‍Who owns access in your organization? If the answer is only “IT,” your IGA framework is already at risk.

Getting executive approval for your IGA project is one thing. Getting buy-in from the teams that need to work with it every day? That’s where most projects stall.

You’re not just deploying a platform; you’re changing how access is granted, reviewed, and revoked across the organization. And that affects IT, security, HR, compliance, and every business unit using SaaS tools. If these teams don’t see the operational benefit, or if they anticipate added responsibility and slower processes, they’ll push back, disengage, or deprioritize it altogether.

This guide outlines a practical approach to getting cross-functional buy-in for IGA. It’s based on what works in real-world environments, especially in SaaS-first or regulated organizations where identity sprawl is already a significant issue. No theory, no buzzwords. Just clear steps to:

• Show stakeholders the gaps today
• Tie IGA to business and risk outcomes that matter to them
• Prove value through a targeted, low-risk plan
• Build the kind of accountability that the team can rely on as the scope expands

If you’re responsible for scaling IGA, this is your playbook for turning it from a security initiative into a shared priority.

Explain the Problem with Evidence, Not Opinions

 If you’re asking teams to change how they manage access, they need to understand what’s at stake. That starts with showing, not telling, where the current approach is falling short.

Begin by gathering concrete data:

• How many orphaned accounts exist across your organization?
• Are there users with excessive or standing privileges?
• How long does it take to revoke access after someone leaves?
• What did your last audit uncover about access controls?

You don’t need a complete IGA solution to surface these issues. Even a snapshot through logs, internal audits, or a shadow IT scan can reveal the scale of the problem. And once teams notice unmanaged access or inconsistencies in how offboarding is handled, the conversation shifts. You’re no longer just proposing a new process. You’re addressing a real risk.

Framing the problem with evidence does two things:

1. It builds urgency with stakeholders who may not perceive identity governance as their primary concern.
2. It provides a baseline against which you can improve and later report on to demonstrate progress.

Note: Avoid starting with product features or frameworks. Start with data that puts access risk in operational or compliance teams. That’s what drives alignment.

Identify Key Stakeholders & Their Pain Points

IGA touches more than just IT and security teams. If you want sustained buy-in, you need to know who’s affected, what they care about, and where IGA fits into their priorities.

Start by mapping out the core stakeholder groups:

1. Security & GRC

Security and compliance teams are often the earliest advocates for IGA, but only if they believe it will give them better control and visibility without creating new blind spots.

• What do they struggle with?

They’re juggling fragmented access logs, manual reviews, and reactive audit prep. It’s challenging to enforce least privilege or detect privilege creep without centralized visibility.

• How does IGA help?

IGA provides security teams with a real-time view into access patterns, including privileges and high-risk users. It enables automated, policy-aligned reviews and gives them clean audit trails they can trust.

• What resonates?

Show them that IGA isn’t just automation. It’s about enforcing access controls at scale and closing risk gaps they have flagged for years.

2. IT Teams

IT teams are drowning in provisioning requests, offboarding gaps, and spreadsheet-based reviews. They often resist IGA unless it clearly reduces their workload.

• What do they struggle with?

Manual JML (joiner, mover, leaver) workflows. Lack of integration between identity systems and business apps. Constant escalations from end-users and auditors.

• How does IGA help?

By automating access provisioning, deprovisioning, and periodic reviews, IGA reduces operational overhead and improves efficiency. It provides a single point of reference for tracking, troubleshooting, and managing user access across the entire environment.

• What resonates?

Position IGA as a way to reduce tickets, handle access “by policy” not by exception, and reclaim hours spent chasing down approvals or fixing gaps after the fact.

3. HR Teams

HR teams want seamless onboarding and offboarding, but access issues overwhelm them.

• What do they struggle with?

Disconnected workflows between HRMS and IT. Role changes are not triggering access updates. Inconsistent onboarding timelines.

• How does IGA help?

IGA syncs with your HR system to automate access based on unemployment status and role. When someone joins, moves, or leaves, access is updated automatically, eliminating the need for manual effort.

• What resonates?

Emphasize fewer surprises during onboarding, better coordination with IT, and stronger compliance posture during offboarding, all without extra effort from their team.

4. Business Units & App Owners

Business leaders are often skeptical of security programs, especially if they believe they will slow down their teams. With IGA, the opposite is true.

• What do they struggle with?

Delays in getting new team members access. Lack of visibility into who has access to sensitive apps. Stress during audits when access justifications aren’t clear.

• How does IGA help?

Policy-based access rules ensure faster approvals without the need for manual back-and-forth. App owners get visibility into who has access and can easily certify or revoke as needed.

• What resonates?

Focus on operational speed and audit clarity, not just control. When access flows are automated and traceable, their teams move faster with less overhead.

Once you have mapped these out, you’re no longer selling a platform; you’re aligning IGA with what each team is already trying to fix or improve. And that’s where buy-in begins.

Reframe IGA in Terms of Value to Each Stakeholder

Once you understand what each group actually cares about, shift the conversation away from the technical failures and toward outcomes that matter to them. This isn’t about pushing a security agenda. It’s about connecting identity governance to the real-world problems each team is already trying to solve.

Here’s how to frame the value:

• For security & GRC, IGA provides real-time access visibility and closes audit gaps without relying on manual reviews.

Instead of chasing evidence before every audit, you can show continuous compliance. Instead of hoping least privilege is enforced, you can prove it.

• For IT teams: IGA eliminates manual steps from access provisioning, reviews, and deprovisioning, allowing you to stop chasing tickets and start managing by exception.

