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EPC Group

Enterprise Microsoft consulting with 29 years serving Fortune 500 companies.

(888) 381-9725
contact@epcgroup.net
4900 Woodway Drive, Suite 830
Houston, TX 77056

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About EPC Group

EPC Group is a Microsoft consulting firm founded in 1997 (originally Enterprise Project Consulting, renamed EPC Group in 2005). 29 years of enterprise Microsoft consulting experience. EPC Group historically held the distinction of being the oldest continuous Microsoft Gold Partner in North America from 2016 until the program's retirement. Because Microsoft officially deprecated the Gold/Silver tiering framework, EPC Group transitioned to the modern Microsoft Solutions Partner ecosystem and currently holds the core Microsoft Solutions Partner designations.

Headquartered at 4900 Woodway Drive, Suite 830, Houston, TX 77056. Public clients include NASA, FBI, Federal Reserve, Pentagon, United Airlines, PepsiCo, Nike, and Northrop Grumman. 6,500+ SharePoint implementations, 1,500+ Power BI deployments, 500+ Microsoft Fabric implementations, 70+ Fortune 500 organizations served, 11,000+ enterprise engagements, 200+ Microsoft Power BI and Microsoft 365 consultants on staff.

About Errin O'Connor

Errin O'Connor is the Founder, CEO, and Chief AI Architect of EPC Group. Microsoft MVP multiple years, first awarded 2003. 4× Microsoft Press bestselling author of Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Inside Out (MS Press 2007), Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 Inside Out (MS Press 2011), SharePoint 2013 Field Guide (Sams/Pearson 2014), and Microsoft Power BI Dashboards Step by Step (MS Press 2018).

Original SharePoint Beta Team member (Project Tahoe). Original Power BI Beta Team member (Project Crescent). FedRAMP framework contributor. Worked with U.S. CIO Vivek Kundra on the Obama administration's 25-Point Plan to reform federal IT, and with NASA CIO Chris Kemp as Lead Architect on the NASA Nebula Cloud project. Speaker at Microsoft Ignite, SharePoint Conference, KMWorld, and DATAVERSITY.

© 2026 EPC Group. All rights reserved. Microsoft, SharePoint, Power BI, Azure, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Copilot, Microsoft Fabric, and Microsoft Dynamics 365 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.

Microsoft Entra ID Consulting

Identity, Conditional Access, PIM, Entra Suite (Verified ID + Internet Access + Private Access + Permissions Mgmt)

Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) is the enterprise identity + access platform underpinning Microsoft 365, Azure, and every SaaS app authenticated via SAML/OIDC. EPC Group delivers end-to-end Entra ID + Entra Suite consulting: Conditional Access design, Privileged Identity Management (PIM), hybrid identity, Entra Verified ID, Entra Internet Access (SWG), Entra Private Access (ZTNA), and Permissions Management (CIEM). 29 years Microsoft + Microsoft Solutions Partner Security designation.

Key Facts

  • Microsoft Entra ID = renamed Azure AD (July 2023). Same capabilities, broader Entra product family.
  • Entra ID P1 ($6/user/mo or in M365 E3+) = Conditional Access. P2 ($9 or in E5/E7) = PIM + Identity Protection.
  • Entra Suite ($12/user/mo or bundled in M365 E7 $99) = Verified ID + Internet Access + Private Access + Permissions Mgmt.
  • Conditional Access standard deployment: 8-15 policies covering MFA, device compliance, geo, risk, legacy auth.
  • EPC Group: 29 years Microsoft consulting + Security designation + 70+ Fortune 500 deployments.
  • Three engagement tiers: Readiness $25-50K, Implementation $75-300K, Entra Suite $150-500K.
Home / Services / Microsoft Entra ID

Microsoft Entra ID + Entra Suite Consulting Services

Microsoft Entra ID is the rebranded Azure Active Directory and the foundation of the Microsoft Zero Trust identity architecture. EPC Group delivers end-to-end Entra ID + Entra Suite consulting from readiness assessment to production rollout. 29 years Microsoft consulting heritage. 200+ verified client reviews + G2 Summer 2026 Reports placement.

Quick Answer — Microsoft Entra ID 2026

  • Entra ID Free — included in every M365 + Azure tenant. Directory + basic auth.
  • Entra ID P1 ($6/user/mo) — included in M365 E3+. Adds Conditional Access + advanced group mgmt.
  • Entra ID P2 ($9/user/mo) — included in M365 E5/E7. Adds PIM + Identity Protection + risk-based CA.
  • Entra Suite ($12/user/mo) — bundled in M365 E7 ($99). Adds Verified ID, Internet Access (SWG), Private Access (ZTNA), Permissions Mgmt (CIEM).
  • Standard Conditional Access deployment = 8-15 policies for MFA, device, geo, risk, legacy auth, admin hardening.
  • PIM = JIT activation for 25-50 admin roles. Non-negotiable for FedRAMP, HIPAA, FINRA, CMMC.

