Employee Provisioning: Page 4 of 9

An EUA solution addresses these problems with a workflow component that manages the communication and sequence of required approvals to speed the process. Once approved, a request can be routed to an administrator for action or acted on automatically by the EUA package. The workflow component might provide a Web-browser interface that lets users and security administrators track the request and provide e-mail notification whenever the request is awaiting approval or action, when it has been acted upon, and if it is declined at any stage.

Many EUA products include in their workflow solutions an escalation procedure that allows for backup approvals of resources and access requests if the primary authority is unavailable or fails to deal with the request quickly. Requests, therefore, are handled within the organization's designated time frame, minimizing productivity loss while the employee waits for the request to be approved or denied.

The ROI Factor

Perhaps the prospect of paying $250,000 in fines and forwarding your mail to a federal penitentiary isn't enough reason to consider an EUA solution. Or perhaps HIPAA and BGL don't apply to your organization. In that case, you'll need other justification for the purchase of one these admittedly pricey systems.

A good EUA solution offers password self-service. If the product lacks this feature, don't buy it. Some products also offer configurable attribute self-service, which lets a user update his or her name, address and marital status without spending time filling out paper forms and routing them through HR.