Pick a problem to see the automation that fixes it: what it does step by step, what it costs and how much time it saves. Each one runs on Power Automate, which comes with Microsoft 365 business plans, and 8 of the 14 cost nothing extra.
Someone opens every emailed invoice, types the vendor, amount and due date into the books, then chases the owner for approval. At 100 invoices a month that is a full day of typing, plus late fees when an approval sits in an inbox.
What the automation does
An invoice arrives by email in your bills or accounts mailbox.
AI reads it and pulls out the vendor, invoice number, amount, due date and line items.
The PDF is saved in the vendor’s folder and added to your list of bills.
Bills over the amount you set go to the owner in Teams to approve with one tap. Smaller ones are approved automatically.
Approved bills go into your accounting software, or into a file ready to import.
Time saved (our estimate)
3 to 5 minutes per invoice, or about 5 to 8 hours a month at 100 invoices
Flow or agent?
A flow with one AI step that reads the invoice. No agent needed, because the steps are the same for every invoice.
What it costs
Needs Power Automate Premium ($15 per user a month, paid yearly) or $0.60 per run. The AI reading adds about $0.08 per page. Connecting straight to accounting software such as QuickBooks or Xero usually needs a premium connector too.
Good to know
Keep a person on the approval step for the first few months while you check what the AI reads.
Money and paperwork
Paper forms turned into records you can search
Flow + one AI stepPremium
The problem
Work orders, intake sheets, inspection forms and signed paperwork sit in filing cabinets or as photos on someone’s phone. Finding last year’s job for a customer means digging through boxes, and none of it reaches your other systems.
What the automation does
Staff scan or photograph the paper into a “Scans” folder, using the scan button in the OneDrive app on their phone.
AI trained on your own forms pulls out the fields: customer, address, date, work done, whether it was signed.
The file is renamed (customer, date, type), filed in the customer’s folder and added to a list you can search.
Anything the AI isn’t sure about goes to a person in Teams to check before it’s filed.
Time saved (our estimate)
5 to 10 minutes per document of typing and filing, and searches that take seconds instead of an afternoon
Flow or agent?
A flow with one AI step. Once your records are searchable, a Copilot agent can answer questions about them as a later step.
What it costs
Needs Power Automate Premium ($15 per user a month, paid yearly) or $0.60 per run. The AI reading adds about $0.08 per page.
Good to know
Handwriting is harder to read than print. The AI needs five or more filled-in examples of each form to learn from. Old boxes of paper are best done once as a batch.
Money and paperwork
Expense receipts captured from a phone photo
Flow + one AI stepPremium
The problem
Staff hand in crumpled receipts at the end of the month, or not at all. The bookkeeper types each one in and then asks what it was for.
What the automation does
Staff take a photo of the receipt and email it to a receipts address, or post it in Teams.
AI reads the store, date, total and tax.
The sender gets a quick question in Teams asking which job or category it belongs to, while they still remember.
The photo and details are filed, and the month-end expense list is ready for the bookkeeper.
Time saved (our estimate)
2 to 4 minutes per receipt, and far fewer missing receipts at tax time
Flow or agent?
A flow with one AI step. No agent needed.
What it costs
Needs Power Automate Premium ($15 per user a month, paid yearly) or $0.60 per run. The AI reading adds about $0.08 per page.
Good to know
Check first whether your business card or accounting software already reads receipts. Many do, and then the flow only needs to send the photo there.
Money and paperwork
Timesheets collected and ready for payroll
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Every payroll week the office texts each worker for their hours, types them into a spreadsheet, fixes the mistakes and sends it to the bookkeeper late.
What the automation does
Every Friday afternoon, each worker gets a card in Teams on their phone listing the jobs they were scheduled for, with a box for hours.
Answers go straight into the payroll spreadsheet.
Anyone who hasn’t answered by Monday morning gets one reminder, and the manager sees who is missing.
When all hours are in, the manager approves the summary and it goes to the bookkeeper or payroll service.
Time saved (our estimate)
2 to 4 hours per payroll run for a crew of 10 to 20
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. No agent needed.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run. Sending hours straight into a payroll system usually needs a premium connector.
Good to know
Workers need a Microsoft 365 account to use Teams. Workers who only have a personal phone can fill in a form link sent by text instead.
Customers
Every new lead answered in minutes
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Someone fills in your website form at 8pm and hears back two days later, by which time they have hired someone else. Leads sit in one person’s inbox and nobody knows which ones were answered.
