector
1) Streamline Volunteer Onboarding and Offboarding Processes- Without its volunteers, a nonprofit would find it difficult to achieve its goals. Volunteers form a crucial element in nonprofit operations. Consequently, secure and swift access to the nonprofit’s systems is vital.
Utilize Power Apps and Power Automate to manually register volunteer information or connect to a CRM to manage bulk volunteer onboarding and departures. Given its cloud-based nature, your volunteer coordinator can provide access remotely without the necessity for a VPN.
2) Facilitate Shift Arrangements- What approach do you use to organize your pool of volunteers or temporary staff for work assignments? Imagine having to invest ten hours in devising a shift arrangement through a series of mobile text groups. Would it not be exasperating to deal with such a tedious, elongated task instead of dedicating that time to more impactful mission-related activities? Suppose it took only a week to implement an easy-to-use app within Microsoft Teams to capture shift details? By leveraging Power Apps within their existing #Microsoft365 subscription, that’s precisely what we accomplished for ATSICHS Brisbane. Benefiting from Power Apps, they now complete shift arrangements in moments, not hours, with significant ROI from more than 1,000 shifts planned within the initial six months and continuing at a rate of 10 daily shifts thereafter.
3) Optimize Grant Management- For nonprofits, managing grants is an integral part of their day-to-day functions. Yet, overseeing the entire scope of grant administration from the allocation, utilization, to the closing out post-awards, poses substantial challenges. With Microsoft Power Apps and Power Automate, managing grants can become as easy as completing forms and activating buttons. You can establish various funding sources with contributions from different nations in their respective currencies. Every grant can incorporate a distinct approval process, ensuring resources are allocated only to sanctioned, valuable projects, and you can track the success of those projects via data input in the app.
4) Expedite IT Helpdesk Ticket Routing- Large nonprofits usually collaborate with numerous vendors for internal IT support, often involving several third-party platforms to register helpdesk tickets. This can be time-consuming to sort and forward to the suitable IT vendor. By applying logic through Power Apps and Power Automate, you can accelerate the triage process, automatically directing requests to the correct vendor team, thus promptly addressing staff queries and conserving IT resources.
5) Mobilize Approval of Expenses- Tracking every expense and retaining paper-based receipts is cumbersome. Expedite this by employing ready-made, adaptable templates in Power Apps to devise a mobile app for expense tracking. Use your phone to file an expense report, capture a snapshot of the receipt, and alert the reviewer. Meanwhile, an automated backend procedure enables the reviewer to examine and sanction the claim. Integration with your ERP or #SharePoint can further streamline processing.
The enterprise and IT sectors are zealous to initiate the “revolution,” desiring to quickly deploy solutions that guarantee expeditious value generation via intuitive and robust applications. Thus, the appeal of the Power Platform lies in its low-code, cost-effective, and adaptable nature. It’s time for corporate strategists and tech analysts across the IT sphere to lead the charge, showcasing newfound inventiveness to tackle business challenges, forge new efficiencies, manage data intricacies, and ignite innovation using the Microsoft Power Platform.
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