Automate Microsoft 365 Approvals Like a Pro Using Power Automate
Tired of chasing approvals through endless email threads? Most businesses waste 3-5 hours per week on manual approval processes they already pay to automate. Microsoft Power Automate (included in your 365 subscription) can handle approvals, notifications, and follow-ups automatically. We'll show you how to set up a complete system for license requests in under 30 minutes.
The Manual Approval Problem
Manual approval processes create bottlenecks in every business. Employees submit requests via email or forms, managers forget to respond, and IT teams waste time chasing down approvals. Johnny's donut chain faced this exact challenge with their Microsoft 365 co-pilot license requests.
The old process required employees to fill out a form, wait for manual review, then have someone manually create an IT ticket after approval. This created delays, duplicated work, and frustrated employees. Power Automate solves this by creating a seamless automated workflow that handles the entire process from submission to fulfillment.
83% of employees report delays in getting approvals for routine requests, with license approvals taking an average of 3-5 business days when handled manually.
Power Automate Basics
Microsoft Power Automate comes in two tiers: the free version included with Microsoft 365 subscriptions, and premium plans that add external connectors. The free tier is perfect for approval workflows since it works with Microsoft Forms, Outlook, Teams, and SharePoint.
There are four types of flows in Power Automate: automated (triggered by events), instant (manual triggers), scheduled (time-based), and desktop (PC automation). Approval workflows typically use automated flows triggered by form submissions or email receipts.
Pro Tip: Create a dedicated service account for running workflows rather than using individual employee accounts. This prevents disruptions if someone leaves and ensures consistent email sending.
Setting Up Your First Flow
Start by creating a Microsoft Form for your approval request. For license requests, include fields for name, email, department, and business justification. Then navigate to Power Automate in your Microsoft 365 portal and select "Create" to begin a new flow.
Search for the "Start an approval when a response is submitted in Forms" template. This pre-built template handles the basic approval workflow, which we'll customize for our specific needs. Select your form and configure the approval type (we recommend "First to respond" for simple approvals).
Step 1: Name Your Flow
Give your flow a descriptive name like "Co-Pilot License Approval Workflow" so you can easily identify it later among other flows.
Step 2: Configure Approval Settings
Set the approval title and assign approvers. For license requests, this would typically be department managers or IT leadership. You can specify multiple approvers if needed.
Capturing Form Details
The default template only sends basic approval requests. To make informed decisions, approvers need all the form details. Add a "Get response details" action after the form submission trigger to capture all form fields.
Configure the approval request to include these details by editing the "Create an approval" action. Add dynamic content from the form response to show the requestor's department, email, and business justification directly in the approval request.
Approval rates increase by 40% when all relevant information is presented upfront, eliminating back-and-forth questions between approvers and requestors.
Configuring Approval Actions
The template includes basic approval and rejection paths. Enhance these by customizing the messages sent to requestors. For approvals, include next steps and timelines. For rejections, provide clear reasons and alternative options if available.
Configure the approval to work through both email and Microsoft Teams (if your organization uses Teams). The Approvals app in Teams provides a centralized location for managing all approval requests with notifications and reminders.
Automating IT Ticket Creation
After approval, the workflow should automatically create an IT ticket. Add a "Send an email" action to your help desk or ticketing system email address. Include all relevant details from the form and approval in the ticket.
Structure the email with clear sections: Approved Request Details, Requestor Information, and Approval Comments. This helps IT prioritize and process the ticket efficiently without needing to request additional information.
Testing Your Workflow
Always test new workflows before going live. Use Power Automate's manual testing feature to trigger the flow with sample data. Verify that:
- Approval requests contain all necessary information
- Approval decisions route correctly
- IT tickets include complete details
- Requestors receive appropriate notifications
Check the run history for any errors and review the raw inputs/outputs at each step to ensure data flows correctly through your workflow.
Troubleshooting Tips
Common Power Automate issues include expired credentials, disabled flows, and permission changes. Check the 28-day run history to identify where failures occur. Each step shows detailed inputs and outputs to help diagnose problems.
Remember that flows automatically disable after 6 months of inactivity. If a previously working flow stops, check its status and re-enable if needed. For connection errors, reauthenticate the affected connectors.
