Case study · WA Government
Getting Power Platform off the ground safely in a government department
DPIRD wanted its developers to use Power Apps safely, with governance in place before wider uptake. We set up a Power Platform Centre of Excellence and trained the team, who moved two apps onto it straight away.
Outcomes
- 2 apps built in Power Platform by the newly trained teams, straight after the training
- Half-day training in which each attendee deployed their own pipelined solution from development to production
The challenge
The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) promotes economic growth, sustainability and resilience in Western Australia's rural and regional areas. Its workforce of about 1,500 works across agriculture, fisheries and regional development.
Interest in Power Platform was rising, and DPIRD wanted its professional development team to be able to use Power Apps safely as one of its solution options. The team knew .NET, SQL Server and Azure well, but lacked the Power Platform expertise to bring it into an upcoming app modernisation initiative. With broader uptake expected from both professional and citizen developers, DPIRD also needed governance advice and capability at that level.
Our approach
We recommended an approach aligned with Microsoft's maturity model and Centre of Excellence (CoE) guidance, and then put it in place.
We installed Microsoft's CoE starter kit, with our own reporting on data loss prevention (DLP) policy and DevOps adherence, and developed environment and DLP strategies that support DevOps and data governance. We installed the Power Pipeline app and set up a reference pipeline over a candidate application, and designed a role-based security model, integrated with Microsoft Entra, to secure Power Apps in production.
We documented the capability in a full wiki, in DPIRD-specific guides to common Power Platform tasks and in formal documentation that establishes it within DPIRD's Enterprise Architecture group. A roadmap sets out how to extend governance across the organisation and deeper into the technology.
A half-day training session closed the work. Each attendee used the new capability to create their own pipelined solution and deploy it from development through to production.
The outcome
Straight after the training, the newly trained teams set up two apps that had been slated for modernisation in Power Platform. With real-time monitoring in place, the new apps showed up on the governance reports immediately.
They can now be developed within a secure, governed capability, which reduces the fear of data loss.
“We are happy with the quality and utility of Interfuze's Power Platform capability. They worked closely with our technical staff and management to ensure a delivery that wove best practice with our own unique goals and circumstances, then ensuring effective handover to our staff to secure ongoing operations.”
Where to next
Related work
The partner
- Microsoft at Interfuze Azure, data, AI and Copilot
Start small
Power Platform governance check A fixed-scope first engagement.