Power Automate might sound technical, but it’s really just a smarter way to get things done. If you’ve ever thought, “Why am I still doing this manually?” this guide is for you. Power Automate helps you turn everyday tasks into automated workflows, no developer required. Let’s break it down with this simple Power Automate Guide.

Power Automate in Plain English

Power Automate is a tool that helps you get rid of repetitive, manual tasks by letting technology do them for you.

That’s it. No coding (disclaimer: complex Power Automate flows may require coding help!), no complex setup—just click, connect, and save yourself and your Dynamics 365 users some time.

Think of it like setting up a bunch of little digital assistants (note, I did not say “agents” 😉). You tell them what to do, and they take care of the rest—whether you’re working in Dynamics 365, Outlook, SharePoint, or even outside the Microsoft universe.

Okay, But What Can It Actually Do?

Glad you asked! Here are a few everyday examples of how you can use Power Automate to streamline your processes:

• When a customer submits a form on your website, send the details to Dynamics 365, automatically create a Lead or Contact and assign it to the right sales rep for follow-up.
• When a case is assigned to you in D365, get a Teams chat notification.
• When a file is added to a SharePoint folder, notify the right people and kick off an approval process.
• When a new Contact is added to Dynamics 365, send it to your marketing automation software to add it to select email distribution lists.

And so much more. Today, Power Automate connects to more than 1,400 different services, and that number continues to grow each month.

You’ve Already Automated, You Just Didn’t Call It That

Ever set an out-of-office reply? That’s automation.
Used rules in Outlook to move emails into folders? Also automation.
Set a calendar event to remind you every Friday to submit timesheets? Automation again.

Power Automate just gives you more power to build rules like those—but across all your apps, and for way more use cases.

Why Should You Care?

If your users’ jobs include checking the same inbox over and over, reminding someone to do the same thing every week, setting follow-up dates with Accounts or Opportunities every month, manually copying data from one place to another, generating a manual sales report for your manager…you’re a great candidate for Power Automate.

And even better: if your team is using Dynamics 365, Power Automate can become your best friend. It connects directly to D365 (through the Dataverse connector) and lets you create workflows that reflect your real-world processes without needing a developer.

Getting Started (Without Getting Overwhelmed)

The best way to learn Power Automate? Start small.

• Automate something you / your users do weekly—a reminder, a notification, an approval.
• Use a template. Microsoft has hundreds of pre-built flows you can tweak for your needs.
• Don’t be afraid to break it. You can always turn a flow off and start fresh.

If you’re not sure where to begin, I’ve got you covered—check my Power Automate 101 blog series, where I walk through all the foundational topics around Power Automate.

Final Thought: This Is About Working Smarter

Power Automate doesn’t replace people. It replaces the busywork that keeps people from doing their best work. That’s why you should care.

And once you build your first flow? Trust me, you’ll be hooked.