The IAM Mind Trick: How to Get Business Leaders to Actually Care About Identity

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Let’s be honest—getting business leaders to care about identity and access management (IAM) feels a lot like trying to convince a stormtrooper that these aren’t the droids they’re looking for. No matter how many times you tell them IAM is critical to security, compliance, and operational efficiency, their eyes glaze over faster than a Jedi waving a hand.

But what if we flipped the script? What if we used the IAM Mind Trick—not to manipulate (we’re identity professionals, not Sith Lords), but to reframe IAM in a way that actually resonates with business leadership?

Here’s how you can turn “I don’t care about IAM” into “Tell me more about how this helps our bottom line.”

1. Stop Talking About Security—Start Talking About Business Outcomes

Business leaders don’t wake up thinking about IAM. They wake up thinking about revenue, growth, and risk management. Instead of pitching IAM as a security must-have, connect it to something they already care about:

❌ “We need to improve access controls to reduce security risks.”

✅ “We can speed up onboarding for new employees and reduce lost productivity by automating access requests.”

The takeaway: Security is important, but for leadership, business impact comes first. Show how IAM enables agility, cost savings, and competitive advantage.

2. Use Real-Life Pain Points (Not Technical Jargon)

The fastest way to lose an executive’s attention? Start talking about RBAC, SAML, or zero trust architecture. The fastest way to keep it? Tell a story.

For example, instead of explaining “role-based access control”, illustrate the pain of an executive’s worst nightmare:

👉🏿 “Imagine a salesperson leaves your company but still has access to customer data. If they take that data to a competitor, we could lose millions in contracts. A proper IAM strategy prevents that from happening.”

When you make IAM real (and a little scary), leaders listen.

3. Make IAM a Profit Driver, Not a Cost Center

Most IAM conversations revolve around budget requests and security investments—which leaders see as expenses. But IAM can also generate revenue and create efficiencies.

✅ Faster customer onboarding → More satisfied customers, faster revenue recognition.

✅ Streamlined employee access → Less downtime, better productivity.

✅ Automation over manual processes → Fewer IT tickets, lower operational costs.

When IAM moves from cost center to value creator, leadership starts paying attention.

4. Align IAM With Their Strategic Priorities

No leader is going to prioritize IAM if it’s disconnected from their goals. Want the CEO’s buy-in? Connect IAM to digital transformation, cloud adoption, and AI strategies.

Want the CFO’s approval? Highlight IAM’s impact on fraud prevention, risk mitigation, and reducing compliance fines.

Every executive has their own concerns—make IAM the solution to their problems.

5. Speak Their Language, Not Yours

IAM pros love frameworks, compliance mandates, and security buzzwords. Business leaders? Not so much. If you want their attention, you have to speak their language:

🚀 Instead of “Identity governance improves risk posture” → Say “We can prevent unauthorized access and save $500K in potential fraud losses.”

🚀 Instead of “We need to adopt a zero trust model” → Say “This will ensure only the right people can access sensitive systems, reducing insider threats.”

When you ditch the tech jargon and focus on business impact, leaders start seeing IAM as a strategic asset, not just another IT function.

Final Thoughts: Mastering the IAM Mind Trick

Getting business leaders to care about IAM isn’t about convincing them it’s important—it’s about showing them why it matters to them.

💡 Make it about business, not security.

💡 Tell real stories instead of using technical jargon.

💡 Frame IAM as a value driver, not a cost.

💡 Align IAM with leadership priorities.

💡 Speak their language.

With these strategies, IAM professionals can move from being ignored in budget meetings to driving conversations at the executive table.

After all, identity is the foundation of security and business agility—it’s time leadership saw it that way, too.

🔥 Over to you: What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced in getting leadership buy-in for IAM? Drop your thoughts in the comments!