A Workspace Booking Application on Microsoft Power Platform

Business Challenge 

Kernel needed to modernize the workspace booking process that would provide their employees with a simpler and faster way to reserve shared meeting rooms in Kernel head office. Our client was looking for a solution that would not require much time to develop or excessive costs for purchasing additional licenses and would simply fit into Kernel’s Microsoft 365 ecosystem. Thus, they needed a partner experienced in low-code/no-code application development to help them accomplish such goals: 

• Create a tablet-oriented mobile application (iPad) with a familiar corporate design that would respond to the needs of business users  
• Provide current room status on a meeting room display  
• Allow checking the current status of a room from tablets  
• Enable integration with Microsoft Exchange to book a free slot through Microsoft Outlook  
• Automate the administrator’s tasks of supervising the booking process  

Solution  

We offered to build a canvas app based on Microsoft Power Apps, with the latter already being available via Kernel’s Microsoft 365 subscription. 

In just three days, we delivered a corporate mobile application for booking meeting rooms in the Kernel’s main office fully corresponding to the client's goals. The app allows for: 

• A quicker and more transparent method to reserve the office workspace  
• Showing current room status and schedule on a meeting room display – booked, occupied, or available for reservation  
• Always up-to-date booking information on a specific room with data stored in SharePoint Online  
• Integration with Microsoft Exchange to book a meeting room using Microsoft Outlook  

The scope of services we delivered comprised: 

• The analysis of the existing IT environment and business analysis  
• The application design and development (including room booking forms)  
• Enabling connection with the external data sources  
• The two-way Power Apps integration with Microsoft Exchange  
• Aligning the UX/UI design of an app with the corporate design  
• Connecting to Microsoft Outlook to receive notifications  

The algorithm behind the room booking process 

Technologies & Tools 

• Microsoft Power Automate 
• Microsoft Power Apps 
• Canvas 
• Microsoft Exchange 
• PCF 
• Azure Integration Account 

Business Value 

The low-code application built with Microsoft Power Apps in such a short time received positive feedback from Kernel’s top management and business users who could gain from: 

• Automated administrator’s tasks focused on the manual overseeing of booking information  
• Reduced time needed for the approval of a meeting room reservation by the Kernel’s administrator  
• Improved business users' experience thanks to a simple and easy-to-interact user interface  
• Familiar Outlook Calendar functionality decreased the learning curve and helped business users get started with the new application almost immediately