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How to Export Azure AD User Managers and Direct Reports in Microsoft 365

Are you confused about who reports to whom and wondering if every user has a manager assigned in your Microsoft 365? If so, understanding your organization’s reporting structure can be helpful in such situations. However, manually finding each user's manager in Entra ID portal is time-consuming and tedious. That's where this guide comes in! This is your one-stop shop to easily export Office 365 user managers and their direct reports.

Native Solution

Microsoft 365 Permission Required

High

Global Administrator or any other privileged admin role.

Option 1 Using Microsoft 365 Admin Center

  • Login to the Microsoft 365 admin center.
  • Navigate to the respective user under Users»Active users.
  • Under the Manager section in the Account tab, you can get the manager name of the selected Azure AD user.
Using Microsoft 365 Admin Center

Option 2 Using Windows PowerShell

  • Connect to the MS Graph PowerShell using the below cmdlet.
  • Connect-MgGraph -Scopes User.ReadWrite.All
  • Case 1: To find the manager of a particular Azure AD user, run the below command.
  • Get-MgUserManager -UserId <User’s UPN> | Select-Object -ExpandProperty AdditionalProperties
    get-manager-powershell
  • Case 2: To find all the direct reports of a specific manager, run the below command.
  • Get-MgUserDirectReport –UserId <Manager’s UPN> | Select-Object -ExpandProperty AdditionalProperties|Foreach{ 
        [PSCustomObject]@{ 
            'Display Name' = $_.displayName 
            'User Principal Name' = $_.userPrincipalName  
       } 
    }
    get-direct-reports-powershell

option 3 Using PowerShell Script

  • It required multiple filters and loops to retrieve all Azure AD User Managers with their direct reports in a single PowerShell cmdlet.
  • So, to simplify this task, we've developed a PowerShell script that retrieves and saves the report directly to your machine.
  • Download and run the following script in the Administrator PowerShell.
Using PowerShell Script
AdminDroid Solution
This report and 150 other reports are available in free editionFREE

AdminDroid Permission Required

Any user with report access delegated by the Super Admin.

StepsUsing AdminDroid

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  • Login to the AdminDroid Office 365 reporter.
  • Navigate to the Managers & Direct Reports page under Reports»Azure AD»Manager Reports.
Using AdminDroid

You can view the comprehensive details of managers, their direct reports, and the departments. Use the Export option to download the Azure AD users with managers.

admindroid-chartview
  • Use the built-in chart to display the number of direct reports for all Microsoft 365 managers.

Quickly identify the direct reports under each manager in Microsoft 365!

Improve your workflow with AdminDroid. Easily identify who reports to whom and stay informed about user manager changes.

Witness the report in action using the

Azure ADGenerate Reports on Users and Their Managers in Microsoft 365

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How to assign managers to users in Microsoft 365?

To establish a structured reporting system in Microsoft 365, setting up user managers, and direct reports is crucial.

  • Managers: Managers are the users who guide and manage a set of users (direct reports) in Microsoft 365.
  • Direct reports: Direct reports are individuals who directly report to a specific manager.

You can set up this reporting hierarchy through Microsoft 365 admin center, Entra admin center, or PowerShell. While Microsoft 365 admin center allows you to assign managers, Entra admin center is unique in offering the option to add managers for guest users.

Follow the steps below to add a reporting manager via the MS Entra portal or PowerShell.

Set up managers using the Entra admin center

  • Navigate to Users»All Users and select the user in the Microsoft Entra admin center.
  • Go to the Properties tab and select the edit icon in the Job Information section.
  • Then, select the edit icon option associated with the Manager field.
  • Select the user from the list to set the Azure AD user manager.
  • Finally, click Select and Save.

Assign managers to Microsoft 365 users using PowerShell

Alternatively, you can use the following MS Graph PowerShell snippet to add a manager to a user in Entra ID. You can also use this cmdlet to replace the existing manager with another.

$Manager = @{
"@odata.id"="https://Graph.microsoft.com/v1.0/users/<Manager’s Object ID Or UPN>" 
}
Set-MgUserManagerByRef -UserId <User ID or UPN> -BodyParameter $Manager

Note: Replace <Manager’s Object ID Or UPN> with the manager's User Principal Name (UPN) or User ID, and <User ID or UPN> with the user's UPN or User ID to complete the script before executing it.

