In this article, we will explore why Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) is vital for business operations, while exploring the benefits that can be discovered from implementing IGA in the right way.

To do this, we will consider three important questions for any organisation who are considering their position:

1. 1. 1. How does IGA link to improved business performance?
         
         
      2. What are the risks of not having good IGA controls in place?
         
         
      3. What are the options for implementing an IGA solution?
         
         

It can sound intangible and difficult to conceptualise, so here is a high-level overview of what you need to know!

IGA and business performance

Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) acts as a central point of control for answering the question of “who get access to what?” across an organisation’s IT resources. This means that it provides a pivotal function in connecting people (employees, partners, contractors) to the systems, applications and data that they need to perform their roles effectively. So, in simple terms, getting IGA right is a vital part of the day-to-day operations of any business.

When IGA controls are provided in an automated and policy-driven manner, they can have a fundamental impact upon the efficiency and effectiveness of everybody who is contributing to business operations and growth.

Let’s take a common set of use cases as an example of IGA in action – for managing Joiner, Mover and Leaver processes:

• When a new employee joins an organisation, IGA processes will help a person become productive quickly by providing access to the right IT resources appropriate for their role from day one. No more waiting for days for access to important applications to be arranged!
• Similarly, when a person moves to a different role within the organisation, IGA automates the process of providing access to services for the new role but also carries out the important job of removing accesses that are no longer required. This prevents a very common problem for IT departments – ‘privilege creep’ occurs when a person accumulates a mass of unnecessary accesses over time.
• When a person leaves the organisation, IGA has a very important role in removing all access for the departing person in a timely manner. This can be especially important when the access a person has is sensitive and/or commercially valuable.

These examples are just the start of what these solutions can provide. When done right, organisations can find a lot more value – for example, by adding access requests and approval processes, recertification processes to check that existing access remain valid, and self-service password management.

Putting this all together, IGA solutions bring business value across three core areas:

1. Security, Risk and Compliance. Controlling access through automated policy-driven IGA processes makes sure that only the right people have access to the right systems! At the same time, reporting from IGA will give you the ability to satisfy auditors and meet compliance requirements.
2. Operational Efficiency. IGA can bring cost-savings by reducing load on the help-desk while also increasing productivity, as there will be far less time spent waiting for access related updates to be made.
3. Business Agility. With IGA in place, the user experience is much improved and business teams are able to deliver more services to more users more efficiently.

What happens when you don’t have good IGA controls in place?

Without the right IGA solutions in place, an organisation is at risk of opposite outcomes. This can get ugly quickly…

The Insider Threat refers to the risk posed by individuals within an organisation, such as employees, contractors, or partners, who have authorised access but may intentionally or unintentionally misuse it to compromise the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of systems and data. This is a highly significant risk in the world of enterprise information security and is often underestimated. News headlines often highlight the IT threats from external hackers or ransomware groups, but insiders (malicious or accidental) consistently represent a major source of risk.

Similarly, when you don’t have proper IGA controls in place, there will be too much reliance on risky, manual processes. There may be spreadsheets flying around, managers trying to remember what systems their team even uses, and IT teams drowning in tickets just to give someone access to a shared folder. You need to know who approved access to a critical system last quarter? Good luck finding out! This patchwork approach creates a false sense of control while making oversight weaker. With a lack of consistency, mistakes slip through, and decisions get made based on guesswork instead of policy. In short: a lack of IGA often leads to friction, fatigue, and a whole lot of risk.

What are the options for implementing an IGA solution?

When it comes to implementing an IGA solution, there are several options depending on factors such as organisational size, complexity and current state. It is important to remember, however, that implementing an IGA solution isn’t just about picking the right tool; it’s about making sure you’ve got the right strategy, processes, and expertise in place to realise business value.

The IGA market is ever evolving, with options from enterprise-grade platforms with full functionality supporting endless customisation and configuration possibilities, to ‘IGA lite’ solutions and cloud-native tools if you are looking for something quicker to deploy and easier to manage. But it is important to remember that IGA touches every corner of your organisation – from HR, to IT, security, compliance and lines of business, so it needs to be closely aligned with how your business actually works.

That’s why engaging with a specialist partner isn’t just helpful, it is essential. A good IGA partner will align your solution to a clear, business-value aligned vision. They will help you define your Identity model, deliver best-practice IGA processes while aligning stakeholders, and avoid the common pitfalls that can derail DIY or overly technical tool-led initiatives. They will bring the business-value insight, technical knowledge, industry experience, and practical templates that save you time and money.

Whether you’re starting from scratch or modernising a legacy setup, partnering with the right team means you don’t have to figure it all out alone. They will lead you through the strategy and implementation in an agile and iterative manner, so you actually get a working solution delivering measurable Return-on-Investment (ROI) quickly.

So the bottom line is: if you are serious about IGA, don’t go it alone. Bring in the experts who have done it before and can help you do it right.

To talk to one of our team about Intragen’s offerings, please do get in touch here.