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It’s not often you get to build an environment from scratch. More often than not, IT is an art of working with what you’ve got. Usually, IT professionals are doing their best with the IT infrastructure in front of them, whether it’s one they’ve been working on for years or one that’s been bestowed upon them. Completely wiping the slate clean and starting over isn’t usually an option.
However, having an idea of what your ideal environment might look like can act as a helpful north star as you move through your career. Understanding your “ideal state” can offer direction as you encounter decisions, problems, and opportunities to effect change (even small change).
Recently, Dan Gericke, named a “Top Cybersecurity Voice” by LinkedIn, posed this question to his LinkedIn connections. In a LinkedIn poll, he asked, “If you could start over from scratch when it comes to your company’s IT infrastructure, which Identity Provider would you choose today?” Here’s how people answered.
What Is the IT Professional’s Dream IAM Solution?
In the poll, JumpCloud won by a significant margin. Fifty percent of the 349 voters answered JumpCloud. Okta, the second most popular choice, received about half the votes that JumpCloud did, and Microsoft Entra ID trailed close behind Okta. Only 4% of voters said they would choose a different solution, like One Identity, KeyCloak, or others.
In a follow-up post, Dan discussed the poll’s results, and suggested that they might be a reflection of JumpCloud’s ability to combine directory services with IAM, SSO, MFA, MDM, password management, and more. He also spoke to JumpCloud’s “unique identity offerings most other services don’t support (like Radius).”
In the spirit of full transparency, Dan also mentioned that JumpCloud reposted the poll, and 38 JumpCloud employees voted. (What can we say? We’re big fans!) However, it’s worth noting that JumpCloud still would have won by a significant margin without those 38 employee votes.
If You Build It, Your Dream Environment Will Come
While a perfect greenfield environment may more often be a dream than reality, there are still ways to move toward your ideal state without implementing a complete overhaul. JumpCloud, for example, can integrate with other identity providers, like Google Workspace and Active Directory.
These integrations allow you to secure the benefits of JumpCloud’s directory platform — like identity lifecycle management, OS-agnostic device management, SSO, and more — without the daunting task of ripping-and-replacing your current environment. They also offer you the option of slowly transitioning to JumpCloud — and moving closer to your dream state — over time. Sometimes, gradual steps toward your goals are the best way to get there.
If you build it, they will come.
To learn how other companies made the transition to JumpCloud, check out some of our case studies. Or to try Jumpcloud in your own environment, sign up for a free trial.