For a bulk update of user managers in Entra ID, utilize our PowerShell script:
SetAzureADUserManager.ps1.

For a seamless auditing process on assigned or removed Microsoft 365 managers, use the User Manager Changes report offered by AdminDroid.

  • This report provides details, such as when the manager changes occurred, who initiated them, targeted user, outcome status, etc.
  • Frequently access this report to stay updated on modifications and address any improper user manager assignments promptly.
manager-changes-alert

Handy Tip: Make use of the Alert option to get instant notifications about manager changes based on a new event, a defined threshold, or a comparison with the past day's events.

How to view direct reports of a specific manager in Entra ID?

The Entra admin center doesn’t offer a dedicated approach to get the list of all direct reports of a manager. In contrast, Teams and Outlook offer a straightforward approach to find all direct reports of a manager.

View direct reports of a manager using Microsoft Teams

  • In Microsoft Teams, you can access a detailed organizational chart by navigating to the Organization tab located within the respective user's (manager's) profile.
  • This tab provides a comprehensive view of their direct reports, facilitating better team management and understanding the reporting structures.
organization-chart-teams

View direct reports of a manager using Outlook on the web

  • Similarly, the Organization tab in a user's profile offers a snapshot of their direct reports in Outlook.
  • You have the option to find all direct and indirect reports of a manager using Outlook and Microsoft Teams.
organization-chart-outlook

Note: Users who work under a manager but report directly to one of the manager’s direct reports are known as indirect reports.

Effortlessly access the report on the manager and direct reports using AdminDroid with automated delivery.

  • Use the integrated Schedule feature to ensure timely and consistent access to updated insights on Entra ID manager and direct reports.
  • Automatically receive the report via email on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis in the desired format.
managers-and-direct-reports

Handy Hint: Utilize the Search Users or Manager’s UPN filter to view direct reports of the specific user.

How to find users without managers in Microsoft 365?

For proper user management, it's crucial to filter users without managers and assign them an appropriate one. Manually determining each user's manager details through admin centers might be time-consuming, especially in larger environments.

However, you can utilize the following PowerShell script to find and export a list of users with no manager in Microsoft 365. Before proceeding, make sure you’ve connected to the Microsoft Graph PowerShell.

$Users = Get-MgUser -All -ExpandProperty Manager 
$UnmanagedUsers = @() 
Foreach ($User in $Users) { 
    if ($User.Manager.AdditionalProperties.displayName.length -eq 0){ 
         $UnmanagedUsers += $User 
    } 
} 
$UnmanagedUsers

Stick with AdminDroid to identify Microsoft 365 users without managers and experience PowerShell-free reporting.

  • The report provides details on the user’s sign-in status, job title, department, and group membership details of each user without managers.
  • Use this report in Microsoft 365 to identify users without managers and assign appropriate managers to ensure organizational oversight and effective supervision.
users-without-manager

Handy Hint: You can use the Export option to download the list of unmanaged users in your desired format.

What happens when a manager has too many direct reports?

When a manager has too many direct reports in Microsoft 365, several challenges can arise:

  • Managers may become constantly overloaded and stressed, leading to potential communication breakdowns with their direct reports.
  • There is a risk of neglecting users and their activities when there are too many direct reports. For instance, a request to access the SharePoint file might be missed.
  • Collecting user activities like group memberships, alerts, etc., becomes very tedious for managers with large teams.

Update the user manager for the direct reports

While managing a large number of users can be challenging for a manager, one effective solution is to change the manager for some of their direct reports by assigning them to another manager.

To update the manager for direct reports, use the following cmdlet in MS Graph PowerShell, specifying the manager's and the user's UPN.

$NewManager = @{
"@odata.id"="https://Graph.microsoft.com/v1.0/users/<Manager’s Object ID Or UPN>" 
}
Set-MgUserManagerByRef -UserId <User ID or UPN> -BodyParameter $NewManager


An intuitive way to monitor Microsoft 365 direct reports effectively

While the managers with numerous direct reports often face the above-specified challenges, AdminDroid simplifies their tasks and addresses many of the issues. Here’s how:

With AdminDroid’s granular delegation feature, admins can grant users access to a set of comprehensive reports and dashboards within the AdminDroid portal.

The built-in Manage Direct Reports role facilitates efficient management of direct reports.

This role allows managers to view and access the reports for all users who directly report to them. Importantly, managers don't require admin rights in M365 to access these direct reports through AdminDroid.

