The agent action gate
The fictional bank records the exact action and approver.
Coming
See every demonstrationPRIVATE EQUITY
Proof for the deal clock.
An operating partner does not need another assessment deck. You need a go or no-go in writing for each add-on, a Day 1 that holds, and a portfolio that reports the same way after close.
01 Source02 Boundary03 Human decision04 Evidence
HOW IT WORKS
The control path in practice.
- Inventory the add-on tenant read-only, including its AI.
- Record Day 1 readiness as tested or assumed, one page.
- Pilot the connection for one group with rollback written first.
- Report every portfolio company through the same control path.
THE WOUND
Every vendor sells speed; who sells proof?
The playbook does: a Day 1 readiness record for each add-on, a 100-day plan with a written go or no-go per wave, and the same control path for every company in the portfolio.
Integration is a program, not bespoke chaos, and the acquired company's AI estate (its agents, its Copilot, its shadow AI) is now part of diligence. Simple Merge is the method shown; the record is yours.
THE MICROSOFT INSIGHT
How do an acquired company's people reach your applications from day one?
Through cross-tenant synchronization in Microsoft Entra ID, which provisions them into the parent tenant as B2B users while their accounts stay managed where they are.
Cross-tenant synchronization in Microsoft Entra ID automates creating, updating and deleting B2B collaboration users and groups across the tenants of one organization, so an acquired company's people can reach the parent's applications from day one while their accounts stay managed in their own tenant. (Microsoft Learn, checked Nov 1, 2026)
Plan the hub on day one and the acquired team signs in on day one. Plan the tenant merge first and the acquired team waits for the merge.
THE METHOD
What does the same playbook look like on every add-on?
Read-only discovery, a one-page Day 1 record, a pilot connection for one group with rollback written first, and your written decision per wave.
- Inventory the add-on tenant read-only, including its agents and its Copilot posture.
- Record Day 1 readiness as tested or assumed, one page.
- Pilot the connection for one group with rollback written first.
- Report every portfolio company through the same control path after close.
THE DILIGENCE
Can you inventory what the add-on's AI can do before close?
Yes, through the Microsoft Agent 365 inventory of agents, owners, identities and data reach, read-only, as part of diligence.
Microsoft Agent 365 is the control plane that observes, governs and secures agents built on Microsoft platforms or acquired from third parties, through the Microsoft 365 admin center, Microsoft Entra, Microsoft Purview and Microsoft Defender. (Microsoft Learn, checked Oct 31, 2026)
Inventory the agents before close and they are a line in the deal memo. Inventory them after and they are a line in the incident report.
THE FIRST RUNG
Where does an operating partner start on the next add-on?
With the AD to Entra Readiness review, five delivery days, read-only, then M&A IT Integration as the paid program.
The portfolio CFO gets a go or no-go in writing. The deal team gets the Contoso Builders Day 1 brief as the worked example on fictional data. Microsoft-funded where you qualify.
AFTER TWO WEEKS
What will be working after two weeks?
- The add-on tenant is inventoried read-only: identities, devices, data, agents.
- The Day 1 readiness record separates tested from assumed on one page.
- The pilot connection for one group is designed with its rollback written first.
- You hold the 100-day plan and its first wave as a written go or no-go.
HONEST ABOUT LIMITS
What this does not do yet
It does not give every acquired agent its own governed identity in the first two weeks. Microsoft Entra Agent ID is generally available to every Microsoft Entra customer and gives each AI agent its own identity with owners and sponsors, Conditional Access templates for high-risk, autonomous and on-behalf-of agents, and sponsor lifecycle workflows; extending Entra security features to agents needs a Microsoft Agent 365 license, and the admin center creation wizard and agent user accounts remain in preview. (Microsoft Learn, checked Nov 4, 2026) The acquired agents are inventoried first; each gets its Entra Agent ID, sponsor and Conditional Access in a wave you approve, with the Agent 365 license checked in the acquired tenant.
It does not merge tenants in the first two weeks: a custom domain can live in one tenant at a time and the merge is a wave you approve.
It does not promise a timeline: the clock is the deal's, the gates are yours.
THE ONE THING TO REMEMBER
Same playbook, every add-on: a Day 1 record, a 100-day plan and a written go or no-go per wave.
Said another way: proof is a record you can hand the portfolio CFO, not a promise of speed.
Said a third way: the acquired company's AI is part of diligence now.
SHOW YOUR WORK
See the control path on a fictional bank.
DIRECT ANSWERS
Questions before you decide.
What is in the Day 1 readiness record?
Identities, devices, data, applications and agents of the add-on, each marked tested or assumed, with the rollback for each planned change and the go or no-go for the first wave.
Do the tenants have to merge?
Not on day one. Cross-tenant synchronization in Microsoft Entra ID can give acquired people access from day one while the merge is planned as its own wave.
How does the AI estate enter diligence?
Through a read-only inventory of agents, owners, identities and data reach in Microsoft Agent 365, plus the Copilot sharing posture of the add-on tenant.
What is Simple Merge?
A Simple Intelligence Group product that shows the integration control plane; it is the method shown, separate from Simplicity IT services, and never required to buy the program. Simple Intelligence Group lists it as coming soon.
How is it priced?
Quoted after a scoping call. The readiness review is five delivery days, read-only, and scoped separately from the integration program.
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