Build a Custom Business Application That Fits Your Process Exactly
Paying for software that almost does what you need? DM1 builds custom business applications on Microsoft’s platform — designed around your exact process, not a generic template.
What Is Microsoft Dataverse?
Microsoft Dataverse is the database that sits underneath custom business applications built with Power Apps. Think of it as the step up from SharePoint Lists — designed for businesses that need data from different tables to connect to each other, or that need a proper application with screens, forms, and business rules built in. One important distinction: Dataverse is not something your staff edit directly. It sits behind a Power Apps application — your team uses the app, and Dataverse is the database running underneath it.
SharePoint Lists is the right starting point
Most small businesses start with SharePoint Lists and find it covers their needs well. It’s included in your Microsoft 365 plan, quick to set up, and handles the majority of structured data use cases without any additional cost.
Dataverse is the right next step when
Your data needs relationships between tables. Different staff need to see different records. You’re paying for off-the-shelf software that only half-fits. You need a proper application — not just a list your team updates manually.
What DM1 Can Build for Your Business
These are realistic applications DM1 has built or can build on Microsoft Dataverse for Perth SMBs. Each one replaces a manual process, a generic tool that doesn’t quite fit, or software your business is currently paying for.
Broker or adviser management platform
Replaces a CRM your business is paying for but only half-using. Custom-built around your exact process — clients, applications, products, and compliance requirements in one system. Brokers see only their clients. Managers see everything.
Job management platform
Replaces job cards, whiteboards, or a generic project tool. Every job linked to the client, assigned staff member, materials, and documents. Status changes trigger automations. Completion triggers invoicing prompts and satisfaction surveys.
Client portal
A branded interface your clients log into to check job status, submit requests, view documents, and communicate with your team. Looks and behaves like a proper business system, built specifically for your workflow.
Compliance and document tracking
Track every compliance task, document expiry, and renewal deadline in a structured system. Automated alerts before deadlines. Every action logged. Audits become straightforward.
Custom approval platform
Multi-stage approvals with business rules, role-based routing, and a complete audit trail of every decision, every approver, and every timestamp — regardless of how complex the approval logic needs to be.
Inventory and order management
A proper stock system with purchase orders, supplier tracking, and automated reorder triggers. Connected to your job management system so materials are tracked against jobs automatically.
How a Dataverse Project Works
Dataverse projects are scoped and built by DM1 as a structured engagement. You see the design before any build begins — no surprises.
Discovery and design
DM1 meets with you to understand the process, the data, the users, and the problem being solved. We produce a data model and screen design for review and approval before build begins. We also assess whether SharePoint Lists would do the job just as well at no extra cost.
Build and handover
DM1 builds the Dataverse tables, the Power Apps application, and any Power Automate flows. This phase includes testing with real data. On completion, DM1 trains your staff, documents the system, and hands over administration. Ongoing support is available under a managed services agreement.
What It Costs — and When It Makes Sense
Dataverse requires a Power Apps licence in addition to your Microsoft 365 subscription. Ask DM1 for current pricing in AUD — month-to-month rates apply, excludes GST.
When the investment is justified
The licence cost makes sense when it replaces software you’re already paying for, or when the manual work it eliminates adds up to several hours per week. Either way, the licence cost is usually well below what the problem is currently costing you. DM1 will give you an honest assessment before recommending a build.
Per-user or per-app licensing
Power Apps is available on two models: per-user (suits staff who use the application daily) and per-app (suits a defined group of occasional users and is often more cost-effective for smaller deployments). DM1 manages licences through your Microsoft CSP account and will recommend the right model for your situation.
What We Found on Day One
These are real findings from DM1’s standard onboarding process — businesses where the right platform made a material difference.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
Paying $18,000 per year for a CRM that the team had stopped using
When a Perth financial services business moved to DM1, our standard onboarding review found the business was paying for an industry CRM that had been largely abandoned by staff over the previous eighteen months. The workflow didn’t match their process and customisation was limited. Their previous IT provider had never raised it. DM1 scoped and built a Dataverse-powered broker management application in six weeks. The CRM subscription was cancelled. The new system tracks clients, applications, and compliance requirements exactly as the business works.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
Job management running on paper job cards and a whiteboard in the workshop
When a Perth trades business moved to DM1, our onboarding review found that job management was handled with handwritten job cards filed in a folder and a whiteboard showing current job status. No digital record. No audit trail. No way for the owner to see job status without being on site. Their previous IT provider had suggested a generic project management tool that didn’t fit the workflow. DM1 built a Power Apps job management application on Dataverse. Every job linked to the client record, status visible from any device, and completion triggering automated satisfaction surveys.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
Compliance document expiries tracked in a spreadsheet — with no alerts
When a Perth healthcare business moved to DM1, our onboarding review found that staff registration expiries, insurance renewals, and accreditation deadlines were being tracked in a shared spreadsheet with no automated alerts. Two registrations had lapsed without anyone noticing. Their previous IT provider had no solution in place. DM1 built a Dataverse compliance tracking application that sends automated alerts thirty days before any expiry and logs every action taken. The business owner now has full visibility across all compliance obligations without manually checking a spreadsheet.
Why Perth Businesses Choose DM1
DM1 is a Perth-based managed IT provider working exclusively with small and medium businesses. We are a Microsoft CSP partner, which means we manage Microsoft 365 licences and configurations directly — and we know what a well-configured business platform looks like.
We explain what we find in plain English
Every recommendation comes with a plain English explanation of what it means for your business and why it matters. You will always know what DM1 is doing and why — never a report full of technical terms with no explanation.
One point of contact for everything IT
DM1 manages your Microsoft 365 licences, your devices, your email, your security, your connectivity, and your backup — all from one place. One number. One provider. No pointing fingers between vendors when something goes wrong.
Find Out If a Custom Application Is Right for Your Business
DM1 will assess your current situation and give you an honest recommendation — including whether SharePoint Lists would do the job at no extra cost. (08) 6202 6012