IAM Intelligent

Top Results in Identity and Access Management Driven by Vendor Integration vs. Self-Integration, Capabilities Achieved by Configuration vs. Customization


BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - March 10, 2011) - A new study on Managing Identities and Access: Intelligence and Automation for Higher Scale at Lower Cost published by Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS), shows that the leading performers in identity and access management (IAM) realize tangible business value in comparison to lagging performers in several important areas, including:

Increased end-user productivity - Timely provisioning and modification of end-user access to existing applications or services can save companies hundreds of dollars per end-user per year in convenience, productivity and downtime. The advantage of leading performers over lagging performers in this area ranged between 60% and 75%.

Reduced risk - Rapid de-provisioning of end-user access, on the other hand, is more about cost avoidance than it is about cost savings. Top performance in this area reduces the window of vulnerability from orphaned accounts and minimizes the potential for downstream misuse. In this area, the advantage of leaders over laggards ranged between 44% and 63%.

Increased agility - Given the dynamic changes in end-user populations and application portfolios, faster time to integrate a new application or integrate a new end-user role with the enterprise's IAM infrastructure translates to flexibility and agility to compete more effectively. In this regard, the leading performers indicated an advantage over lagging performers of between 41% and 63%.

Enhanced security and compliance - In comparison to the lagging performers, the leading performers experienced half the number of incidents of unauthorized access to enterprise resources, half the number of audit deficiencies related to IAM, and one-third the number of data loss or data exposure incidents related to IAM.

Reduced total cost - At an estimated $11.40 per end-user per year for leaders, compared to an estimated $16.40 per end-user per year for laggards, the efficiency of the top performers translates to an impressive annual cost savings of 30%.

"Today's IAM solutions are being transformed from a Y2K-era perception as a tool for IT, to a new role as a critical business enabler," said Derek Brink, vice president and research fellow for IT Security, Aberdeen Group. "Aberdeen's research shows a discernable shift away from enterprise self-integration of point solutions in favor of vendor-integrated solutions -- along with a greater proportion of IAM capabilities which are able to be achieved by configuration (i.e., out-of-the-box) rather than by customization (e.g., custom coding and services) -- which should accelerate this trend."

A complimentary copy of this report is made available in part by the underwriting support of Avatier Corp. and Quest Software. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?spid=30410182&cid=6955&camp=2 

To take a complimentary, easy interactive assessment that can help you to identify the strategies, capabilities, and technologies used by companies with top performance in the area of application security, visit: http://assessment.aberdeen.com/zaMsgwpjHE/index.aspx.

For additional access to complimentary Aberdeen IT Security research, please visit http://www.aberdeen.com/Aberdeen-Channel/IT-Security/ITSA.aspx

To view complimentary 30-minute webcasts highlighting findings from this and other Aberdeen IT Security research, visit www.brighttalk.com/channel/290.

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company

Aberdeen provides fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having queried more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen for insights that drive decisions.

As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement - Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit Aberdeen or call (617) 854-5200, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748.

(C) 2011 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com