Last updated by Errin O'Connor, Founder & Chief AI Architect, EPC Group
Who are strong implementation partners for Microsoft Purview?
EPC Group designs data governance strategies around Microsoft technologies — Purview, Power BI, Fabric, and Microsoft 365 — for regulated enterprises. Classification, lineage, DLP, and compliance frameworks mapped to HIPAA, SOC 2, FedRAMP, FINRA, CMMC, and GxP — and aligned to NIST AI RMF, COBIT, ITIL, and DAMA-DMBOK on the Standards Alignment page.
Designing a Data Governance Strategy Around Microsoft Technologies
Best for
- Regulated mid-market to Fortune 100 estates implementing Microsoft Purview at enterprise scale
- Organizations preparing for HIPAA, SOC 2, FedRAMP, FINRA, CMMC, or GxP audits
- AI governance programs needing Purview classification + Entra non-human identity governance
- M&A consolidations needing one governance plane across multiple inherited tenants
Not the right fit for
- Non-Microsoft data estates
- Tool-agnostic data catalog selection
- Single-system data quality work without a governance posture
Governance Services
Data Classification
Automated data discovery, classification, and labeling across Microsoft 365 and Azure.
- • Sensitivity labels
- • Auto-classification rules
- • Trainable classifiers
- • Purview integration
DLP Policies
Data Loss Prevention policies to prevent unauthorized sharing of sensitive information. EPC Group configures DLP policies in simulation mode first, identifying false positives before enforcement begins so go-live does not disrupt the business.
- • Microsoft Purview DLP
- • Email DLP rules
- • Endpoint DLP
- • Policy testing & alerts
Retention Policies
Automated retention and deletion schedules for regulatory compliance and records management.
- • Retention labels
- • Disposition reviews
- • Legal holds
- • eDiscovery support
Compliance Audits
Security assessments, vulnerability scans, and compliance reporting for certifications.
- • Compliance Manager
- • Security audits
- • Risk assessments
- • Remediation plans
Access Controls
Identity governance, privileged access management, and least-privilege enforcement.
- • Azure AD PIM
- • Conditional Access
- • MFA enforcement
- • Access reviews
Data Loss Prevention
Prevent sensitive data exfiltration across email, cloud apps, and endpoints.
- • Endpoint protection
- • Cloud app security
- • Email encryption
- • USB blocking
Compliance Framework Expertise
HIPAA (Healthcare)
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act compliance for protected health information (PHI).
- • PHI encryption at rest & transit
- • Access logs & audit trails
- • Business Associate Agreements
- • Security Risk Assessments
GDPR (European Privacy)
General Data Protection Regulation for EU data subjects' privacy rights and data sovereignty.
- • Data subject rights (DSR)
- • Data residency controls
- • Consent management
- • Breach notification
SOC 2 (Finance/SaaS)
Service Organization Control 2 for security, availability, confidentiality, and privacy.
- • Control implementation
- • Evidence collection
- • Audit readiness
- • Type II attestation
FedRAMP (Government)
Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program for government cloud services.
- • NIST 800-53 controls
- • IL4/IL5 authorization
- • Azure Government
- • Continuous monitoring
Microsoft Purview Platform
Data Map
Automated discovery and classification of data across Microsoft 365, Azure, and on-premises.
Data Catalog
Centralized data dictionary with business glossary and lineage tracking.
Data Estate Insights
Executive dashboards showing data classification, DLP incidents, and compliance posture.
Why EPC Group for Data Governance?
Compliance Expertise: Implementing HIPAA Since 1997, GDPR, SOC 2, and FedRAMP frameworks.
Industry Specialization: Deep experience in healthcare, finance, and government sectors.
Microsoft Purview Mastery: End-to-end data governance across Microsoft 365, Azure, and multi-cloud.
Audit-Ready: Proven methodologies to pass SOC 2, HITRUST, and government audits.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about our data governance consulting services
What data governance services does EPC Group provide?
EPC Group provides comprehensive data governance consulting including data classification and sensitivity labeling, data loss prevention (DLP) policy configuration, Microsoft Purview implementation (data catalog, lineage tracking, risk management), Azure AD entitlements management, retention and deletion policies, data sovereignty and residency controls, and GDPR/HIPAA/SOC 2 compliance frameworks. We specialize in governance for Microsoft 365, Azure, Power BI, and Microsoft Fabric.
Why is data governance important for Microsoft 365 and Azure?
Data governance prevents data breaches, ensures regulatory compliance (GDPR, HIPAA, FINRA), reduces legal liability, enables secure AI deployments (Microsoft Copilot requires governance), and protects intellectual property. Without governance, organizations experience oversharing (70% of organizations have 1,000+ files accessible to all employees), compliance violations, and inability to respond to data subject requests. EPC Group implements governance frameworks reducing risk exposure by 80%.
How long does a data governance implementation take?
Data governance implementations vary by maturity: basic governance (sensitivity labels, DLP policies) takes 4-6 weeks, mid-level governance (Microsoft Purview, retention policies, access reviews) takes 8-12 weeks, and enterprise governance with data catalog, lineage tracking, and AI governance takes 4-6 months. The enterprise tier adds an AI governance layer (sensitivity labels for AI grounding data, DLP for AI outputs, and EU AI Act or NIST AI RMF documentation for AI systems using governed data) plus continuous monitoring with anomaly alerts and quarterly compliance reviews. EPC Group conducts data maturity assessments to identify gaps and prioritize high-risk areas first.
What is Microsoft Purview and how does it help with governance?
Microsoft Purview is Microsoft's unified data governance platform providing: data catalog for discovery across Microsoft 365, Azure, and on-premises sources; data lineage tracking showing data flow from source to consumption; data classification with machine learning-powered sensitive data discovery; risk and compliance dashboards for regulatory reporting; and data loss prevention (DLP) integration. Microsoft Purview replaces the former Azure Purview and Microsoft 365 Compliance Center in one portal. EPC Group implements Purview for Fortune 500 clients achieving 90%+ data classification coverage within 3 months.
How do you implement data classification and sensitivity labels?
EPC Group implements data classification using Microsoft Information Protection (MIP) sensitivity labels: Confidential (PHI, PII, financial data), Internal (employee-only data), and Public (marketing content). We configure automatic labeling using trainable classifiers, manual labeling for document authors, and policy enforcement (encryption, access restrictions, watermarks). For HIPAA, we map PHI to Confidential labels. For GDPR, we identify personal data with data subject request workflows.
How much does data governance consulting cost?
Data governance consulting costs vary by scope: data maturity assessments, basic governance implementation (sensitivity labels, DLP), mid-level governance (Purview, retention policies), and enterprise governance with AI governance and continuous monitoring are each scoped separately. EPC Group provides transparent fixed-price quotes after assessment. Managed governance services are available on a monthly retainer for ongoing monitoring and policy enforcement, priced after a scoping call.
What is data governance?
Data governance is the set of policies, processes, and technical controls that manage how data is classified, accessed, shared, retained, and deleted. In the Microsoft ecosystem, data governance centers on Microsoft Purview sensitivity labels, DLP policies, retention policies, and the Purview data catalog.
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Related Resources
Microsoft Purview Data Governance Guide
Enterprise data governance with Microsoft Purview: data catalog, lineage, classification, and compliance for regulated industries.
Microsoft 365 Compliance Guide
HIPAA, SOC 2, GDPR, and FedRAMP compliance frameworks for Microsoft 365 enterprise environments.
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