What the automation does
A lead comes in from your website form, a Microsoft Forms survey or a lead email.
They get a personal reply right away, with a link to book a time.
The lead is added to your customer list and posted in your sales channel in Teams, where someone claims it.
If nobody has replied by the time you promise, the owner is told.
Time saved (our estimate)
Replies in minutes instead of hours, and 2 to 4 hours a month of copying leads between systems
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. An AI step can write a first reply that answers the question in the lead, which makes it a premium flow.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run. Connecting to a CRM such as HubSpot or Salesforce usually needs a premium connector.
Good to know
Your website form needs to send an email or connect to Microsoft Forms. Having it call the flow directly is a premium feature.
Customers
A shared inbox that sorts itself
Flow + one AI stepPremium
The problem
Three people watch the same info@ inbox. Some emails get two answers, some get none, and urgent ones sit next to newsletters.
What the automation does
A new email arrives in the shared inbox.
AI sorts it (new job, question, complaint, invoice or junk) and marks how urgent it is.
Customers get a reply saying their message arrived. Invoices go to the invoice flow. Everything else is posted in Teams with its type and a suggested reply.
Anything still unanswered after the time you promise goes to the owner.
Time saved (our estimate)
Every email answered once, and 3 to 6 hours a month of sorting and double replies
Flow or agent?
A flow with one AI step. It becomes an agent only when replies need to look up your price list, stock or a customer’s history.
What it costs
Needs Power Automate Premium ($15 per user a month, paid yearly) or $0.60 per run. The AI step adds about 1.5¢ per 1,000 tokens it reads (roughly 750 words).
Good to know
Keep a person between the suggested reply and the customer. Only the “we got your message” reply should go out on its own.
Customers
Client documents collected without the chasing
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Before you can start, clients have to send tax forms, IDs, leases or signed agreements. Staff send the list, then spend weeks checking what came in and emailing about what didn’t.
What the automation does
A new client is added with the list of documents they owe.
The flow creates their folder and a private upload link, where they can add files but can’t see anything else, and emails them the checklist.
As files arrive, they are renamed and ticked off.
Every few days the client gets one email listing only what’s still missing. Staff are told when everything is in.
Time saved (our estimate)
20 to 40 minutes per client of checking and chasing, and work that starts weeks sooner
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. An optional AI step can check each file is the right document for the right year, which makes it a premium flow.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run.
Good to know
Your SharePoint sharing settings must allow upload links for people outside the company.
Customers
Feedback and reviews asked for after every job
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Happy customers never leave a review because nobody asks. Unhappy ones go straight to Google because nobody heard from them first.
What the automation does
A job is marked complete.
A day later the customer gets a thank-you with a two-question survey.
Customers who score you 4 or 5 get a link to leave a review.
A score of 3 or lower goes straight to the owner in Teams with the customer’s comments and phone number, so you can call before they post.
Time saved (our estimate)
1 to 2 hours a month, plus more reviews and fewer surprises
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. No agent needed.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run.
Good to know
Some review sites don’t allow asking only happy customers. Check each site’s rules and send the review link to everyone where they require it.
Customers
Customers kept the same in every system
Simple flowPremium
The problem
A new customer is entered in the booking tool, then again in accounting, then again in the email list. The spelling is different in each, and invoices go to old addresses.
What the automation does
A customer, order or booking is added or changed in one app, such as your online shop, card payments or booking tool.
The flow checks whether the customer already exists in your other systems.
It adds or updates them in accounting and your email list, and adds the order to your job list.
Anything that doesn’t match cleanly goes to one person in Teams to fix.
Time saved (our estimate)
2 to 5 hours a month of typing things twice, and fewer billing mistakes
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. No agent needed.
What it costs
Needs Power Automate Premium ($15 per user a month, paid yearly) or $0.60 per run. Most business app connectors, such as Shopify, Stripe, QuickBooks and Salesforce, are premium.
Good to know
Check first whether your apps already connect to each other. Many do, at no extra cost.
Your team
Purchase, spending and time-off approvals in one place
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Requests arrive by text, in the hallway and by email. The owner says yes and forgets, staff ask again, and nobody can show who approved what when the bill arrives.
What the automation does
An employee fills in a short request form: what they need, the cost and why, or the days they want off.
It goes to the right person by your rules, for example the manager under $500 and the owner above it.
The approver taps Approve or Reject in Teams, even from their phone.