Watch the Full Tutorial
See the complete workflow in action in our video tutorial. At 4:30, we demonstrate how to configure the approval details to include all form fields, and at 9:15 we show the IT ticket automation setup.
Key Takeaways
Microsoft Power Automate transforms slow, manual approval processes into efficient automated workflows. By connecting Forms, Approvals, and Outlook, you can create systems that handle requests from submission to fulfillment without human intervention.
In summary: Start with a clear form, capture all details for informed decisions, configure both approval and rejection paths, automate follow-up actions, and thoroughly test before deployment. This approach cuts approval times from days to hours while reducing administrative overhead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this topic
Microsoft Power Automate is a workflow automation tool included with Microsoft 365 subscriptions. It allows you to create automated processes between Microsoft apps and services without writing code.
The free tier lets you automate workflows using Microsoft 365 data, while premium tiers enable connections to external systems. It's particularly useful for approval workflows, notifications, and repetitive tasks.
- Included free with most Microsoft 365 plans
- No coding required for basic workflows
- Over 300 pre-built templates available
Power Automate can handle approval workflows, document routing, notifications, data collection, and integration between Microsoft apps. Common use cases include expense approvals, vacation requests, document approvals, and IT ticket routing.
The platform is flexible enough to automate nearly any business process that involves multiple steps or approvals. We've implemented workflows for employee onboarding, contract approvals, inventory requests, and more.
- Approval workflows (licenses, expenses, time off)
- Document review and routing
- Data collection and processing
No coding skills are required for basic to intermediate workflows. Power Automate uses a visual designer with pre-built connectors and templates that let you create workflows through simple configuration.
For advanced scenarios, you can incorporate JavaScript or PowerShell, but most business workflows can be created through the graphical interface without writing code. The platform is designed specifically for business users rather than developers.
- Visual designer requires no coding
- Pre-built connectors for common services
- Template library for quick starts
The free tier included with Microsoft 365 only works with Microsoft apps and has limited runs per month. Premium licenses add 500+ connectors to external services, higher flow run limits, and advanced features like AI Builder.
For approval workflows using only Microsoft 365 apps (Forms, Outlook, Teams), the free tier is usually sufficient. Premium plans start at $15/user/month or $5/app/month when you need to connect to non-Microsoft services.
- Free tier: Microsoft apps only, 750 runs/month
- Premium: External connectors, 5,000+ runs/month
- Per-app licensing available for specific workflows
Check the 28-day run history in Power Automate to see where failures occur. Each step shows detailed inputs and outputs to help diagnose problems. Common issues include expired credentials, disabled flows, or changed permissions.
Flows automatically disable after 6 months of inactivity and must be manually re-enabled. Connection errors often require reauthentication of the affected service. The run history provides timestamps and error details for each failed attempt.
- Check run history for failure points
- Verify all connections are active
- Ensure flow hasn't been automatically disabled
Yes, Power Automate supports scheduled flows that run at specific times or intervals. You can create flows that run daily, weekly, monthly, or at custom intervals down to the minute.
Scheduled flows are useful for regular reporting, data synchronization, and recurring approval processes. They work well for tasks like weekly status reports, monthly budget approvals, or daily data backups between systems.
- Run daily, weekly, or monthly
- Custom intervals available
- Time zone aware scheduling
Power Automate uses Microsoft's enterprise-grade security with encryption in transit and at rest. All data remains within Microsoft's secure cloud infrastructure unless explicitly connected to external systems.
Flows run under the creator's permissions by default, but best practice is to use a dedicated service account. Audit logs track all flow activity, and conditional access policies can restrict where flows run from for additional security.
- Enterprise-grade encryption
- Detailed audit logging
- Permission-based access control
GrowwStacks helps businesses implement Microsoft Power Automate workflows tailored to their specific processes. We analyze your current workflows, design efficient automation solutions, and handle the technical implementation.
Our team can create custom approval systems, document routing workflows, and integrations between Microsoft 365 and other business systems. We offer a free consultation to discuss your automation needs and provide a roadmap for implementation.
- Workflow analysis and design
- Technical implementation
- Free initial consultation
Ready to Transform Your Approval Processes?
Manual approvals cost your business time and productivity every single day. Our automation experts can implement a complete Power Automate solution for your organization in as little as 2 weeks.