The Identity/Security Challenge

Most of the people that I know in the identity field will know and understand what I am about to say:

Identity management and security is not about technology.

That is very shocking for many people in our field, because our natural proclivity is to solve all problems with a technical solution.

I have done many projects over the years, and I would estimate that around 80-85% of them have always come down to business process. Sometimes this is one of the more challenging pieces that you can encounter with a client as well, as they are expecting just a technical solution to solve all of their problems.  So, how do you adjust?

The answer is not simple, and yet it is.  It all depends on the client.  How receptive have they been to any of the technical solutions that you have been proposing?  Has there been anyone that has tried to force a solution different than the one that has been proposed?  And I say that with the thought in mind of the protective mindset that client technology people can sometimes have.  And it's understandable from their point of view...here is a consultant coming in to change their environment.

The ability to remove the idea of technology from the discussions is how I have been able to work through some of these challenges.  Start with the process, work backwards from there, and the solution creates itself.