Identity Governance & ProtectionEntitlement Management

Entitlement Management

30 mins

Understanding the Concept

Entitlement management automates access request, assignment, review, and expiration workflows through access packages. An access package bundles groups, applications, and SharePoint sites into a single requestable unit with defined policies for who can request, who approves, and when access expires.

Catalogs organize access packages by department, project, or function. Catalog owners can manage their own access packages without needing tenant-wide admin rights, enabling decentralized access management at scale.

Connected organizations allow external users to discover and request access packages, replacing the manual guest invitation process. Combined with automatic expiration and access reviews, entitlement management provides end-to-end governance for both internal and external access.

Key Points

  • Access packages: Bundle of resources (groups, apps, sites) as one request
  • Catalogs: Organize packages by department, project, or scenario
  • Policies: Define who can request, approval chain, and expiration
  • Connected organizations: Enable external users to request access
  • Automatic expiration: Access packages expire after a configured period

Entitlement Management Flow

Step 1

Create Catalog

Organize resources by department or project

Step 2

Build Package

Bundle groups, apps, and sites into access package

Step 3

Define Policy

Set requestors, approvers, and expiration rules

Step 4

User Requests

User discovers and requests access package

Step 5

Lifecycle

Auto-expire, review, and renew as needed

Why This Matters in Real Organizations

Traditional access provisioning is slow (days/weeks), error-prone (wrong groups assigned), and rarely includes expiration. Entitlement management transforms this into a self-service, governed process with consistent policies, automatic expiration, and full audit trails. This is critical for organizations managing thousands of users across hundreds of applications.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Creating too many granular access packages instead of role-based bundles
Not configuring automatic expiration, leading to access accumulation
Skipping the approval workflow for sensitive resources
Not using catalogs to delegate management to business owners

Interview Tips

  • Explain the access package concept and why it simplifies governance
  • Discuss the self-service request and approval experience
  • Mention connected organizations for external user access governance

Exam Tips (SC-300)

  • Know the components: catalogs, access packages, policies
  • Understand the request and approval workflow
  • Know about connected organizations and external access

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