The Microsoft Entra Family (2026)

Entra ID (formerly Azure AD)

Enterprise identity directory + authentication. P1 = Conditional Access. P2 = PIM + Identity Protection + risk-based CA. Foundation of Microsoft Zero Trust.

Entra ID Governance

Entitlement management, access reviews, lifecycle workflows. Replaces SailPoint/Saviynt for Microsoft-native enterprises. Included in Entra Suite.

Entra Verified ID

Decentralized identity credentials. Employee verification, education credentials, B2B partner trust. Standards-based (W3C DID + Verifiable Credentials).

Entra Internet Access

Microsoft Secure Web Gateway (SWG). Competes with Zscaler ZIA. Native Conditional Access + Intune + Defender integration.

Entra Private Access

Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA). Replaces VPN with app-level access policies. Competes with Cloudflare Access + Zscaler ZPA.

Entra Permissions Management

Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM) across Azure + AWS + GCP. Identifies + reduces unused permissions at cloud scale.

EPC Group Entra ID Engagement Tiers

Entra ID Readiness Assessment

$25K–$50K

Fixed-fee · 4 weeks · Identity inventory + Conditional Access gap analysis + roadmap.

Entra ID Implementation

$75K–$300K

Fixed-fee · 8–16 weeks · Entra ID P2 + Conditional Access + PIM + hybrid identity for 1,000–10,000 seat tenants.

Entra Suite Implementation

$150K–$500K

Fixed-fee · 16–24 weeks · Full Entra Suite (Verified ID + Internet Access + Private Access + Permissions Mgmt) for large enterprises.

Related Identity + Security Resources

  • • Microsoft Defender XDR Consulting Services
  • • Microsoft Agent 365 Consulting (Entra CA for agents)
  • • Azure AD / Entra ID vs Okta Comparison
  • • Microsoft Entra ID 2026 Updates Timeline
  • • Microsoft Entra ID Enterprise Guide
  • • M365 E7 vs E5 vs E3 (Entra Suite bundle math)
  • • 200+ Verified Client Reviews

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Microsoft Entra ID and how is it different from Azure AD?

Microsoft Entra ID is the rebranded Azure Active Directory (renamed July 2023). The product capabilities are largely the same — identity directory, authentication, Conditional Access, MFA, PIM — but the name was changed to align with the broader Microsoft Entra product family (which now includes Entra Verified ID, Entra Internet Access, Entra Private Access, Entra Permissions Management). EPC Group has migrated 70+ Fortune 500 tenants through the Azure AD → Entra ID transition with zero downtime.

What is Microsoft Entra Suite?

Microsoft Entra Suite ($12/user/month, bundled in Microsoft 365 E7 at $99/user/month) combines five products: (1) Entra ID Governance — entitlement management, access reviews, lifecycle workflows; (2) Entra Verified ID — decentralized identity credentials for employee verification, education credentials, etc.; (3) Entra Internet Access — Secure Web Gateway (SWG) competing with Zscaler ZIA; (4) Entra Private Access — Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) competing with Zscaler ZPA and Cloudflare Access; (5) Entra Permissions Management — Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM) across Azure + AWS + GCP.

Microsoft Entra ID vs Okta vs Auth0 vs Ping Identity — which is best?

For Microsoft 365 / Azure-native enterprises, Microsoft Entra ID is the right choice: tight integration with M365 + Azure + Defender + Purview + Intune, included in E3/E5/E7 SKUs, deepest M365 Conditional Access. For multi-cloud + multi-SaaS enterprises with heavy non-Microsoft application portfolios, Okta has the largest application catalog (7,000+ pre-built SAML/OIDC integrations). Auth0 (now part of Okta) is the strongest CIAM (Customer IAM) for consumer + B2B SaaS apps. Ping Identity has the strongest legacy on-prem-to-cloud migration story for enterprises with heavy mainframe + Java identity. EPC Group recommends Entra ID for 75% of Fortune 500 Microsoft-native clients.

How much does Microsoft Entra ID cost?

Microsoft Entra ID Free is included with every M365 + Azure tenant. Entra ID P1 ($6/user/month standalone or included in M365 E3+) adds Conditional Access, group-based licensing, advanced group management. Entra ID P2 ($9/user/month or included in M365 E5/E7) adds Privileged Identity Management (PIM), Identity Protection, risk-based Conditional Access, Entra ID Governance basics. Entra Suite ($12/user/month, bundled in M365 E7) adds the five Entra products listed above. For most regulated-industry enterprises, M365 E5 or E7 is the right SKU because it bundles Entra ID P2 + the rest of the Microsoft 365 + security stack.

