Adaptive Cards – what are they and how have we used them

Faster Decisions and Seamless Information Sharing Across Your Business

In today’s fast-moving business world, quick access to information is essential. Employees need to retrieve and act on data efficiently without delays. As a result, Power Apps has become a popular tool for streamlining business processes. However, businesses often struggle when collecting information from clients without giving access to internal systems. Additionally, executives need simple ways to make decisions without navigating complex applications.

Fortunately, Adaptive Cards offer a smart solution. They help businesses simplify processes, improve collaboration, and speed up decision-making.

What are Adaptive Cards?

Adaptive Cards are interactive messages that display important information in an easy-to-read format. They can be sent through Outlook, Microsoft Teams, and virtual bots. These cards also include input fields such as text boxes, dropdowns, date pickers, and checkboxes, allowing users to respond quickly. Moreover, Adaptive Cards integrate seamlessly with Power Automate, enabling businesses to process responses and automate workflows instantly.

By using Adaptive Cards, organisations reduce the need for emails and forms, allowing employees to act without switching between multiple applications.

How OfficeLabs Uses Adaptive Cards

At OfficeLabs, we use Adaptive Cards to simplify operations, increase efficiency, and improve collaboration. Here are two examples:

1. Asset Management Solution

• Managing company assets often involves multiple stakeholders, leading to delays. To address this, we introduced Adaptive Cards that deliver key asset details directly to users via email.
• When assets are returned, line managers receive an interactive card with decision options. If an asset is damaged, they can instantly approve or reject repairs. If they approve, they enter a budget code, which the IT department then processes.
• This solution eliminates long email chains, reduces approval time, and ensures assets are handled efficiently.

Learn more about our Asset Management Solution.

2. Invoice Approval Solution

• Invoice approvals often slow down business operations due to multiple touchpoints. To resolve this, we integrated Adaptive Cards into Microsoft Teams.
• Approval groups receive key invoice details in a structured card. Instead of using complex approval systems, decision-makers approve or reject invoices directly from Teams.
• Each card includes fields to confirm whether all work or supplies are complete, select an approval status, and add comments. If needed, users can reassign approvals to another team member using a people picker integrated with the Microsoft Graph API.

Learn more about our Invoice Approval Solution.

Why Adaptive Cards Improve Business Processes

Adaptive Cards provide multiple advantages for organisations looking to improve efficiency. Here’s why they matter:

• Faster Decision-Making: Key information is delivered instantly, allowing users to take immediate action.
• Fewer Emails: Employees interact with structured, actionable cards instead of lengthy email chains.
• Better User Experience: Interactive prompts make decision-making simple and intuitive.
• Seamless Integration: Adaptive Cards work across Microsoft 365 applications, reducing workflow friction.
• Stronger Compliance: Structured input fields ensure complete and accurate data collection.

Best Practices

To get the most out of Adaptive Cards, businesses should follow these best practices:

• Keep It Simple: Design cards that are easy to understand, avoiding unnecessary complexity.
• Use Conditional Formatting: Display only relevant fields based on user input. For instance, if a user selects “Approve,” show a budget field.
• Optimise for Mobile: Ensure Adaptive Cards work well on desktop and mobile devices.
• Automate Responses: Use Power Automate to process responses instantly, eliminating manual follow-ups.

Explore More

Adaptive Cards are just one way to improve business efficiency. Discover how OfficeLabs can help optimise your digital processes with a tailored Free Information Management Strategy Session.

Additionally, our Information Management Services provide end-to-end solutions for organising, securing, and automating business information.

Ready to Take Control?

Don’t let information overload slow your business down. Use Adaptive Cards in Power Platform and Teams to simplify workflows, improve collaboration, and drive smarter decisions.

Let OfficeLabs help you enhance business efficiency – contact us today.