Employee Directory 365: AI-powered, Microsoft-native directory for SharePoint & Teams

HR365’s Employee Directory 365 arrives on Microsoft’s marketplace as a tightly scoped, SharePoint‑native directory that promises rapid deployment, deep Microsoft 365 integration, and AI‑enhanced search — a simple idea executed with cloud‑native discipline and aggressive go‑to‑market positioning. The app is now listed on Microsoft AppSource / Azure Marketplace and marketed as a turnkey way to make people and expertise discoverable inside SharePoint, Teams and Outlook with features such as interactive org charts, Azure AD filtering, and a free 14‑day trial for single‑tenant evaluation. (appsource.microsoft.com)

Background / Overview​

Employee Directory 365 is published by Apps 365 & HR365 and is distributed through Microsoft’s commercial channels (AppSource / Azure Marketplace). The product is presented as an SPFx (SharePoint Framework) and Teams web‑app experience that pulls user metadata from Microsoft 365 sources, syncs with Azure Active Directory and provides a UI for search, filtering, org charts and profile cards. The app certification page maintained by Microsoft confirms the developer listing, app ID and platform compatibility details. (learn.microsoft.com, appsource.microsoft.com)
HR365 positions the solution as:

• A “Microsoft‑native” directory that stays inside the tenant boundary (no external user data exfiltration asserted).
• An AI‑powered search experience for faster discovery.
• A zero‑trust security posture and support claims for regulated environments including GCC / GCC High tenants.
• Rapid deployment — “under 10 minutes” — and a free fully‑featured 14‑day trial. (hr365.us, appsource.microsoft.com)

These messages are consistent across the vendor website, the AppSource listing, and Microsoft’s app certification pages. They are credible starting points for IT decision makers, but they require careful validation in any regulated or high‑risk environment. (hr365.us, learn.microsoft.com)

---

What Employee Directory 365 actually delivers​

Core features at a glance​

• Smart search: Free‑text and filtered search across name, department, location, skills and custom attributes sourced from Azure AD or SharePoint lists. The vendor advertises AI‑assisted relevance to surface matches faster. (hr365.us, appsource.microsoft.com)
• Interactive org charts: Visual reporting structures that are generated from directory data and can be rendered inside SharePoint and Teams. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Profile cards / presence: Profile popups with contact methods, Teams chat integration, Outlook status integration and custom fields. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Permissions and restricted field visibility: Administrative controls to hide or show sensitive profile fields to specific roles or groups. (hr365.us)
• Sync models: Support for Microsoft Graph API / Azure AD attributes and optional SharePoint list sources; options to map extension attributes and non‑M365 users via CSV import. Release notes show frequent updates to Graph/SharePoint sync behaviors. (kb.hr365.us, appsource.microsoft.com)
• AppSource trial and licensing model: A full 14‑day trial is available via AppSource; a free‑forever tier for very small tenants (e.g., 25 users) is noted on the marketplace listing. (appsource.microsoft.com)

Platform and hosting​

• The app is built for SharePoint and Teams (SPFx) and is hosted on Azure (PaaS), according to the Microsoft app certification metadata. That means the application artifacts and any server‑side components are expected to run on Azure services under the developer’s subscription. (learn.microsoft.com)

---

Why this matters for Windows and Microsoft 365 administrators​

A searchable, trustworthy people directory is deceptively strategic. It reduces friction for cross‑functional collaboration, accelerates onboarding, and helps find expertise inside sprawling hybrid organisations. Because Employee Directory 365 is delivered as an AppSource app and implemented with SharePoint SPFx, it integrates naturally into environments where Microsoft 365 is the collaboration backbone — and that is the primary technical and business value proposition. (appsource.microsoft.com, hr365.us)
Key operational advantages:

• Embeds in tools users already open daily (SharePoint intranet pages, Teams tabs, Outlook add‑ins).
• Avoids the friction of separate SaaS identity pipelines when Azure AD is already the authoritative identity provider.
• Marketplace distribution simplifies procurement and provides Microsoft’s basic validation surface (AppSource vetting and certification metadata). (learn.microsoft.com, appsource.microsoft.com)

---

Independent verification of vendor claims​

Several of the vendor’s headline claims were cross‑checked against Microsoft’s public listings and the vendor site:

• AppSource / Azure Marketplace listing confirms the product name, vendor, trial offer and stated features such as AI search and Zero Trust messaging. This is independently visible on Microsoft’s marketplace pages. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Microsoft’s app certification page contains publisher metadata, app ID (WA200003248), hosting model and the developer’s website reference; it confirms Azure hosting and SharePoint client support. (learn.microsoft.com)
• HR365’s product pages and knowledge base provide detailed feature descriptions, release notes, and claims about GCC/GCC High compatibility and SOC2 Type II certification; these appear to be vendor statements that should be verified contractually for regulated use cases. (hr365.us, kb.hr365.us)

