Dotwork vs Microsoft Agent 365
Microsoft's control plane for registering, securing and governing AI agents across an organization.
Microsoft Agent 365 gives IT and security teams a control plane for AI agents, with a registry, identity and access control, security and incident handling built on Microsoft's security and compliance stack. Dotwork places AI governance next to AI cost, value, ownership and the rest of the operating model, so the same AI asset can be followed from finding to owner to spend to the strategy it serves.
At a glance
AI governance
Microsoft Agent 365
Operating model
Dotwork
Usually runs alongside Dotwork
Dotwork connects to it and puts its data in the context of the whole enterprise.
The short version
What each is built for.
Microsoft Agent 365
Microsoft Agent 365 is Microsoft's control plane for AI agents. It keeps a registry of agents with named owners, controls who can use each agent and what each agent can reach, and draws on Microsoft Entra, Defender and Purview for identity, threat protection, data security and compliance.
- Registering AI agents and assigning owners
- Controlling which people, tools and data each agent can reach
- Detecting and responding to security threats and incidents involving agents
- Applying data protection and compliance policies to agent activity
Dotwork
Dotwork is an AI-native enterprise operating platform built on the Enterprise Operating Model: one live, graph-based model that connects strategy, capital, work, technology and AI across the enterprise. For AI governance, it places AI assets, findings and controls on the same records as AI spend, ownership and the initiatives that funded them.
- Inventorying AI assets alongside their owners, findings and controls
- Setting AI spend beside the value recorded for each initiative
- Tying security findings to owning teams and AI assets
- Placing AI governance in the same model as cost, architecture and strategy
The core difference
How Dotwork and Microsoft Agent 365 approach the problem.
Microsoft Agent 365 approaches AI governance as identity, security and control for agents within the Microsoft environment. Dotwork approaches it as part of the operating model, where each AI asset is also a cost, an owner and a funded commitment.
Context
Agent 365's context is the agent as an identity in the tenant: who owns it, what it can access and what it is doing. Dotwork's context is the AI estate as part of the enterprise: assets, owners, teams, spend, findings and the initiatives they support.
Decisions
Agent 365 supports IT and security decisions: which agents are allowed, what they may reach and how to respond to a threat. Dotwork supports accountability and value decisions: who owns an AI asset, what it costs and whether it is worth it.
Time
Agent 365 watches agent activity as it happens, for access control, threat detection and incident response. Dotwork keeps AI assets, findings, incidents and approvals as records with history, next to spend by period.
Change
Agent 365 applies tenant-wide policies as new agents appear. Dotwork extends its reference operating model, so new AI assets and controls connect to the cost and strategy records already in place.
Architecture and data model
Side by side.
Microsoft Agent 365 is built to keep AI agents secure and under control inside the Microsoft environment. Dotwork is built to show leaders what their AI estate costs, who owns it and what it returns, with governance records on the same model. Organizations standardized on Microsoft often run both.
| Dimension | Microsoft Agent 365 | Dotwork |
|---|---|---|
| Core data model | A registry of agents as identities in the Microsoft tenant | A graph of AI assets, owners, findings, controls, spend and initiatives |
| Access control | Controls who can use each agent and which tools and data it can reach | Records identity and permission grants for AI assets |
| Security | Threat detection, security findings and incident response for agents | Security findings tied to owning teams and AI assets |
| Compliance | Data protection and compliance through Microsoft Purview | A framework crosswalk at a foundational level |
| Cost and value | Focused on agent control and security rather than AI cost | AI spend in the cost model, set beside the value recorded for each initiative |
The role of AI
Where the AI gets its context.
Agent 365 helps IT and security teams keep agents under control. Dotwork's AI works across the operating model, so a governance question can continue into cost, ownership and strategy.
Microsoft Agent 365
Microsoft Agent 365 manages AI agents, from Microsoft and other vendors, as governed identities, applying Microsoft's identity, security and compliance tools to them.
Dotwork
Dotwork's assistant answers questions across the whole operating model, and its agents can create and update Dotwork records, pausing a change for human approval when review is required. An MCP server, enabled per site, gives outside AI tools access to the same graph.
A fair comparison
Where Microsoft Agent 365 is strong — and where Dotwork is different.
Where Microsoft Agent 365 is strong
- It builds agent governance on Microsoft Entra, Defender and Purview, which many enterprises already run.
- It keeps a registry of agents with named owners, and controls which people, tools and MCP servers they can use.
- It is strong on security findings and on handling incidents involving AI agents.
- It maps compliance frameworks through Microsoft's compliance tools.
- It covers agents in Microsoft 365 and other agents registered in the tenant from one place.
Where Dotwork is different
- Sets AI spend beside the value recorded for each initiative, so AI investments can be reviewed against what they cost.
- Places AI spend in the enterprise cost model, connected to the AI assets that consume it.
- Ties security findings to the owning teams, AI assets and spend involved.
- Records human approval of an agent's action next to the asset it affects.
- Connects AI assets to applications, capabilities and the strategy that funded them.
Choosing
Which fits your situation.
Choose Microsoft Agent 365 when
- Your organization runs on Microsoft 365, Entra, Defender and Purview
- You need to register agents and control what they can access
- You need threat detection and incident response for agents
Microsoft Agent 365 fits IT and security teams in Microsoft-centered organizations who need to register, secure and control AI agents across the tenant.
Choose Dotwork when
- Leaders ask what each AI asset costs, who owns it and whether it is worth it
- Findings and controls need to connect to owning teams and spend
- AI governance should sit on the same model as cost, architecture and strategy
Dotwork fits organizations where AI governance has to sit next to AI cost, value, ownership and the rest of the operating model.
The bottom line
Choose Dotwork when you want to connect the enterprise across systems and silos — with a lower total cost of ownership.
One operating model across strategy, capital, work, technology and AI, instead of another tool to integrate, reconcile and maintain alongside Microsoft Agent 365.
FAQ
Questions buyers ask.
Can Dotwork and Microsoft Agent 365 be used together?+
Yes. Agent 365 remains the control plane for agent identity, access and security, and Dotwork connects AI assets to their owners, findings, spend and the initiatives they support.
Does Dotwork control what AI agents can access?+
No. Dotwork records identity and permission grants for AI assets, but it does not enforce access in your tenant. Agent 365 and your identity platform do that.
Does Dotwork test agents or models for bias?+
No. Bias and fairness testing is not part of Dotwork. Specialist AI governance tools cover that work.
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