Automate Document Generation with Microsoft Teams

This tutorial guides you through creating a complete workflow that triggers document generation from Microsoft Teams messages. When a user posts a message containing a trigger phrase in Teams, the flow automatically retrieves a template from SharePoint, generates a document with data from a JSON source, saves it back to SharePoint, and notifies the user in Teams.

What You’ll Learn

• Create a Power Automate flow triggered by Teams messages
• Retrieve templates and data from SharePoint
• Generate documents using Build a Doc
• Save output files to SharePoint
• Post notifications back to Teams channels

Prerequisites

• A Build a Doc subscription and API key
• Power Automate account with permissions to create flows
• Access to Teams, SharePoint, and custom connectors
• A Word template stored in SharePoint (e.g., Invoice template)
• Corresponding JSON data source
• A Teams channel to trigger from and receive notifications

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Step-by-Step Implementation

1. Create a New Flow

In Power Automate, create an Instant cloud flow:

1. Click + New flow → Instant cloud flow
2. Select When a new channel message is added as your trigger
3. Click Create

Name your flow (e.g., “Build a Doc - Generate Invoice”):

Select the Team and Channel to trigger from:

2. Initialise Variables

Add two Initialise Variable actions:

Variable 1:

• Name: varJSONContent
• Type: String
• Value: (leave empty)

Variable 2:

• Name: varDocxContent
• Type: Object
• Value: (leave empty)

These variables will store the JSON data and Word template content retrieved from SharePoint.

3. Add Trigger Condition

Create a Condition action to check if the message contains your trigger phrase:

1. Add a Condition action
2. Select the OR operator
3. Configure conditions:
   • First condition: contains(toLower(coalesce(triggerOutputs()?['body/subject'], '')), 'generate invoice') is equal to true
   • Second condition: contains(toLower(coalesce(triggerOutputs()?['body/body/content'], '')), 'generate invoice') is equal to true

This checks both the subject and body of the Teams message for your trigger phrase (case-insensitive).

4. Get Template and Data from SharePoint

Inside the condition’s True branch, add two Send a HTTP request to SharePoint actions:

Action 1 - Get JSON Data:

• Site Address: Your SharePoint site
• Method: GET
• URI:

  _api/web/GetFileByServerRelativeUrl('/sites/buildadoc/Shared%20Documents/Convert%20Word%20Document/Invoice.json')/$value

Action 2 - Get Word Template:

• Site Address: Your SharePoint site
• Method: GET
• URI:

  _api/web/GetFileByServerRelativeUrl('/sites/buildadoc/Shared%20Documents/Convert%20Word%20Document/Invoice.docx')/$value

Note

URL-encode paths with spaces: “Shared Documents” → “Shared%20Documents”

5. Set Variables

After each HTTP request, add a Set Variable action to store the content:

After Get JSON Data:

• Name: varJSONContent
• Value:

  base64ToString(body('Send_an_HTTP_request_to_SharePoint_-_Get_JSON_Data')?['$content'])

After Get Word Template:

• Name: varDocxContent
• Value:

  body('Send_an_HTTP_request_to_SharePoint_-_Get_docx_Template')

6. Call Build a Doc Convert Word Document Action

Add the HappyWired PowerDocs → Convert Word Document action:

Configuration:

• Document: Output from varDocxContent
• Data Source Name: Invoice (or your template’s expected name)
• Format: JSON
• Data: Output from varJSONContent
• Output Format: PDF

7. Create Output File in SharePoint

Add SharePoint → Create file:

Configuration:

• Site Address: Your SharePoint site
• Folder Path: /Shared Documents/Generated/ (or your desired folder)
• File Name: Generated Invoice.pdf
• File Content: Output from Convert Word Document action

Caution

Ensure the file name includes the correct extension (e.g., .pdf) matching your output format.

8. Post Message to Teams Channel

Add Teams → Post message in a chat or channel:

Configuration:

• Post as: Flow Bot
• Post In: Channel
• Team: Select your team
• Channel: Select your channel
• Message:

  Your invoice has been generated and is ready! Check SharePoint for the file.

9. Test Your Flow

1. Save the flow
2. Go to your Teams channel
3. Post a message containing “Generate Invoice”
4. The flow will:
   • Detect the trigger phrase
   • Retrieve the template from SharePoint
   • Generate the PDF with your data
   • Save it back to SharePoint
   • Post a confirmation message to Teams

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Customization Guide

Change the Trigger Phrase

In Step 3, modify the condition logic:

contains(toLower(...), 'your phrase here')

Use Dynamic File Names

In Step 7, use expressions for the file name:

Invoice_@{triggerOutputs()?['body/InvoiceNumber']}_@{formatDateTime(utcNow(), 'yyyyMMdd')}.pdf

Add Error Handling

Add a Configure run after condition to the Teams post action to notify on failures:

1. Right-click the Teams post action
2. Select Configure run after
3. Check has failed and has timed out
4. Customize the failure message

Use Multiple Templates

Add a Switch action before the Build a Doc action to select templates based on message content:

- Case "Invoice": Use Invoice template
- Case "Report": Use Report template
- Default: Show error

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Troubleshooting

File Not Found / Permissions Error

Symptoms: Flow fails at SharePoint HTTP request steps

Solutions:

• Verify SharePoint site URLs and file paths are correct
• Confirm the flow connector has read permissions on document libraries
• Use the file picker in SharePoint actions instead of manual paths

Blank or Missing Fields in Generated Document

Symptoms: PDF generates but data fields are empty

Solutions:

• Ensure JSON property names exactly match template placeholders (case-sensitive)
• Use Compose or Parse JSON actions to inspect the payload during a test run
• Verify the data source name in Build a Doc action matches your template

Teams Message Won’t Post

Symptoms: Flow completes but no Teams notification appears

Solutions:

• Verify the channel is public (private channels require special permissions)
• Confirm the Teams connector has channel posting permissions
• Add the Flow Bot to private channels if needed
• Check the Teams action isn’t nested incorrectly within a condition

Trigger Phrase Not Detected

Symptoms: Flow trigger fires but condition evaluates to false

Solutions:

• Check condition logic for exact text matching
• Consider case sensitivity (use toLower() for case-insensitive matching)
• Check for extra whitespace in the trigger phrase

Document Conversion Fails

Symptoms: Build a Doc action returns an error

Solutions:

• Validate JSON/data source format matches template requirements
• Confirm the Convert Word Document action receives valid file content
• Check that the data source name matches your template’s expected name
• Review the Build a Doc error message in the action output

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Best Practices

Security

• Never embed your Build a Doc API key in client-side code
• Use Power Automate connections for credential management
• Rotate API keys periodically
• For shared flows, create a dedicated service account connection

Performance

• Use filters on triggers to avoid unnecessary flow runs
• Consider file size limits when working with large templates
• Test with sample data before production use

Maintenance

• Document trigger phrases your team uses
• Keep templates updated in a version control folder
• Monitor flow run history for errors
• Test template changes in a development channel first

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Related Topics

• Build a Doc Actions Reference
• Word Template Syntax
• Power Platform Connector Architecture
• Integrate with SharePoint