Caveat: vendor claims such as “deploy in under 10 minutes,” “Zero Trust by design,” or “GCC & GCC High compatible” are marketing‑forward but environment‑dependent. The marketplace listing repeats these claims — that strengthens their plausibility — but organizations should run a short proof‑of‑concept to validate deployment time, required permissions and actual behavior in their tenant (especially for government cloud tenants). (appsource.microsoft.com)

---

Strengths — what stands out​

• Tight Microsoft 365 integration
  Because Employee Directory 365 is an SPFx and Teams tab app, it leverages the same identity and UI canvas as other Microsoft 365 experiences. This minimizes user training and allows IT to apply existing governance (conditional access, Intune, Microsoft Purview) rather than juggling separate vendor controls. (learn.microsoft.com, appsource.microsoft.com)
• Marketplace availability and trial model
  AppSource distribution reduces procurement friction and allows admins to trial the app in one tenant quickly. Microsoft’s listing also gives visibility into the app metadata and contact points. The 14‑day trial is particularly useful for validating sync and permissions without an upfront commercial commitment. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Feature completeness for common directory needs
  Search, filters, org charts, presence integration and support for custom attributes cover the majority of what organisations need from a people directory. The public release notes demonstrate active development cadence and responsive bug fixes. (appsource.microsoft.com, kb.hr365.us)
• Vendor claims around secure operation and regulated tenancy
  HR365 markets the product toward regulated customers and claims GCC compatibility and SOC2 Type II certification. When true, these commitments can reduce red‑tape for procurement in sensitive sectors. These claims do, however, require verification in legal and procurement processes. (hr365.us)

---

Risks, caveats and areas that require due diligence​

• Permissions and data access (Graph API and consent model)
  Directory apps typically require read access to user profiles and possibly delegated permissions for Presence/FreeBusy. Confirm the exact Graph API scopes requested at install time and ensure a least‑privilege model. Admin consent flows can surface broad permissions — review them carefully before granting. This is crucial in tenants subject to strict data access policies. (appsource.microsoft.com, learn.microsoft.com)
• GCC / GCC High and data residency claims need documentary proof
  The vendor asserts GCC compatibility on their marketing pages. That claim should be validated by asking the vendor for:
• App registration and deployment proof in Azure Government or GCC High.
• A data flow diagram showing where logs and telemetry land.
• An SOC2 report or FedRAMP/FISMA statements if you require them for procurement. Vendor marketing alone is not sufficient for procurement in regulated environments. (hr365.us)
• “Zero Trust” is often marketing shorthand
  Zero Trust is a security approach rather than a binary product attribute. Confirm that the app:
• Uses Azure AD authentication and supports Conditional Access.
• Honors least‑privilege principles in permission requests.
• Leaves the tenant owner in control of data storage and access controls. If the vendor hosts auxiliary services, assess where PII or logs are stored. (learn.microsoft.com, appsource.microsoft.com)
• AI search and hallucination risk
  Any AI enhanced search layer must be assessed for correctness and provenance. For people discovery this is less risky than for generative content, but misclassification or stale data can mislead users. Validate how the app ranks results, whether it uses tenant data only (no external LLM calls that could leak PII), and what auditing/logging is available. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Support and SLAs
  Marketplace listing gives a support contact, but enterprises should confirm SLAs, escalation paths, maintenance windows and rollback procedures. Understand the vendor’s upgrade cadence and how it maps to your change control processes. (learn.microsoft.com, appsource.microsoft.com)
• Hidden costs at scale
  The listing includes small‑tenant pricing and a trial, but larger organisations must map AppSource licensing or vendor licensing models to per‑user pricing, support tickets, and customization fees. Validate total cost of ownership for 1,000+ or 10,000+ users before signing enterprise contracts. (appsource.microsoft.com)

