From running the same Office Script across multiple files to extracting workbook data into an email, creating automated workflows with Power Automate can significantly boost your Excel productivity. In this post, we’ll cover how to share your flows with teammates across your organization, enhancing collaboration and efficiency.
To follow along, visit make.powerautomate.com and select a flow from My Flows to practice sharing. If you don’t have one, you can easily create one using Power Automate’s templates.
There are two main ways to share a workflow:
Adding owners to the flow
This approach allows you to directly add collaborators to your flow, granting them co-ownership. It’s perfect for real-time teamwork since all modifications are immediately visible to all participants with access. This ensures smooth collaboration within your team without delays. However, it’s important to note that the individuals you share with must have the appropriate permissions in Power Automate.
To implement this, choose the flow you want to share and click on the “Share” button:
From here, you can add owners by their names, email addresses, or entire user groups. Granting someone ownership provides them with complete control over the flow, so it’s crucial to share only with trusted individuals. Owners can manage user permissions, access the run history, and modify, edit, or delete the flow. Each person designated as an owner will have access to all associated connections, but these connections can only be utilized within this specific flow.
Sending a copy of the flow
The second method involves sending a copy of the flow. You can do this by selecting “Send a copy” when the flow is highlighted.
If the recipient doesn’t require continuous access to the active flow or if they’re not a member of your Power Automate environment, you can send them a copy by exporting the flow as a package. They can then import this package into their own environment. It’s important to note that they will need to establish the necessary connections themselves, which could involve additional steps based on the data sources and permissions involved.
Individuals within your organization can create a copy of this flow. Once copied, there is no option to retract the flow.
Approaches compared
So, which method should you choose? As a typical data analyst might say, “It depends!” Adding owners to the flow involves more direct collaboration, whereas sending a copy allows others to use the flow on their own terms. Both approaches offer unique benefits depending on your needs. Below is a summary table comparing these two methods:
| Feature | Adding Owners to the Flow | Sending a Copy of the Flow |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Enables real-time collaboration by granting co-ownership | Allows others to use the flow independently by providing a copy |
| Access Control | Grants full control over the flow, including editing and deleting permissions | Recipients can use and modify the copy independently but cannot affect the original |
| Visibility | Changes are immediately visible to all co-owners | Recipients work on their own copy, changes do not impact others |
| Permissions Required | Collaborators must have appropriate permissions in Power Automate | Recipients must set up their own connections and permissions |
| User Connection | Owners use shared connections within the specific flow | Recipients need to establish their own connections upon importing the flow |
| Collaboration Level | High, as it involves direct collaboration with team members | Low, as the copy functions independently of the original flow |
| Implementation Steps | Select flow, click “Share”, and add owners by name or email | Select flow, choose “Send a copy”, recipient imports the flow package |
| Control over Modifications | High, as owners can modify, manage permissions, and access run history | Low, as the original flow remains unaffected regardless of modifications to the copy |
Sharing flows outside organizations
The methods discussed earlier are mainly for sharing flows within your organization. However, if you need to share a flow with someone outside your organization, you have the option to export the flow as a compressed ZIP folder. For step-by-step instructions on how to do this, you can refer to Microsoft’s official guide on exporting and importing flows.
Conclusion
Whether you’re working closely with your team or distributing workflows more broadly, choosing the appropriate sharing method in Power Automate can significantly enhance productivity. Do you have any questions about collaboration in Power Automate or how to optimize this tool for Excel? Let me know in the comments.
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