Identity Governance and Administration: 6 Mistakes to Avoid

History repeats itself: an organization enthusiastically launches an Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) project. A few months later, teams become frustrated, management loses interest, and the risks they sought to mitigate remain.

It’s not always a tool issue. Often, the problem lies in how the strategy is approached.

Below, we review the six mistakes that most frequently sabotage an IGA implementation, a checklist to assess your current model, and the role IGA plays in Zero Trust and regulatory compliance.

It’s not bad luck. These are avoidable mistakes. And 50% of implementations of this type are in critical condition, according to Gartner.

 

The 6 Mistakes That Can Sabotage Your Identity Governance and Administration Implementation 

Mistake 1: Treating IGA as a purely IT project 

An IGA project cannot rely solely on security and IT. Compliance, HR, process owners, and departments affected by access flows must also be involved.

Without business buy-in and management support, resistance to change, low adoption rates, and a disconnect between technology and real-world needs will arise.

Mistake 2: Lack of clear objectives

Many organizations launch an IGA process driven by compliance but without defining the value it should deliver. 

Without clear objectives, it is unclear what to prioritize or how to measure success. IGA must address not only “what the audit requires,” but also “what risks we want to mitigate” and “what processes we want to improve.”

Mistake 3: Automating Broken Processes

Digitizing approval workflows that no longer work only accelerates the chaos.

Soffid’s approach starts there: simplifying processes so that technology works in service of the strategy, not the other way around. It’s also key to avoid trying to cover too many applications from the start without anticipating the effort required for integration and customization.

Mistake 4: Not considering the user experience

When recertifications are cumbersome, access requests get approved in bulk. If requests involve too many steps, users look for shortcuts.

An IGA implementation that nobody uses ends up existing on paper, but not in practice. And a system that nobody uses doesn’t protect anything.

Mistake 5: Issues with Identity Data

Outdated, incomplete, or fragmented data undermines the entire IGA strategy: it creates inconsistencies, hinders access control, and complicates audits.

That is why consolidating and cleaning data must be part of the project from the start.

 

Mistake 6: Post-implementation issues: no clear success metrics and no maintenance

In Identity Governance and Administration, maintenance is just as important as the initial rollout.

Without metrics, it is difficult to demonstrate ROI or identify improvements. Without continuous updates to roles, policies, and exceptions, even a good implementation can lose its effectiveness.

 

Checklist for Assessing Your IGA Strategy

During the Planning Phase 

• Are HR, compliance, and process owners involved?
• Does senior management understand the value of the program?
• Is it clear what success looks like?
• Can you explain the value beyond regulatory compliance?
• Have you redesigned workflows before automating them?
• Is there a phased rollout?
• Have you planned for integration, customization, and data cleansing?
• Is there a budget for maintenance?

When choosing a platform 

Does the solution automate without excessive custom development?

Does it integrate with legacy and cloud applications?

Does it account for long-term maintenance costs?

Does the vendor provide support and technical expertise?

A platform like Soffid IGA is designed to address these questions: automation without unnecessary complexity, integration with legacy and cloud environments, and support during implementation.

 

What Lies Beyond a Successful IGA Implementation? Zero Trust and Regulatory Compliance

A well-designed IGA implementation helps strengthen two key areas: Zero Trust and regulatory compliance.

It enables the enforcement of least-privilege policies, reduces manual support tickets, and provides real-time visibility into who has access to what. It also simplifies audits: when it comes time to demonstrate compliance with frameworks such as GDPR, HIPAA, or ENS, reports and logs are already available.

And when IGA integrates with AM and PAM, governance extends to all types of identities from a single control point. That is the difference between a standalone IGA implementation and a true IAM strategy.

If any of these issues describe a situation you recognize in your organization, now is a good time to address it. Tell us about your environment, and we’ll show you exactly how Soffid IGA addresses those specific points.

Contact us and let’s talk.