Limiting Approver List to Certain Individuals

[banana1]

Hello,

I use PowerApps, SharePoint, and Flow. I'm running across an issue with approvals I need help with. I'd like to add a drop down list of approvers in the PowerApps form that the user can select from. For example I'd like a Manager field in the PowerApps form that has a drop down list of 5-6 people (I don't want the whole directory open where they can choose whoever they want to approve). How do I go about doing this? I started by creating a custom approver list in SharePoint and connected that as a data source within PowerApps but now I'm stuck as the drop down list doesn't show the list of Approvers from SP. Is that the right way to approach it or is there a better way to do it within Flow that would save the information that's selected to SharePoint as well? 

Thank you in advance for your help!

[RezaDorrani]

Hi @banana1 

Creating an approvers list is fine

Since the user would be selecting the approver from a list

You can use a dropdown list and connect it to the Approvers List

In your main list you can create a Text field called Approver which can store the Approver information

https://powerusers.microsoft.com/t5/General-Discussion/Powerapps-BInding-to-dropdown-control/td-p/12...

This shows how to link dropdown list to a text field data card

Then your Flow can just read the approver info and accordingly assign the task

Regards,

Reza Dorrani

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[banana1]

Hi @RezaDorrani, thanks for the response. My SharePoint list is a People field currently. Am I understanding you correctly that I should change the data type of this list to be a text field instead of People?

[RezaDorrani]

Hi @banana1 

I was assuming its Single Line of Text (the approach defined would work in that case)

If it is a person field then there would be more work

You would have to unlock the data card for Approvers in the main form which the user fills out

and hide the drop down which allows users to pick any user from the Approvers dropdown

Then add your own dropdown that points to your approvers list

and then for the data card set the default value to fetch information from your dropdown

Regards,

Reza Dorrani

If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly

[v-yutliu-msft · Accepted solution]

Hi @banana1 ,

Since people field is a complex data type ,so you need some special formula.

1)single people field

Distinct(listname,fieldname.DisplayName)

2)multiple people field

Distinct(
          Split(
                 Concat(
                         AddColumns(listname,"aaa",Concat(fieldname,DisplayName&",")),     //get value from nested table
                          aaa&""
                        ),            //combine all the names to one text
                  ","
                ),                   //split text to a table
            Result
          )                         //delete duplicate names

Please replace fieldname, listname with the name that you use.

[banana1]

Hi, 

I'm still unable to do this. I've attached images of the error I'm getting. 

I have two SharePoint data sources: 

1. Tracker

2. Organization

In the Tracker I have a Person/Field look up column currently. I want to replace this person/field look up with a list of names that is sitting in my Organization SharePoint. I want the new field to also be a person/field look up as I have a flow attached to this field that takes the email address of this user and assigns them an approval. 

I've brought in all my data sources but when I use the equation you have given below for #1 it won't pull anything. 

What am I missing?