Legacy IGA vs next-gen IGA: where do teams still fall short?

TL;DR: Legacy IGA still persists in nearly 40% of organisations, while automated modern IGA can cut access-review errors and cycle time by 40%, according to Zluri’s analysis. The governance question is no longer whether IGA exists, but whether it can keep pace with cloud-first identity sprawl and continuous access change.

NHIMG editorial — based on content published by Zluri: Access Management Legacy vs Modern vs Next-Gen IGA

By the numbers:

• Nearly 40% of organizations still rely on legacy IGA solutions.
• Only 6% of organizations have deployed fully automated modern IGA solutions.
• Automated modern IGA can reduce error rates by 40% on average.

Questions worth separating out

Q: What breaks when legacy IGA is used in cloud-first environments?

A: Legacy IGA breaks down when identity change outpaces manual governance.

Q: When should organisations prioritise IGA modernization over more review cycles?

A: Organisations should prioritise IGA modernization when review cycles are producing documents faster than they are producing real access change.

Q: What do security teams get wrong about automation in identity governance?

A: Teams often mistake automation for a convenience layer instead of a control requirement.

Practitioner guidance

• Map governance latency across the identity lifecycle Measure how long it takes for joiner, mover, and leaver events to reach enforcement in your current IGA process.
• Test integrations before expanding policy scope Validate whether your IGA platform can reliably connect to SaaS, on-prem, directory, and workflow systems without custom code for every change.
• Shift access reviews toward continuous execution Use review cycles to confirm decisions, but ensure the platform can also carry out revocation, ownership transfer, and permission updates inside the same operational flow.

What's in the full article

Zluri's full article covers the implementation detail this post intentionally leaves for the source:

• Side-by-side feature differences across legacy, modern, and next-gen IGA deployment models
• Detailed examples of integration methods such as REST, SOAP, LDAP, webhooks, and iPaaS connectors
• Workflow-level examples for onboarding, offboarding, and conditional automation in identity governance
• Cost and maintenance considerations that matter when deciding whether to replace a legacy platform

👉 Read Zluri's analysis of legacy, modern, and next-gen IGA →

Legacy IGA vs next-gen IGA: where do teams still fall short?

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