Identity & Access Management (IAM) and Identity Governance & Administration (IGA) are often perceived as multi-year transformation programs. This creates a common challenge: organizations postpone the initiative. Too complex. Too expensive.
Not because suitable solutions do not exist. The market offers many capable platforms. However, these solutions are often designed for enterprise environments and may add further complexity for mid-sized organizations. High implementation and operational costs further reduce economic viability. Without clearly defined processes and responsibilities, even the best tool delivers little value.
Big-Bang IGA Rarely Works
Historically grown IT environments typically include multiple identity sources, inconsistent role models, and manual processes with unclear ownership. Trying to solve everything at once creates significant project overhead. Especially in mid-sized organizations, this often leads to acceptance issues: projects consume resources for months while delivering little immediate business value.
Another trend we increasingly observe is pressure from executive management to "solve it with AI." The desire for automation is understandable. However, without transparency, clear definitions, and governance mechanisms, AI agents do not reduce complexity – they amplify it. Automation does not replace missing governance. Instead, it creates additional dependencies and new operational risks.
MVP in Identity Management: What a Realistic Starting Point Looks Like
For mid-sized organizations, a controlled and value-driven approach is often the most effective way to get started. Rather than automating everything at once, the priority should be to establish transparency, prioritize risks, and build clear governance structures. A realistic starting point focuses on a manageable minimum – an MVP approach to Identity Governance. The objective is not perfection, but to deliver measurable value quickly without getting lost in complexity.
Particularly effective are initiatives that target areas with either high business criticality or significant operational burden, such as manual Joiner-Mover-Leaver (JML) processes, privileged accounts, or third-party access management. These clearly defined scopes enable organizations to reduce risk immediately without triggering a full-scale transformation.
Once the initial scope has been defined, implementation typically follows several interconnected phases.
The first weeks of a project focus on building a realistic understanding of the current environment:
- Which identities exist?
- Which systems are business-critical?
- Where and how are permissions created?
- Which service accounts access production environments?
- Which external service providers still have active access?
- Which accounts have remained unused for months?
Importantly, visibility must extend beyond traditional user accounts. Technical identities are often created in a decentralized manner within business units, without centralized governance, gradually evolving into security-critical blind spots. Only transparency enables organizations to objectively identify, assess, and prioritize risks for the first time.
The next step is to create the organizational foundation required for future automation. This begins with clearly defining roles:
- Which business functions actually exist?
- Which access rights are required to perform them?
- Which permissions logically belong together?
Role models should not be designed by IT alone. Business stakeholders must be actively involved to ensure that roles accurately reflect real-world responsibilities, workflows, and operational requirements.
Based on this foundation, organizations can define core governance processes:
- Who is authorized to request permissions?
- Who approves access?
- When should access rights be revoked?
- Who is responsible for regular reviews and recertifications?
Properly designed, these elements create a robust foundation for Identity Governance. Without clear definitions, an IGA platform merely automates existing shortcomings.
Technical integration should only follow once transparent processes and clearly defined responsibilities are in place. Technology should support well-defined workflows—not mask organizational gaps.
The result is a manageable operating model that delivers immediate value, serves as an internal proof of concept, and can evolve in a controlled and scalable manner over time.
Identity Management Does Not End at Go-Live
Many projects are considered complete once initial processes are operational. Technically, that may be true – but strategically, it is only the beginning. Organizations continuously evolve. New applications are introduced, business processes change, AI systems are integrated, departments are restructured, and employees move between roles. Without continuous maintenance and governance, every Identity Management system gradually loses its effectiveness.
Identity Management is neither a one-time initiative nor merely a tool implementation. Organizations that succeed in the long term treat Identity Management and Identity Security as an integral part of their ongoing IT operations.
When Governance Becomes an Operational Challenge
For many mid-sized organizations, the long-term operation of Identity Management introduces an additional bottleneck: internal IT teams are rarely designed to operate Identity Management at the required level of maturity and depth over time. This is why managed services are becoming increasingly important. Specialized partners can act as an extension of internal teams, reduce operational workload, and help ensure that governance structures continue to evolve effectively and sustainably.
Sustainable Identity Security is not built on technology alone. It requires controlled access, clear accountability, and transparent processes. Organizations do not need a perfect big-bang transformation. They need a realistic starting point—one that is operationally sustainable, organizationally manageable, and economically viable.
Learn how MIGA supports mid-sized organizations on this journey in the following article: >>MIGA: The answer to complex identity governance requirements in SMEs<<