---

Practical deployment checklist for IT teams​

• Pre‑deploy validation
• Create a non‑production (pilot) tenant and install the AppSource trial there.
• Review requested Graph API scopes at the consent screen and document them.
• Map which Azure AD attributes (extension attributes, department, jobTitle) your organisation uses and test sync behavior. (appsource.microsoft.com, kb.hr365.us)
• Security configuration
• Require admin consent only from an authorised identity (do not grant to individual devs).
• Protect the app with Conditional Access policies (MFA, device compliance).
• Restrict who can view sensitive profile fields with the app’s restricted access feature. (hr365.us, appsource.microsoft.com)
• Data governance and compliance
• Ask the vendor for a data flow diagram and a copy of any SOC2 or equivalent report.
• Confirm whether any telemetry or logs leave your tenant and where they are stored.
• For GCC High or Department of Defense scenarios, request proof of Azure Government hosting or explicit marketplace listing for GovCloud. (hr365.us, learn.microsoft.com)
• Integration and UX
• Add the app to a Teams channel and a SharePoint intranet page to measure user adoption.
• Test Teams chat integration and Outlook presence to confirm behavior matches the marketplace claims. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Pilot and rollout
• Run a 2‑4 week pilot inside a single department that regularly searches for expertise (e.g., product, security, services).
• Collect metrics: search success rate, time saved per lookup, support tickets related to profile accuracy.
• Use pilot feedback to tune attribute mapping and field visibility settings before broader rollout. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Ongoing operations
• Monitor vendor release notes and schedule upgrades during approved maintenance windows. HR365 publishes release notes documenting fixes and feature additions. (kb.hr365.us)

---

Questions to ask the vendor before procurement​

• Where is customer metadata stored, and do any components process or store data outside my tenant?
• Can you provide SOC2 / ISO27001 / FedRAMP documentation or attestations relevant to my compliance needs?
• How do you handle telemetry, diagnostics and support access — and where do those logs reside?
• Do you support Azure Government / GCC High deployments with demonstrable tenant references?
• What Graph API scopes are required, and is there an option for minimal (read‑only) permissions?
• What is your backup, incident response and data erasure policy for tenant data? (learn.microsoft.com, appsource.microsoft.com)

---

Quick technical notes for Windows‑centric IT teams​

• Because the solution is SPFx‑based, it will behave like other SharePoint web parts and can be surfaced to Windows users via browser, Teams desktop client and the SharePoint app on Windows. Ensure supported browser versions and client builds are validated during pilot.
• If you rely on on‑premises Active Directory sync, confirm hybrid Azure AD Connect attributes are mapped correctly — custom or extension attributes may require mapping. (kb.hr365.us, appsource.microsoft.com)
• Conditional Access and Intune policies still control access. Treat the app as a privileged integration and apply the same protections as you would for any third‑party app requesting directory data. (learn.microsoft.com)

---

Verdict — who should consider Employee Directory 365​

• Small and medium organisations that already run Microsoft 365 and need a fast, low‑friction directory experience will find Employee Directory 365 compelling. The AppSource trial and the free tier for small user counts lower the barrier to evaluation. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Large enterprises and public sector organisations can evaluate it, but procurement should require documentary proof of compliance (SOC2, US GovCloud/GCC High availability) and validate data‑residency and telemetry behavior before production use. Vendor marketing alone is not sufficient for regulated rollouts. (hr365.us, learn.microsoft.com)
• IT teams that prioritize Microsoft‑native experiences and want a directory that lives inside the tenant (no separate identity) will appreciate the integration payoff, provided the app’s permission model and telemetry choices meet their governance bar. (appsource.microsoft.com)

---

Final analysis and recommendations​

Employee Directory 365 is a practical, well‑scoped product that leverages SharePoint and Teams as primary delivery surfaces and uses Azure AD as its identity backbone. Its presence on AppSource and the Microsoft certification metadata give it immediate credibility for Microsoft‑first organisations. The product’s frequent release cadence and feature set — including customizable org charts and advanced filtering — make it a useful option for organizations that need rapid people discovery without building custom solutions. (learn.microsoft.com, appsource.microsoft.com)
However, marketing claims such as “Zero Trust by design,” “GCC & GCC High compatible,” “SOC2 Type II certified,” and “deployed in under 10 minutes” should be treated as starting points for due diligence rather than hard guarantees. Validate these claims with the vendor: request SOC2 reports, ask for a data flow diagram, and run a short pilot in a test tenant (or a GCC High environment if that is your requirement) to verify deployment time and permissions. (hr365.us, kb.hr365.us)
For Windows and Microsoft 365 administrators preparing to evaluate Employee Directory 365:

• Install the AppSource 14‑day trial in a pilot tenant and document requested Graph permissions. (appsource.microsoft.com)
• Validate compliance artifacts (SOC2 / FedRAMP / Azure Government deployment proof) before procurement for regulated workloads. (hr365.us)
• Run real‑world searches and test the integration with Teams chat, Outlook status and Power Automate flows to confirm behavior and performance at your scale. (hr365.us, appsource.microsoft.com)

If those verification steps pass, Employee Directory 365 offers a fast, Microsoft‑native route to improved discoverability and internal collaboration — a small but impactful building block for the modern hybrid workplace. (appsource.microsoft.com, kb.hr365.us)

---

Source: openPR.com HR365 Launches "Employee Directory 365" on Microsoft Azure Marketplace Reimagining Workplace Connection with AI and Simplicity