In today’s digital landscape, safeguarding sensitive information and ensuring that only authorized individuals have access to critical resources are paramount concerns for organizations. Identity and Access Management (IAM) serves as a foundational framework to address these challenges, providing structured policies and technologies to manage digital identities and regulate access to systems and data.
This article delves into the core components of IAM, elucidates key terminologies, and examines their relevance in contemporary IT environments.
Understanding Identity and Access Management (IAM)
IAM encompasses the processes, policies, and technologies that facilitate the management of electronic or digital identities. Its primary objective is to ensure that the right individuals or machines have appropriate access to organizational resources, thereby safeguarding sensitive data and systems from unauthorized access. By implementing IAM, organizations can streamline access control, enhance security protocols, and ensure compliance with regulatory standards.
Key Components of IAM
IAM systems are multifaceted, integrating various components to provide comprehensive identity and access solutions. The primary elements include:
- Identity Management: The creation, maintenance, and deletion of user identities. It ensures that user credentials are accurate, up-to-date, and securely stored.
- Authentication: Verifying the identity of a user or system through methods like passwords, biometrics, and multi-factor authentication (MFA).
- Authorization: Determining what resources a user can access once authenticated, based on their role or privileges.
- Access Management: Enforcing access control policies that define how users interact with data and systems.
What is an Identity Provider (IdP)?
An Identity Provider (IdP) is a trusted service that creates, maintains, and manages identity information and provides authentication services to applications or services. It enables centralized authentication—typically through Single Sign-On (SSO)—so users can securely access multiple systems with one set of credentials. Common examples include Okta, Azure AD, and Ping Identity.
What is Access Management?
Access Management refers to the tools, policies, and procedures that control users’ access to enterprise resources. This includes session management, enforcing least privilege access, detecting anomalous behavior, and dynamically adjusting access based on risk. The goal is to ensure that only the right users have the right access at the right time.
What is a SaaS Environment?
A Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) environment refers to the use of cloud-hosted applications that are accessed over the internet. These applications—such as Salesforce, Google Workspace, and Slack—eliminate the need for on-premises installation and offer rapid deployment and scalability. However, the decentralized nature of SaaS adoption introduces new visibility and control challenges for security teams, particularly in areas like access governance and identity hygiene.
What is BYOD?
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is a policy that allows employees to use their personal devices for work. While BYOD supports flexibility and mobility, it also introduces risk. Organizations must ensure that devices are secure and that access to corporate resources is appropriately controlled, especially when personal devices are outside traditional IT oversight.
What is BYOI?
Bring Your Own Identity (BYOI) is a model that allows users to authenticate using external identities—such as Google, LinkedIn, or enterprise federation services—rather than identities provisioned by the organization. While BYOI can streamline access and improve user experience, it also requires strict controls to ensure that externally managed identities adhere to corporate policies and risk tolerance.
SaaS Management and Its Role in IAM
As organizations increasingly rely on SaaS tools for core business operations, managing these applications has become an essential part of identity and access governance.
SaaS Management refers to the discovery, inventory, and administration of SaaS applications and their users. Key functions include:
- Visibility: Identifying all SaaS apps in use, including shadow IT.
- Access Control: Ensuring apps are connected to SSO and protected by MFA.
- Usage Monitoring: Tracking app engagement to eliminate unused or duplicate tools.
- License Management: Optimizing costs by reclaiming unused licenses.
- Offboarding: Revoking user access to all connected and unconnected SaaS apps during employee exit.
Without SaaS management, IAM programs face blind spots—especially when employees bypass official app procurement and IT loses visibility into data flows and user behavior.
Challenges IAM Buyers Face Today
Despite the maturity of IAM solutions, buyers continue to face several persistent and emerging challenges:
1. Fragmented Environments
Hybrid infrastructures and the proliferation of SaaS tools mean that identity systems are no longer centralized. IT and security teams must manage identities across cloud, on-prem, and third-party applications—often with siloed tools.
2. SSO Bypass and Incomplete Coverage
Many organizations wrongly assume all apps are connected to SSO. In reality, users often log into unmanaged or unconnected apps, creating identity blind spots and increasing breach risk due to weak credentials or reused passwords.
3. Lack of Visibility Into SaaS and Shadow IT
Employees can easily sign up for tools using work emails, and these tools often store sensitive data or offer integrations to critical systems. Without visibility, organizations can’t enforce policy, audit access, or respond to incidents effectively.
4. Manual and Inconsistent Offboarding
Offboarding often relies on HR workflows and manual IT intervention. When apps aren’t connected to a central IdP or Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) tool, user accounts linger after employment ends—creating unnecessary risk.
5. Credential Hygiene Issues
IAM leaders struggle to enforce strong credential policies. Users reuse passwords across apps, fail to enable MFA, or maintain access beyond role requirements. Credential hygiene is critical but often overlooked.
6. Insufficient Automation
Many IAM tasks—such as role provisioning, access reviews, or identity risk detection—still require manual intervention. This slows down response times and creates operational inefficiencies.
7. Balancing User Experience with Security
IAM solutions must walk a fine line between enforcing strict security and maintaining productivity. Too much friction in login experiences or access requests can lead users to find workarounds, increasing risk.
Identity and Access Management is no longer just about user logins or compliance checklists—it’s the foundation of enterprise security in an increasingly SaaS-driven, distributed world. As SaaS sprawl grows and identities become more decentralized, organizations must adopt modern, automated IAM strategies that provide continuous visibility, enforce strong identity hygiene, and reduce operational overhead.
Savvy was built with this future in mind. By uncovering hidden risks across your SaaS landscape, prioritizing applications for onboarding, and remediating identity issues at scale, Savvy helps IAM teams reclaim control and modernize their identity security programs—without ripping and replacing existing tools.