Here’s a breakdown of steps to assign the Manage Direct Reports role to Microsoft 365 users (managers):

  • Navigate to Settings»Admins»Add Administrator in the AdminDroid Office 365 portal.
  • From the Select Admins dropdown, choose the relevant managers.
  • In the Select Roles field, opt for the Delegated Admin option and then select the Manage Direct Reports built-in role.
  • Click the Add Admins button to finalize the addition.
manage-direct-reports-role

After setting up the manager(s) as delegated admins, they can login to AdminDroid to access reports and dashboards exclusively on their direct reports.

AdminDroid Azure AD ReporterEasy understanding of Entra ID user managers and who reports to whom

Utilize AdminDroid's Microsoft 365 user reports and eliminate the need for PowerShell scripts and other native methods. Easily identify and analyze every Microsoft 365 user's details with hassle-free reports in just a few clicks.

Key features of AdminDroid to export Microsoft 365 users with managers:

The report on all user Managers & Direct Reports is intended to provide key details, such as the user’s UPN, name, department, and job title along with the corresponding manager’s information. In addition to these properties, you can customize the reports by adding extra columns according to your specific requirements.

A Quick Summary

Delegated Access to Direct Report's Insights

Use the delegation role feature to provide managers with access to view detailed Microsoft 365 insights about their direct reports.

Get Real-Time Alerts upon Manager Changes

Receive real-time alerts for manager changes within your M365 organization using our alert generation feature to ensure immediate intimation.

Comprehensive Overview of M365 Manager Details

Easily and quickly obtain a panoramic view of Microsoft 365 user managers, their direct reports, and users without assigned managers using the intuitive Azure AD user dashboard.

Identify Managers with Disabled Sign-Ins and No Licenses

Customize the reports with advanced options like filtering and sorting to obtain managers without licenses, those with disabled sign-ins, and guest managers.

Review All User Managers in Microsoft 365

Regularly review all Microsoft 365 managers to identify and remove any unauthorized or suspicious manager additions for a streamlined workflow.

Timely Delivery of Manager Insights via Email

Consistently evaluate all Microsoft 365 managers by automatically emailing reports at predefined intervals with the help of scheduling feature.

Overall, AdminDroid assists in understanding the reporting structure to efficiently get all Azure AD managers and direct reports. Rely on AdminDroid’s Azure AD management tool to gain insights and track changes in user activities, multi-factor authentication (MFA), passwords, licenses, subscriptions, and groups for effective Microsoft 365 management.

Kickstart Your Journey with AdminDroid

Your Microsoft 365 Companion with Enormous Reporting Capabilities!

Common Errors and Resolution Steps in Getting Managers and Direct Reports in Microsoft 365

The following are possible errors and troubleshooting hints while managing the Microsoft 365 user managers and direct reports.

Error: Only 1 item can be selected.

This error occurs when you attempt to select two or more users as the manager in the Entra admin center for a single user.

Troubleshooting hint :In Microsoft 365, a user can have only one manager. Select only one individual as the manager.

Error: Unable to find the manager section in the account tab of a user in Microsoft 365 admin center.

The manager section won’t appear when the selected user is a guest.

Troubleshooting hint :Utilize the Entra admin center or PowerShell to assign and remove managers for guest users.

Error: Resource 'x' does not exist or one of its queried reference-property objects are not present.

This error occurs when the specified direct report (user) or manager is not found in your tenant.

Troubleshooting hint :Verify that the user’s UPN/ID and the manager’s UPN/ID are correct. Check for any typos.

Error: Resource 'manager' does not exist or one of its queried reference-property objects are not present.

This error typically occurs when attempting to view the user's manager, but the manager is not assigned or has been removed from the tenant.

Troubleshooting hint :Assign a manager for the specified Microsoft 365 user.

$Manager = @{  
"@odata.id"="https://Graph.microsoft.com/v1.0/users/<Manager’s Object ID Or UPN>" 
}  
Set-MgUserManagerByRef -UserId <User ID or UPN> -BodyParameter $Manager 

Error: Insufficient privileges to complete the operation.

This error occurs when attempting to operate through the MS Graph cmdlet without the necessary permissions.

Troubleshooting hint :Connect to the Microsoft Graph PowerShell module with the "User.ReadWrite.All" scope.

Connect-MgGraph -Scopes User.ReadWrite.All