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Category: Power Platform

  • Switching to Remote Work: A Simple Guide

    Switching to Remote Work: A Simple Guide

    Switching to Remote Work: A Simple Guide

    In 1995, Kathy Durfee started TechHouse. She needed to work from home due to family obligations and her job didn’t allow it. Now, over 20 years later, many of us are working from home. 

    What has TechHouse learned?

    Stay Connected

    You don’t need to be in the office to work together. 

    Use contact management systems like Dynamics 365 or Power Platform to keep track of everyone’s contact info. This becomes your central address book.

    Next, keep track of what everyone is doing. Record emails, phone calls, tasks, and appointments. This way, everyone knows what’s happening. You can even track inbound emails automatically for some contacts or employees.

    Use workflows to follow tasks and data. When one step is done, the next one starts automatically. Everyone can see where things are at and what needs to be done next.

    Lastly, use alerts and reports to keep everyone informed. This ensures everyone can see what is going well and where help is needed.

    Move to Cloud Apps

    While the cloud didn’t exist in 1995, it has certainly made remote work easier!

    QuickBooks Desktop can be moved to QuickBooks Online. There might be some issues if you use advanced features like inventory tracking or multi-company features, but QuickBooks has tools to help with the move.

    Microsoft Access apps also need to be moved. This is a bit more complex and there’s no set tool or path. You’ll need to move data and forms separately. It might be easier to start fresh with PowerApps.

    The Human Side of Remote Work

    Working remotely isn’t just about tech. It’s also about people. We need to communicate and support each other.

    At TechHouse, we stay connected in three ways:

    1. We chat for an hour every week.
    2. We meet in person once a month for a day and twice a year for two days.
    3. We make sure everyone gets a chance to speak in meetings using round-robin and similar approaches.

    Work-Life Balance

    Working from home can mix up work and personal time. It’s important to have a regular schedule and clear boundaries.

    In the end, remote work can be great for everyone if we address both the tech and human sides of it. Let’s do this together!

  • Client Corner #4: From Paper to Cloud with No-Code/Low-Code

    Client Corner #4: From Paper to Cloud with No-Code/Low-Code

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    From Paper to Cloud

    TechHouse’s clients are simplifying work for their field workers. In this Client Corner, we consider three TechHouse clients: an electrical contractor, a heating and cooling contractor, and an organization in the healthcare industry. All three of these clients have employees who work “in the field” and use custom-fit apps from TechHouse.

    Previously, field workers relied on hard paper documents. They had to go to their primary office to pick up paperwork before going out into the field. This paperwork detailed their deliverables, allowing them to go where they needed to take care of business. Once finished, they would return to the office, turn in the paperwork, and sometimes obtain new work and go back out.

    This traditional, paper-dependent process cost time and limited flexibility for workers. However, events over the past year and a half expedited the move from paper to cloud. This transition spurred innovation in workplaces across the country.

    Apps that Boost Efficiency

    In moving from paper to cloud, some organizations realized that although they needed custom-fit solutions, they didn’t want to deal with high-level software development. For clients like this, TechHouse offers low-code/no-code custom apps. These apps enhance workflow by providing field workers instant access to their tasks.

    The apps can also make instructions accessible on mobile devices. Back-office employees create assignments, which field workers view through the app on their smartphones. The app shows them where they need to go and what they need to do, eliminating the need to return to the office as well as cleaning up messy paper trails. The app can also track field workers’ locations throughout the workday to ensure their safety.

    A significant benefit of these low-code/no-code custom apps is that organizations can quickly make small changes. Each organization can define its requirements to respond to its specific needs. Some popular requirements are:

    • Fieldworker tasks and locations
    • Live field worker location tracking
    • Location time stamps
    • Work completion time stamps
    • “Next up” task lists

    Custom-fit Solutions that Solve Problems

    Low-code/no-code apps are great solutions when they match the problem at hand. TechHouse works carefully to ensure that the solution we provide solves a problem rather than a symptom of a problem.

    TechHouse only designs and builds solutions after learning how a team operates. We gather information to understand essential functionalities like:

    • The industry vocabulary used in an organization
    • How teams typically communicate in the office and the field
    • How managers assign various tasks to individuals with different skillsets
    • Criteria of task completion

    A deep understanding of an organization or team’s functionality is essential to creating an effective solution; this is why many packaged applications fall short.

    Some organizations DIY their app development using packaged applications, not knowing that they are often optimized for a fixed period. When the apps become outdated, organizations get stuck tailoring their work to an outdated app.

    Unlike packaged apps, the low-code/no-code apps that TechHouse builds are adaptable. Custom-fit apps allow organizations to choose how their organization runs, rather than vice versa. Sometimes, packaged apps create more problems than solutions.

    Keep Your Organization Flexible—in the Field and Your Industry

    Organizations must be flexible enough to respond to internal and external changes. Anything can happen, from organization restructuring to supply-chain shortages. Regardless, no organization wants to find itself stuck in an inefficient or ill-fitting process. That’s why custom-fit apps are often a better investment than prepackaged apps. Few organizations benefit from using technologies that were best practiced 18 months earlier.

    When organizations opt for low-code/no-code solutions, they place themselves better positioned to respond to change. This is the case for the three TechHouse clients who have sought out custom apps.

    If you think your organization could benefit from the flexibility provided by a low-code/no-code solution, contact TechHouse today. It will be our pleasure to work with you.

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  • Client Corner #1: Get Organized and Secure from the Start

    Client Corner #1: Get Organized and Secure from the Start

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    Get Organized and Secure from the Start

    This is the first post in a new monthly blog series where we will share what our clients are struggling with, what we’re doing to help, and how our recommendations can also benefit your organization.

    This month is all about how to get organized to grow your business and why you should secure your files from the start.

    Get Organized with the Power Platform

    We had a client come to us this month who said they really needed to get organized.

    After working with us, they now have a better sense of who they are now, what they do, and are even changing their name to reflect their new sense of identity.

    Additionally, they want to make sure their processes are in alignment with who they are going forward to ensure continual growth. The three most crucial factors for growth in any company are People, Product, and Processes.

    When it comes to Processes, the Microsoft Power Platform can be a real game changer.

    We have helped companies use the Power Platform to:

    • Capture Data with Power Apps
    • Create Workflows with Power Automate
    • Bring Data to Life with Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power BI

    Automating tasks and tracking your company’s data are both crucial as your company scales, and the Microsoft Power Platform provides easy-to-use, low-code tools to do so.

    Secure from the Start for a Successful Digital Transformation

    The same client who came to us to get organized kept bringing up two other subjects throughout the conversation: Digital Transformation and Security.

    They wanted to know where their files were and wanted to make sure they were secure.

    We recommend any organization considering a move to the Cloud secures its files from the beginning; however, this client did not do that. They decided to use a third-party application for their file storage instead of OneDrive (included in every Microsoft 365 subscription).

    The application they use is designed for non-technical users to send large files and collaborate, but there is a glaring security issue on the user side: what is happening to data before and after it’s uploaded and sent?

    OneDrive, being integrated with the rest of Microsoft 365, provides robust security for your stored files, and further security optimizations can be made with the help of a partner.

    Additionally, our client told us their clients accidentally send sensitive information all the time and weren’t aware there are rules in Microsoft 365 one can use to prevent this.

    Neglecting security and organization of your files will only lead to further problems down the line as you grow which is why consulting with an expert before you start is always a good idea.

    An even better idea is to work with a partner who will be there to advise every step of the way.

    If your company is looking for this kind of partner or you just want to get organized or need help with digital transformation and security, contact us today for a free 15-minute consult to see how we can help.

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