You cannot have a smoothly operating business without successful identity governance. Think about some of the key aspects of an effective organisation: systems that are both secure and accessible where needed, minimal risk of security breach, operations that run effortlessly, and automations that reduce time and money spent on manual labour. All these qualities hinge on having an effective Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) solution.
IGA involves two key areas:
IGA affects the everyday operations of workers at all levels of your organisation. If processes are too complicated and long-winded, employees will inevitably find their own workarounds to maximise their productivity. This could be as common as bad password hygiene, such as using the same password for multiple systems, or in a more concerning example, helping a co-worker to skip a lengthy log-on process by offering their account credentials to view a file. These shortcuts present huge security risks, whether via ignorance or malevolent intent.
As an example of the practical ramifications of ineffective security practices, take the case of the Colonial Pipeline Attack in May 2021. A single misplaced password led to a 6-day complete halt in operations for the largest refined oil pipeline in the US.
The ability and willingness of employees to learn and adapt to new security solutions and authorisation processes is not limitless. Instead of benefiting the employees and organisation, this could lead to more delays, or even mistakes in operation.
In addition to the security risks presented by multiple misaligned systems being used, user experience also suffers. Having to jump from app to app anytime you need to get something verified becomes tiresome and needlessly presents extra obstacles to getting things done.
So, what if there was an Identity Governance and Administration tool that was hosted natively on a system your company already uses? For example, businesses who are already using ServiceNow should consider ServiceNow IGA for a seamlessly integrated operating system that aligns with what you already have in place. Benefits of this include:
To keep your identities and data secure, you need to be investing in IGA as a priority. Identity security is not a job that can be completed and forgotten about, it is an essential part of the long-term functionality of your organisation.
A successful IGA solution should allow you to automate processes and reporting, minimise complex sign-on processes, and centralise access in a single portal. Factors such as these all contribute to optimising user experience and time efficiency, minimising security risk, and reducing cost in the long-term.
If you use ServiceNow and want to learn more about how their Identity Governance and Administration could seamlessly integrate with your current processes, download our factsheet.