Building a Power App isn’t just about making something that works—it’s about making something that’s intuitive, secure, scalable, and easy to maintain. Whether you’re just getting started or refining your approach, here are six pillars every maker should master—brought to life with a real-world example:
👩⚕️ Scenario: Leave Request & Staff Scheduling App for a Healthcare Provider
Let’s say a mid-sized healthcare provider wants to manage staff leave requests, approvals, and daily coverage schedules in a way that’s user-friendly, traceable, and secure.
🔸 1. UI Design
A great app starts with a clean and intuitive interface.
For our healthcare provider, nurses and team leads need to log in quickly and submit or approve requests from their phones—even between shifts.
Solution: Design a simple home screen with large buttons: “Submit Leave,” “Approve Requests,” and “View Schedule.” Use responsive layouts so it works across devices.
🔸 2. Formulas & Expressions
Formulas are where the logic lives.
In our app, we might use formulas to ensure users can’t request overlapping leave dates or submit requests with less than two weeks’ notice.
Solution: Power Fx expressions likeIf(DateDiff(Today(), StartDate) < 14, Notify(...))help enforce policy and reduce admin headaches.
🔸 3. Data Integration
The app is only as good as its data.
We integrate with Dataverse to store leave requests, Outlook 365 to check rosters, and Teams to send notifications.
Solution: When a request is submitted, it triggers a flow that checks for shift coverage and pings the team lead on Teams.
🔸 4. Component Reusability
Reusable components save time and ensure consistency.
In our app, the user card (photo, role, team) is used on both the approval screen and the schedule viewer.
Solution: Build one component for the user card and reuse it throughout—saving time and simplifying updates later.
🔸 5. Security & Permissions
Not everyone should see everything.
Nurses should only see their own requests, leads can see and approve their team’s requests, and HR needs full visibility.
Solution: Implement role-based permissions using Dataverse security roles and conditional visibility for controls.
🔸 6. ALM & Deployment
From dev to production, change should be safe and deliberate.
You don’t want to accidentally break something mid-shift.
Solution: Use solutions to manage the app and flows. Develop in a sandbox environment, test in UAT, then push changes to production only after approval.
Power Apps empowers us to move fast—but building great apps still takes strategy and care.
By following these six principles, we’re not just ticking boxes—we’re creating business-critical tools that are usable, maintainable, and secure.
Which of these six pillars are you most focused on right now—or where have you seen the biggest impact?
Leave a Reply