You’re not asking IT teams to do more. You’re showing them how to do less, with fewer errors and faster resolution.

• HR Teams: IGA ensures people get the right access the moment they join, and lose it the moment they leave, without waiting on IT.

It reduces the back-and-forth and ensures your processes are secure, especially during high-volume transitions.

• Business Units & App Owners: IGA makes it easier for your teams to get access without compromising on security or compliance.

You’re not slowing anyone down. You’re giving them controlled access that’s fast, trackable, and policy-aligned.

The takeaway here is simple: Make IGA relevant. When each stakeholder sees how it improves their day-to-day outcomes or solves a risk they own, you stop facing resistance.  

Start With a Low-Risk, High-Impact Initial Implementation

You don’t need to implement IGA across the entire organization from day 1. In fact, trying to do too much at once is one of the fastest ways to lose support. A better approach? Start small, prove value, and build credibility from there.

Here’s how to run the initial rollout that wins over stakeholders through outcomes, not theory.

1. Choose the right scope.

Look for areas where access risk is high and where you can demonstrate clear operational or compliance impact. For example:

• Automating offboarding in high-turnover departments, such as Sales or Support.
• Running a user access review for finance or engineering applications with sensitive data.
• Mapping out privileged access in AWS, GitHub, or core SaaS tools like Salesforce or NetSuite.

Don’t pick a low-risk, low-visibility system. Pick something meaningful, just not sprawling.

2. Define success metrics from day 1

Before you start, align on what success looks like. Use metrics that stakeholders care about:

• Number of orphaned or overprivileged accounts revoked
• Review completion rates
• Manual efforts or hours saved
• Time to revoke access after an employee leaves
• Fewer escalations or approval delays

When you come back to the table with actual data, not opinions, it’s easier to get the “go-ahead” for broader implementation.

3. Loop in stakeholders early, & make them part of the win

Don’t ruin your initial implementation in isolation. Bring in representatives from the teams directly affected by access decisions.

• IT to help design and operationalize workflows
• Security to validate policies and risk thresholds
• HR to align lifecycle triggers with identity events
• Business units to ensure access flows reflect real-team needs

Bringing key stakeholders in from the start reduces resistance later on. When teams are involved in shaping the process, rather than hearing about changes after the fact, they’re more likely to support and trust the outcome.

A focused initial implementation isn’t just about proving the tool works; it's also about ensuring it's effective. It’s about demonstrating how it solves real-world problems: reducing manual workloads, enhancing audit outcomes, and mitigating access risks at their source. Once those results are clear, expanding the implementation becomes a logical next step, not a battle for buy-in.

Give IGA Just Enough Structure to Scale Smoothly

Getting the right people involved early is crucial, but it’s not enough. As your IGA rollout expands to more apps, teams, and review cycles, you need structure to keep everything aligned. Otherwise, things drift. Responsibilities blur. Progress stalls.

This doesn’t mean setting up a format steering committee. It means having just enough coordination to keep your program moving without getting in its own way.

1. Get clear on ownership before you scale

Once IGA is live in part of the business, the assumption is: “It’s working, so let’s roll it out everywhere.” But without clearly defined roles, that rollout often stalls.

Make sure each function knows:

• Who owns access policies per system or department
• Who signs off on reviews and how often
• Who handles exceptions, escalations, and audits
• Who ensures changes in HR systems (like role or employment status) trigger the right identity actions

You don’t need to over-document this, but you do need it written down somewhere, with people accountable.

2. Create a consistent operating pattern

You don’t need a standing weekly meeting. However, you do need regular check-ins, such as monthly or quarterly, to align stakeholders and keep things on track. Keep it focused:

• Are any reviews falling behind?
• Are new apps being onboarded with the right policies in place?
• Are any approval workflows causing delays?

Use data to guide the discussion. Not just platform metrics, but real outcomes: how quickly access is revoked, how many orphaned accounts were revoked, how audit readiness has improved.

3. Keep it simple, focused, and action-oriented

Governance isn’t about adding overhead; it’s about keeping the rollout smooth as more teams and apps come on board. When people know what’s expected of them, decisions don’t get stuck, and IGA keeps delivering value.

Where Zluri Fits In: A Purpose-Built Way to Drive IGA Buy-In

If you’re trying to gain buy-in for IGA across IT, security, HR, and business teams, Zluri helps you do so by addressing the actual blockers that slow adoption.

Here’s how:

• Reduces manual effort from day 1

Zluri automates access provisioning, deprovisioning, and reviews, so IT teams stop chasing tickets, and users stop waiting for approvals.

• Gives every stakeholder what they need

Security gets visibility into privilege creep and orphaned accounts. HR gets synced access during JML events. App owners get clean, auditable access trails.

• Fits into existing workflows

Users can request and have their access approved directly through Slack, Teams, or email – not through additional portals.

Zluri is’ just another IGA tool, it’s built for SaaS-first organisations that need efficiency, clarity, and buy-in across the board.

To see Zluri in action, book a demo today.

IGA Works Best When Everyone’s Invested

IGA isn’t just a security upgrade. It’s a shift in how your organization manages trust, risk, and access across every team, app, and process.

And what is the key to getting it right? It’s not just technical execution; it’s about building shared ownership from day one.

When stakeholders understand the gaps, see the value in their own language, and are part of shaping the rollout, IGA stops being “someone else’s project.” It becomes a program everyone has a stake in and a reason to support.

Start small. Prove it works. Keep the loop tight.

That’s how you move IGA from a security initiative to a business-critical capability.

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