Enterprise software needs to do one of two things: increase productivity or reduce costs. If it isn’t helping your business make money it is rather pointless. Even software that helps to comply with regulations is doing this, assuming the software cost is less than the fine for not doing it.
I picture IT departments huddling in conference rooms listing the software and how much of each of those two things their software does each quarter to help prioritize spending. There is some sort of brutally efficient spreasheet projected on the big screen with the procurement guy shouting, “buy this software now!” or “drop that project immediately!”
The software with the best ROI should drift to the top. Well, I’m here to make that meeting just a bit shorter. Because self service password reset for Active Directory should be up at the top of the list. Users forget passwords. Users then call the help desk. This takes up the time of the user and the help desk. For a freakin’ password!
The answer is so simple that it’s shocking. Give users a way to reset their own password. Every single useful website on earth does it, why doesn’t every Active Directory organization have it?
I hear so many tales of “we have a software but can’t get it deployed.” We have a few tips on how to get users to enroll in self service password reset. And, if you’re interested, we’ve developed a helpful login script to force users to enroll.
Back to saving your help desk time and money. Many think they have a true dilemma here, make the passwords complex and increase security at the cost of productivity. Or sacrifice security for productivity and ease. But with a password reset solution, you can ramp up password complexity without that tradeoff.
Now, how much will it save you? Mind you, these numbers always seem a bit high to me, but Gartner’s cost of a help desk call factors in both sides of the call (user and help desk) plus the cost of keeping a help desk (hardware/software/phone lines, etc). This is all real.
Plug in the numbers in our own password reset ROI calculator, play with the assumptions and see if GroupID Password Center doesn’t move right up to the top of that spreadsheet of “must have” software next time you have that meeting. Then download our free trial and see how easy it is to save your help desk.
Jonathan Blackwell
View ProfileSince 2012, Jonathan Blackwell, an engineer and innovator, has provided engineering leadership that has put GroupID at the forefront of group and user management for Active Directory and Azure AD environments. His experience in development, marketing, and sales allows Jonathan to fully understand the Identity market and how buyers think.