Microsoft Unveils Yet another RAD Tool with Flow

Microsoft today introduced a new type of tool known in the industry as If This Then That (IFTTT) which allows for the creation of pseudo applications based on combining cloud services into business driven workflows. Microsoft Flow is designed to connect to cloud services such as Twitter, Slack, Google Drive, Office 365, etc. and use these services to both generate events (e.g. Twitter retweets your post or someone sends you an email) and drive actions to these cloud services (e.g. send out a tweet, copy a file, etc.) as part of a coordinated cloud based workflow.

Microsoft has a long history of Rapid Application Development tools which are targeted to development of pseudo applications without the need for custom coding or developers. In November, Microsoft launched PowerApps for building sophisticated web applications that harness cloud services such as Office 365, CRM, SalesForce, etc.

If you imagine the two services working together, you could create quite a sophisticated line of business application that leverages these cloud services to drive business processes complete with a dynamic web application for viewing content, providing a customer experience view and then integrating with cloud services for communication and transacting.

Christopher Woodill

About ME

Enterprise technology leader for the past 15+ years…certified PMP, Six Sigma Black Belt and TOGAF Enterprise Architect. I collaborate with companies to help align their strategic objectives with concrete implementable technology strategies. I am Vice President, Enterprise Solutions for Klick Health.

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