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Change the colour of an excel row using power automate

Posted on 21 Nov 2024 01:20:49 by 60
Hi, 
 
Question, is possible to change the colour of a row in excel using power automate. I don't want to change any of the text in the row, just the colour. 
 
Situation: When we receive an email that a job has been done we colour the row the job is listed on in our to do list (in an excel sheet) blue as our indicator it's done. Is it possible to create a flow where, when the new email is received the row is automatically coloured blue?
 
I've heard you might need excel script to do this so I had a check, our organisation doesn't have excel script sadly, so if I do need this, I may need some help getting the script. 
 
Kind Regards,
Lauren
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  • LB-20090315-0 Profile Picture
    LB-20090315-0 60 on 21 Nov 2024 at 23:56:12
    Change the colour of an excel row using power automate
    @ronaldwalcott you're right of course. 
     
    Sadly, I am just the support officer so I do not have authority to change the process. I have to do what the manager says. Also there's only three of us in the team so we never have any confusion. All three of us know the system. Auditing and analysis are not required for these particular tasks. 
     
    Thanks for the advice. Shall I assume these responses I am receiving mean it is not possible to change the colour using power automate (web)?
     
    thank you,
    Lauren
  • ronaldwalcott Profile Picture
    ronaldwalcott 704 on 21 Nov 2024 at 22:57:27
    Change the colour of an excel row using power automate
    I used GPT to expand and expound upon my response as using colours to indicate status is such a bad idea that I couldn't express all the reasons why it is.
     

    You have a process problem. Coloring a row should never be used as a primary means of marking a task as complete for several reasons:

    1. Lack of Standardization: Colors are subjective and may not be universally understood by all team members. What one person sees as "complete," another might interpret differently, leading to confusion and miscommunication.

    2. Accessibility Issues: People with color blindness or other visual impairments may not be able to distinguish between different colors. This can exclude them from important information, making the process less inclusive.

    3. Scalability: As the number of tasks grows, relying on colors to indicate status can become overwhelming and difficult to manage. You could run out of distinguishable colors, making it harder to track the status of tasks effectively.

    4. Data Analysis: Colors do not lend themselves well to sorting, filtering, or reporting. With a status column, you can easily generate reports, track progress, and perform data analysis to improve efficiency.

    5. Auditability: Maintaining a history of changes is essential for accountability and continuous improvement. Using colors makes it challenging to track who marked a task as complete and when it happened.

    6. Tool Compatibility: Many project management and collaboration tools are designed to work with status columns, allowing for better integration and automation. Relying on colors may limit your ability to leverage these tools effectively.

    Implementing a status column with clear, standardized labels like "Pending," "In Progress," and "Complete" ensures everyone is on the same page, improves accessibility, scalability, data analysis, auditability, and tool compatibility. By adopting a more structured approach, you can streamline your processes and enhance overall productivity.

  • LB-20090315-0 Profile Picture
    LB-20090315-0 60 on 21 Nov 2024 at 22:27:13
    Change the colour of an excel row using power automate
     
    Sorry, feel like I'm being difficult now but we don't have a column for status or anything like that. Colouring the row is how we mark it complete.
  • Suggested answer
    trice602 Profile Picture
    trice602 10,923 on 21 Nov 2024 at 05:01:53
    Change the colour of an excel row using power automate
    Hi,
     
    Yes, you don't need PA for this, use conditional formatting in your workbook, shown below.
     
    Here, when the status changes to "Complete" the row is blue.
     
     
    ------------------------------------------------


    If this was helpful, please like and/or mark as a verified answer to help others find this too!


    Always glad to help! 💯💯💯💯💯

    Tom 

    Follow me on LinkedIn - Thomas Rice, PMP | LinkedIn

     


     
  • LB-20090315-0 Profile Picture
    LB-20090315-0 60 on 21 Nov 2024 at 03:33:16
    Change the colour of an excel row using power automate
     
    Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately my company does not allow us to have Microsoft for Desktop. Is there no way to do it through the web app?
     
    Thank you. 
    Lauren
  • Suggested answer
    trice602 Profile Picture
    trice602 10,923 on 21 Nov 2024 at 02:19:50
    Change the colour of an excel row using power automate
    Hi,
     
    You don't need a script to do this, just use Power Automate for Desktop, shown below.  Goes without saying, you can also use conditional formatting in your workbook and do this natively inside excel by change the row color to blue if a cell or column is equal to "Completed".
     
     
    ------------------------------------------------


    If this was helpful, please like and/or mark as a verified answer to help others find this too!


    Always glad to help! 💯💯💯💯💯

    Tom 

    Follow me on LinkedIn - Thomas Rice, PMP | LinkedIn

     


     

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