The results
By bringing Microsoft 365 governance data into one place, Crisp gave its IT team a clearer view of users, workspaces, licenses, and access risks.
- One central overview — Understand the state of Microsoft 365 without piecing together information from multiple admin portals.
- Less manual investigation — Identify external users, inactive workspaces, and potential governance issues faster.
- More informed license decisions — Spot unused or potentially unnecessary licenses before renewal.
- More consistent reviews — Give IT a repeatable way to review workspaces, access, and ownership.
- Clearer reporting — Prepare governance updates using current tenant information instead of manually compiling spreadsheets.
The problem
As Crisp’s Microsoft 365 environment grew, keeping track of users, workspaces, and access became increasingly difficult.
The IT team could manage individual issues through Microsoft’s administration portals, but getting the bigger picture required more effort. Information was spread across different tools, reports needed manual preparation, and routine governance checks often depended on someone knowing where to look.
External guests could retain access after a project ended. Inactive Teams and SharePoint sites were not always reviewed consistently. License assignments were difficult to assess in the context of actual usage, and preparing a reliable overview for management took time away from other IT priorities.
The challenge wasn't a lack of administration tools. It was the lack of a straightforward way to turn tenant data into actionable governance insights.
“We could find most of the information we needed, but it wasn't available in one clear overview. Every review meant gathering data, checking it manually, and working out what needed attention.”
The solution
Microsoft 365 governance in one place
Crisp introduced CtrlConnect to bring relevant Microsoft 365 governance information together in a central, read-only console.
Rather than navigating between multiple administration portals and maintaining separate spreadsheets, the IT team could review the areas most relevant to its day-to-day operations.
Workspace visibility
The team could review Teams and SharePoint workspaces, identify inactive or unclassified sites, and spot missing ownership or description information that needed attention.
External access reviews
A consolidated view of external users and workspace access made it easier to identify guests who might no longer need access and prioritize follow-up reviews.
License optimization
License reporting helped the team identify assignments worth investigating, including licenses assigned to inactive users or users who might not need their current license level.
Governance reporting
Instead of repeatedly building reports from scratch, the team could use centralized information to support recurring reviews and provide management with a clearer picture of the Microsoft 365 environment.
Getting started
Crisp started by connecting its Microsoft 365 tenant and reviewing the available governance information. The initial focus was on visibility: understanding the current state of workspaces, external access, and license assignments before deciding which findings required action.
This gave the IT team a more structured starting point for governance reviews, without requiring it to replace its existing Microsoft 365 administration processes.
CtrlConnect provided the visibility; the IT team remained in control of the decisions and any changes made to the environment.
The result
With CtrlConnect, Crisp had a more consistent way to understand and review its Microsoft 365 environment.
Governance checks became easier to organize, potential access issues were easier to investigate, and license assignments could be reviewed with better context. The team also had a clearer starting point for recurring workspace reviews and management reporting.
The biggest change was moving away from scattered information and ad hoc checks toward a repeatable governance process.
Instead of asking, “Where can we find this information?”, the team could focus on the more important question: “What needs our attention?”
Because CtrlConnect operates in read-only mode, the team could use it to assess its environment without the platform making changes to the tenant.
Want the same visibility across your Microsoft 365 environment?
See how CtrlConnect can help your IT team identify governance gaps, review external access, understand workspace activity, and find license optimization opportunities.
Request a demo to explore the platform using the governance challenges most relevant to your organization.