Identity Governance (Access Reviews & Entitlements)

Control who has access, for how long, and why - structured identity governance using Microsoft Entra ID Governance with access reviews, access packages, and a repeatable operating model.

Identity sprawl is one of the most common sources of risk in Microsoft 365 and Azure estates. Over time, users accumulate group memberships, application roles, and elevated permissions that are no longer needed. This increases the blast radius of compromised accounts, creates audit and compliance exposure, and makes it difficult to demonstrate who has access to sensitive systems and data. Identity governance addresses this by introducing repeatable processes to grant access, review access, and remove access when it is no longer justified.
LW IT Solutions delivers Identity Governance (Access Reviews & Entitlement Management) as a practical governance programme. We identify high-risk access areas, implement access review cycles for groups and applications, and design access packages so people can request access through an approval process with defined duration and justification. The output is a governance model that can be operated long-term: clear ownership, defined review cadences, consistent access request patterns, and evidence for audits and security assurance.

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Service Overview

Highlights

  • Use of Microsoft Entra ID Governance capabilities
  • Access Reviews for groups, applications, and privileged access
  • Entitlement Management access packages with approvals and expiry
  • Defined ownership and review cadence for repeatable governance
  • Reporting model aligned to audit and assurance needs

Business Benefits

  • Reduce security exposure by identifying and removing stale or excessive access
  • Introduce clear accountability for who approves and reviews access
  • Provide auditable evidence of access governance activities
  • Standardise how access is requested, approved, and time-limited
  • Improve control over sensitive systems and external collaboration

Typical use cases

  • Organisations preparing for security or compliance audits
  • Microsoft 365 or Azure estates with long-standing access sprawl
  • Teams needing better control over admin roles and sensitive groups
  • Businesses managing regular joiner, mover, and leaver changes
  • Environments with external users requiring governed access

Objectives & deliverables

What Success Looks Like

  • Reduce access risk by removing stale permissions and enforcing least privilege
  • Introduce a governed access request process with approvals and time-bound access where appropriate
  • Improve audit readiness by producing clear evidence of access governance activities
  • Reduce operational effort by standardising access patterns across teams and applications
  • Improve control over external collaboration and sensitive resource access (scope dependent)

What You Get

  • Identity governance assessment pack: findings, risk areas, and prioritised governance backlog
  • Governance design: review cadence, ownership model, and process documentation
  • Configured Access Reviews for agreed groups/apps with a documented review schedule
  • Configured Entitlement Management access packages with approval and expiration policies (as scoped)
  • Operational runbook: how to run reviews, handle exceptions, and maintain access packages
  • Audit evidence model: what data is retained and how governance outcomes are reported

How It Works

  1. Discover - confirm governance drivers (security, compliance, audit), scope, and critical access areas.
  2. Assess - catalogue high-value access paths: groups, apps, admin roles, and external access patterns.
  3. Design - define review cadence, owners, remediation rules, and access package patterns.
  4. Implement - configure Access Reviews and Entitlement Management for the agreed scope.
  5. Pilot - run the first review cycles with supported remediation and refine the operating model.
  6. Scale - expand coverage by risk area and embed the governance rhythm into BAU operations.

Engagement Options

  • Assess - identity governance review with risk findings and prioritised actions
  • Implement - configure Access Reviews and access packages for defined scope
  • Expand - extend governance coverage to additional apps, roles, or external users
  • Operate - ongoing support for reviews, reporting, and governance refinement

Common Bundles

Customers who use this service often bundle with these services

Privileged Identity Management (PIM) & Admin Hardening
Implement Privileged Identity Management and admin hardening to remove standing access, enforce just-in-time elevation, and govern privileged roles.

Conditional Access Design & Rollout
Design and roll out Conditional Access policies with testing, pilot groups, break glass controls, and reporting that reduces risk without disrupting users.

Microsoft Purview E5 Information Protection & Governance Add-on Enablement
Enable Purview E5 add-on capabilities for advanced information protection, auto-labelling, records management, and governance controls beyond standard E3 features.

Directory Consolidation & Separation (M&A)
Plan and execute directory consolidation or separation across Active Directory and Entra ID with controlled cutover and minimal disruption.

Frequently Asked Questions

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