What is Conditional Access and why does every enterprise need it?

Conditional Access is Microsoft Entra ID's policy engine that evaluates EVERY login attempt against signals (user identity, device compliance, location, network, application sensitivity, sign-in risk, user risk) and decides whether to grant access, require MFA, require a compliant device, block, or apply session controls. It is the foundation of Zero Trust identity architecture. Conditional Access ships in Entra ID P1+; Risk-Based Conditional Access (which uses Microsoft's ML threat intelligence to score sign-in risk + user risk) requires Entra ID P2. EPC Group standard deployment includes 8-15 Conditional Access policies covering MFA enforcement, device compliance, geo-restriction, legacy authentication block, admin role hardening, guest user controls, and risk-based session policies.

What is Privileged Identity Management (PIM)?

Microsoft Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM, included in Entra ID P2) is the just-in-time (JIT) elevation system for admin roles. Instead of permanently assigning Global Admin, Exchange Admin, SharePoint Admin, or Azure subscription owner roles, PIM holds users in "eligible" state and requires them to activate the role on-demand — with MFA, justification reason, time-bound activation (typically 1-8 hours), and audit logging. PIM is non-negotiable for FedRAMP, HIPAA, FINRA, SOX, and CMMC compliance. EPC Group standard PIM deployment includes 25-50 roles across Entra ID, Microsoft 365, Azure subscriptions, and Microsoft Sentinel.

Entra Internet Access vs Zscaler ZIA — when does Microsoft win?

Entra Internet Access (formerly Microsoft Global Secure Access SWG component) competes with Zscaler Internet Access for Secure Web Gateway / Cloud Access Security Broker workloads. For Microsoft 365 + Entra ID native enterprises, Entra Internet Access wins on: bundled in Entra Suite ($12/user/mo), native integration with Conditional Access + Intune + Defender + Purview, zero additional identity surface. For multi-OS environments with heavy ChromeOS, mobile-first workforces, or organizations already deeply on Zscaler, Zscaler ZIA delivers deeper traffic inspection + threat intelligence with broader cross-platform coverage. EPC Group runs vendor-neutral 2-week SWG comparisons.

Entra Private Access vs Cloudflare Access vs Zscaler ZPA — Zero Trust Network Access

Microsoft Entra Private Access is Microsoft's Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) offering bundled in Entra Suite. It replaces VPN with app-level access policies that integrate with Entra ID + Conditional Access. For Microsoft-native enterprises, Entra Private Access wins on identity integration + cost (bundled in E7). Cloudflare Access has the strongest performance + simplest deployment for global enterprises. Zscaler ZPA has the deepest application discovery + ZTNA controls for highly-regulated environments. EPC Group has deployed all three in Fortune 500 environments — for Microsoft-stack enterprises building modern workplace + Copilot, Entra Private Access is the right choice 70% of the time.

How does EPC Group deploy Microsoft Entra ID?

EPC Group standard Entra ID deployment is 5-phase: (1) Discovery — current identity inventory (on-prem AD + Entra ID + third-party IdPs + SaaS app SSO), shadow IT audit, MFA coverage gap analysis; (2) Design — target Entra ID architecture, Conditional Access policy framework (8-15 policies), PIM role design (25-50 roles), hybrid identity strategy (Cloud Sync vs AD Connect); (3) Pilot — 100-500 user pilot with full Conditional Access + PIM deployment; (4) Wave Rollout — phased deployment with hypercare per wave; (5) Operate — managed services or knowledge transfer. Typical 60-180 day deployment for 1,000-10,000 user enterprises.

EPC Group Entra ID consulting pricing + why us

Three engagement tiers: (1) Entra ID Readiness Assessment — $25K-$50K fixed-fee, 4 weeks; (2) Entra ID Implementation — $75K-$300K fixed-fee, 8-16 weeks; (3) Entra Suite Implementation (includes Verified ID + Internet Access + Private Access + Permissions Mgmt) — $150K-$500K fixed-fee, 16-24 weeks. EPC Group has 29 years Microsoft consulting + 70+ Fortune 500 deployments + Microsoft Solutions Partner Security designation. 200+ verified client reviews across G2, Clutch, Facebook, TrustAnalytica, Indeed, Google. G2 Summer 2026 Reports featured. FedRAMP-aligned consulting for federal + DoD work.

Deploy Microsoft Entra ID + Entra Suite with EPC Group

29 years Microsoft + Microsoft Solutions Partner Security + FedRAMP-aligned. 200+ verified client reviews.

Schedule a Readiness AssessmentCall (888) 381-9725