The employee hears back, the decision is saved, and approved time off goes on the team calendar.
Time saved (our estimate)
10 to 15 minutes of chasing per request, or 2 to 5 hours a month for a team of 15
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. The rules are fixed, so there is nothing for an agent to decide.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run.
Good to know
Approval cards in Teams need the Workflows app turned on by whoever manages your Microsoft 365.
Your team
New employee setup that never misses a step
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Each new hire needs an account, a laptop, a welcome, the handbook, tax forms and training. Steps get missed, and the new person spends day one waiting.
What the automation does
A new hire is added with their start date, role and manager.
They get a welcome email and the forms to sign before their first day.
IT, the manager and payroll each get their tasks in Planner, with due dates counted back from the start date.
On day one they are added to the right Teams and folders and welcomed in the team channel. The manager sees anything still open.
Time saved (our estimate)
3 to 5 hours per new hire across the office, and a first day that’s ready
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. It pairs well with an agent that answers handbook questions, so the new person can ask it instead of the office manager.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run. Creating the Microsoft 365 account itself needs a premium connector, or stays a quick manual step.
Good to know
Keep the handbook and forms in SharePoint so the flow can send the latest version.
Your team
Meeting notes turned into tasks and a recap
Flow + one AI stepPremium
The problem
Decisions are made in meetings, then nobody writes them up. Action items are forgotten, and the customer waits days for the summary you promised.
What the automation does
A Teams meeting ends and its transcript is ready.
AI writes the summary, the decisions and each action item with who owns it.
Each action item becomes a task for its owner, and a recap email is drafted for the organizer to check and send.
Open items are listed at the start of the next meeting.
Time saved (our estimate)
20 to 30 minutes of writing up per meeting
Flow or agent?
A flow with one AI step. People with a paid Copilot license already get meeting recaps; the flow turns them into tasks and an email ready to send.
What it costs
Needs Power Automate Premium ($15 per user a month, paid yearly) or $0.60 per run. The AI step adds about 1.5¢ per 1,000 tokens it reads (roughly 750 words).
Good to know
Meeting transcripts must be turned on, and people in the meeting should know it is being transcribed.
Files and reports
The weekly numbers report, built for you
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Every Monday someone opens four systems, copies the numbers into a spreadsheet, makes a chart and emails it. It takes the morning, and it’s out of date by Wednesday.
What the automation does
Early every Monday the flow starts on its own.
It pulls last week’s figures: jobs done, invoices sent, new leads, open requests.
It fills in the report spreadsheet and compares each number with the week before.
The owner gets the summary in Teams and managers get the spreadsheet by email. An optional AI step adds three sentences on what changed.
Time saved (our estimate)
2 to 4 hours a week
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. The AI summary is optional.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run. Pulling numbers from outside systems such as a CRM, QuickBooks or an online shop usually needs premium connectors.
Good to know
Your numbers need to be in tidy tables or lists. Messy spreadsheets need a one-time cleanup first.
Files and reports
Email attachments filed in the right place
Simple flowIncluded with Microsoft 365
The problem
Contracts, plans, photos and permits live in personal inboxes. When someone is out, nobody can find the signed contract or the latest drawing.
What the automation does
An email with attachments arrives from a customer or supplier.
The flow matches the sender, or a job number in the subject, to the right customer or job folder.
Each attachment is saved there with a clear name and date.
Anything it can’t match goes to an “Unsorted” folder, with a message in Teams to file it.
Time saved (our estimate)
1 to 3 hours a week of saving, searching and asking around
Flow or agent?
A simple flow. An AI step is only needed if matching means reading the document itself.
What it costs
Included with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium, with no cost per run.
Good to know
The flow watches one mailbox per copy. Pointing customers at a shared mailbox keeps it to one.
Flow or agent?
A flow follows the same steps every time: read, file, send, follow up. Most automation is this, and none of the problems above needs more. An agent earns its place when each case needs judgment: answering questions in people’s own words, looking things up across several places before replying, or drafting an estimate from your past work. Agents that run on their own are billed on every run, so a flow is the cheaper choice whenever the steps are fixed.
Before you build
Check what your software already does. Accounting, booking and payment apps often have the feature built in.
One premium step makes the whole flow premium. Leave the AI out of flows that don’t need it.
Keep a person on anything that goes to a customer or moves money, at least at first.
Not sure which of these fits?
Our assessment finds the tasks that take the most time in your business and the automations and AI agents that would take them off your plate, with what each one costs.
