Microsoft Power Platform: Guide to effective governance strategies

The Need for Power Platform Governance

Microsoft Power Apps is a leader in the low-code solutions space, empowering millions of users to do more at work while enabling organizations to meet their business challenges. The Power Platform suite includes Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power Virtual Agents. Leveraging over 300 connectors from Microsoft and third-party sources like Common Data Service (CDS), custom-built connectors, Azure, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and the cutting-edge AI Builder, these solutions cater to a wide range of users—from Microsoft Excel enthusiasts to seasoned developers.

While democratized access to data empowers employees to easily build apps, flows, and dashboards, it also introduces security risks for organizations. However, companies can mitigate data loss, enhance risk management, ensure compliance, and uphold customer trust by implementing Microsoft Power Platform governance best practices.

Enhance Microsoft Power Platform Environment Management

Securing and regulating Power Platform usage hinges on the management of environments. Environments act as secure containers for the execution of apps and flows. Although the default configuration in Power Platform allows anyone to create new environments, Administrators can regulate this by adjusting settings in the Admin Center. Here are some best practices for managing the Microsoft Power Platform environment effectively:

The Power Platform Admin Center enables organizations to establish additional environments tailored to distinct roles, security needs, or target audiences. For instance, organizations can create separate environments for testing, development, marketing, etc., ensuring that only authorized team members can access the apps, flows, and resources within a specific environment, safeguarding it against unauthorized access.
Within an environment, apps access the database specific to that environment rather than the Microsoft Dataverse database in another environment.
By selecting the region during environment creation in the Admin Center, organizations can strategically position their environment closer to users and fulfill compliance obligations based on geography. This approach allows Admin Analytics to enforce data residency, ensuring that data generated within a region remains protected within that region.

Policies for Data Loss Prevention (DLP)

DLP policies allow organizations to establish regulations governing the interaction between connectors within flows. Microsoft implements this by creating two data groups:

Business Data Only Allowed
No Business Data Allowed

These groups categorize connectors based on their data profiles, allowing communication within the same group while restricting communication across groups. Here's how organizations can utilize DLP policies to strengthen the security of Power Platform instances:

Connector Grouping: Connectors with similar data profiles belong to the same data group and cannot communicate with connectors in other groups. For example, connectors in the Business data group cannot interact with those in the Non-business data group. Users must relocate a connector to another group if they need to create a flow involving connectors from different groups.
Default Data Group Designation: Organizations can specify a default data group and set the primary data policy in the Admin Center's Connectors section.
Policy Scopes: DLP policies in Power Platform operate at two levels: environment and tenant. Environment-scoped policies apply to specific environments, while tenant-scoped policies affect all environments within the tenant. When implementing multiple DLP policies, the most restrictive policy takes precedence.
Alignment with Cybersecurity Principles: Configuring DLP policies should align with an organization's existing environment architecture and cybersecurity principles. Administrators should evaluate whether business-related connectors can interact with consumer-based services based on these principles.
Monitoring New Connectors: Administrators must carefully monitor the deployment of new connectors to ensure they are placed appropriately.

Power Platform Center of Excellence Starter Kit

The Microsoft Power Platform Center of Excellence (COE) Starter Kit is a valuable resource for organizations seeking to enhance visibility and governance of their Power Platform usage. Comprising apps, flows, a custom connector, and a Power BI dashboard, the Starter Kit facilitates effective management of Power Platform environments. It helps identify users and introduce risk through application development while empowering those automating workloads within approved systems. Key features of the Starter Kit include:

DLP Editor: Allows administrators to assess the impact of moving connectors between data groups and notify affected app owners through in-app notifications.
Power BI Dashboard: Offers comprehensive insights into Power Platform usage, including app and flow creation statistics, environment metrics, and user engagement data.
App Audit: Enables administrators to identify and manage overshared or redundant resources, ensuring compliance with business justification requirements.
App Catalog: Facilitates app discoverability, allowing users to explore featured apps and browse by category, minimizing duplication and enhancing efficiency.

Summing Up: Oversee, Secure, and Construct More Effectively

As digital transformation accelerates, more organizations turn to Power Platform for rapid building, analysis, and automation. By leveraging the features available in the Power Platform Admin Center, organizations can maintain robust governance and security for their instances.

As a Microsoft Gold Partner, 1Point1 has helped organizations worldwide secure and govern their Microsoft 365 suite. Our team of experts assists organizations in utilizing the Power Platform for analysis, automation, and modernization while mitigating the risk of exposing sensitive data.

Interested in learning more? Get in touch with us today.

As a reputable global entity, we specialize in crafting tailored software solutions utilizing Power Platform tools like Power Automate, Power BI, Power Apps, and more.

Consult us today for details. Write to us at 1point1.com/contact-us.

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