Microsoft Entra ID Governance Reviews

Customers are already integrating their on-premises identity solutions with Microsoft Office 365. As they transition to the cloud, they want to ensure seamless hybrid integrations between their on-premises identity infrastructure and Microsoft Azure Active Directory. Additionally, they seek to implement governance measures on top of their identity solutions to manage access and security.

While Microsoft's role management capability is strong within Azure or Microsoft technologies, it may present challenges for users outside these ecosystems. For instance, if a customer utilizes Entra without Office 365 and seeks to transition to AWS or Google Cloud, the management capabilities may not seamlessly extend to these platforms. The top three capabilities mentioned in such scenarios may not be fully applicable or transferable.

Access reviews are an essential feature of Entra Governance. Additionally, privileged identity management is one of its most valuable features. Just-in-time access, or Jet GIT, is integral to this system. Moreover, user behavior analytics stands out as one of its top features.

Microsoft has done a commendable job with RPAX. However, Microsoft should prioritize enhancing its ABAC (Attribute-Based Access Control) capabilities. Currently, Microsoft's ABAC offering falls behind AWS in comparison. 

I have been using Microsoft Entra ID Governance as an integrator for three years.

The solution is stable.

The solution is scalable. We mainly work with enterprise customers.

Support is satisfactory.

Positive

The initial setup is easy.  If I'm installing for a client with a 10,000 customer base, it'll take about one to one and a half months.

The deployment patch usually consists of two to three people. Currently, there's an initial one-time deployment. For Entra, the maintenance part requires three people. If you're following a 24/7 support model, you'll still need a minimum of three. 

The benefit is indeed cost savings. It addresses their identity management needs effectively. Many clients already utilize Microsoft products like Office 365, which includes applications like PowerPoint, making Entra a logical addition to their existing ecosystem. This bundling makes it a very cost-effective solution for most of our clients.

Microsoft Entra ID Governance is cheap, especially for organizations with a low customer base. There's room for improvement in its documentation. Despite my years of experience, I cannot confidently address customer queries regarding guests and standard users due to unclear documentation.

Microsoft Entra ID Governance streamlines compliance with regulatory guidelines set by the RBI. It automates governance processes, ensuring adherence to mandated requirements. This includes defining job roles and workflows, integrating with Defender capabilities, and simplifying operations. However, a significant challenge arises when users seek to implement Entra as their identity solution while hosting workloads on platforms like AWS or Google Cloud. In such cases, compatibility may be limited, potentially compromising functionality.

The reason to give Microsoft Entra ID Governance priority is if you are using Microsoft technologies. If your infrastructure is entirely based on Azure or on-premise using Microsoft Active Directory, then Entra ID Governance becomes highly relevant. However, if your identity (ID) setup deviates from Microsoft's ecosystem, the effectiveness of Entra ID Governance diminishes significantly due to limited compatibility and capabilities. Microsoft users prioritize Entra ID Governance for seamless integration and maximum capabilities within their Microsoft-centric environment.

Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

The product helps us manage user access to applications easily. We can create, delete, or deactivate users, and integrate them with our company's email and network systems.

The platform's most valuable feature is the single sign-on service. It allows us to manage users effectively, integrating them with various company systems.

The product's workflow approval process needs improvement. Currently, we mainly use firewall detection for approvals, but more options could enhance workflow management.

We are using the latest version of Microsoft Entra ID Governance.

It has been a stable platform, with no issues or outages experienced.

I would rate the initial setup process a nine out of ten, as it was easy to work with.

I would rate the price of the solution a seven out of ten. While I don't have pricing comparisons with other vendors, it is not inexpensive. There are no additional costs besides the standard licensing fees.

I highly recommend Microsoft Entra ID Governance, as it has been a reliable solution for managing user access to applications. I rate it a nine out of ten. 

We use the solution for SoD, access certification, access review, and access package, which will include Microsoft applications like Teams or SharePoint.

The most valuable feature of Microsoft Entra ID Governance is access reviews. Microsoft Entra ID Governance works well with Microsoft applications and products.

The solution lacks the feature to work well with third-party applications. Microsoft Entra ID Governance does not provide full-fledged governance features that are provided by other tools, such as Saviynt.

I have been using Microsoft Entra ID Governance for 2 years.

While other products give the pricing for their application, Microsoft Entra ID Governance has a per-user-based license model. The solution's pricing is not a problem for customers already using the Office 365 license. They just need to have some additional licenses on top of it, like a P2 license. If the customer has an E5 license, the solution is included in that.

I would recommend the solution to other users.

Overall, I rate the solution a five out of ten.

We use the solution to maintain access reviews, govern external identities, and manage things.

We recently found a great solution for our external identities, which we have been struggling with a lot. The tool gives us the entitlement management capability of removing guest accounts automatically from the tenant. Previously, your guest accounts would be there unless you explicitly removed them. The solution gives me the capability to automatically move guest accounts from the tenant without any manual intervention.

Other governance solutions, like SailPoint, have different modules for managing access packages, and they have a very easy way of managing those identities and access from a single console. Microsoft Entra ID Governance should improve its capability to manage identities and access from a single console.

The tool should include more automation capabilities where I can even use existing users. If I create an access package or access reviews, the solution makes it easy for me to integrate new users. I would like to see the existing users governed by Microsoft Entra ID Governance.

I have been using Microsoft Entra ID Governance for five to six years.

I rate the solution a seven or eight out of ten for stability.

I don't think the solution is quite mature enough to be used by enterprise businesses. However, medium-sized organizations can take advantage of the tool because it would be cost-effective for them.

I rate the solution’s scalability an eight out of ten.

I don't think Microsoft engineers are very comfortable with Microsoft Entra ID Governance. Since this product and its features are new, I think the Microsoft engineers struggle a bit to provide solutions. I'm not saying they are not trying, but they take some time to provide solutions after understanding the customer use cases.

Neutral

I have previously used SailPoint. Compared to Microsoft Entra ID Governance, SailPoint has more features. Microsoft Entra ID Governance is not there yet, but I think they're trying hard and will be there soon.

The solution's initial setup is almost out of the box and not quite complicated. However, I would love to see a more detailed step-by-step approach in Microsoft documentation, which would help users like me use the product more broadly. A little improvement on the documentation part would help.

The solution's pricing is not low but reasonable. I would like to see the licensing in a different way because there are still some complexities around the licensing model. The tool has a Step-Up License and other things. One easy solution for licensing would be beneficial.

Any SaaS solutions, like Salesforce, that we have in the environment can easily be integrated with Microsoft Entra ID Governance single sign-on. I would recommend the product to other users.

Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.