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Effective IAM Strategies in Higher Ed: Observations from a Softdocs Product Owner

Arvind Krishnan

Arvind Krishnan
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A well-thought-out Identity and Access Management (IAM) strategy is a key component of an institution’s overall digital transformation initiative. In today’s day and age, a Higher Ed application ecosystem is comprised of apps deployed in the cloud and on premises, accessible by students AND faculty through different channels - including Mobile and IoT. Irrespective of when and how these apps will be accessed, it is critical that users are provided with simple and secure access.

While at the same time, cybersecurity has evolved beyond simply building walls and utilizing separate locks for every door. Gone are the days when every app on campus leveraged separate credentials and different password policies, all of which users had to manage and keep straight. And what a nightmare scenario that used to be! In order to remember all their different passwords, many users adopted insecure processes-like using the same password or variants of the same base password-which increased their risk of falling victim to a cyberattack.

Today, the Gen Z student has a much higher set of expectations for their journey from Applicant to Student, and finally to Alumni. Expectations which are fueling the pursuit of digital and operational transformation across higher education. While concurrently, institutions are discovering that an effective solution leverages modern technological practices like multi-factor authentication, encryption of identity data and support for industry protocols-such as SAML 2.0, OAuth, WS-Federation and OpenID-to authenticate, authorize and manage users. In doing so, the solution not only protects the institution from bad actors but provides a delightful user experience to students and staff, allowing them to easily manage their own passwords while being able to access data at any time and from any place - the perfect balance of convenience and security.

Looking to learn how Etrieve by Softdocs fits into your IAM gameplan, with native support for SSO protocols and the ability to sync a user’s Etrieve profile with data from an IAM or 3rd party app? Let us know!