Modernize and replace SAP IDM in phased steps.
Coexist with SAP IDM in days — connectors live, no disruption. Migrate workloads one at a time across IAS, BTP, GRC, and downstream provisioning. Decommission when ready.
Start with coexistence and phased workload migration today. Full EmpowerNow-native replacement is the end state.
Why most SAP IDM replacements fail
Dec 2027: No more updates
SAP IDM 8.0 hits end-of-maintenance. Extended support to 2030 buys time but not features — no security patches, no new connectors, no vendor roadmap.
Migration takes 18–36 months
Big-bang rip-and-replace is risky. Most organizations need 18–36 months to migrate SAP IDM workloads — and the clock is running.
Traditional IGA: expensive, slow
$240–360 per identity per year. 2–16 week deployments. Shallow SAP connector depth. No native GRC integration.
DIY/ABAP: fragile, ungoverned
Custom scripts with no governance, no audit trail, no vendor support. Every developer who leaves takes institutional knowledge with them.
How this lowers migration risk and operating burden
Six native connectors cover the full SAP landscape — on-prem ABAP, cloud BTP, IAS, SuccessFactors, Fieldglass, and GRC — plus complete downstream provisioning to every target SAP IDM currently handles. Here is what that means in practice.
63 RFC commands. All 16 GRC SOAP services.
Complete RFC coverage for user management, role assignment, security policy enforcement, and GRC bridging. Typical IGA platforms expose 5–10 commands.
106 operations across IAS + BTP
IAS manages who people are. BTP manages what they can do. Together: complete identity-to-authorization coverage across SAP's cloud stack.
YAML provisioning. Version-controlled. Zero ABAP maintenance. No SAP developer tax.
Initial coexistence alongside SAP IDM in 2–7 days — connectors, VDS, and RFC Gateway live. Full workload migration is phased from there.
Unified security dashboard: compliance, role analysis, SoD detection, access certification. 19 workbenches, one view.
Every action produces a cryptographically signed receipt. Auditors verify independently.
Technical deep-dive SAP connector architecture: six connectors, 106 cloud operations
IAS Connector (70 Operations)
Full SCIM 2.0 lifecycle management: user CRUD, enable/disable, password reset, activation. Group management with bi-directional bulk membership. Custom schema discovery. Delta sync for certification. Batch fulfillment v2.0 (N users → 1 HTTP call). Handles SAP-specific, enterprise, and custom extension attributes.
BTP Connector (36 Operations)
Authorization & Trust Management: role collections (full CRUD + member management), roles from templates with ABAC attribute restrictions, application/scope/attribute catalog, user-to-role-collection assignments, IAS group-to-role-collection mapping, shadow user provisioning via SCIM, effective authorization analysis.
Why Both IAS + BTP Matter Together
IAS manages who people are and what groups they belong to. BTP manages what those identities and groups can do. Together they cover the complete identity-to-authorization chain inside SAP's cloud stack. No competitor covers both with this depth.
Downstream Provisioning
SAP IDM deployments don't just manage SAP-to-SAP provisioning — they handle provisioning to AD, LDAP, Entra ID, and dozens of other systems. Competitors offering "SAP migration" typically cover only SAP connections. EmpowerNow covers the full scope: SAP-specific connectors plus all downstream provisioning targets.
Six connectors. 106 MCP tools. Every action reusable as a workflow step and safe for agents — built once, governed everywhere. See the Connector & Tool Factory →
Start with the workload that hurts most
You don't have to migrate everything at once. Pick the SAP IDM workload causing the most pain and start there. EmpowerNow runs alongside SAP IDM from day one.
Joiner / mover / leaver
Cloud identity + groups
Role collection management
Access risk + SoD
AD / Entra ID / LDAP
Strangler-fig migration: no big bang required
Deploy alongside SAP IDM. Move workloads one at a time. Decommission when ready. Every phase is validated before the next.
EmpowerNow runs alongside SAP IDM. Zero workflow changes. Both systems active. Validate connectivity and data parity before moving anything.
Move workloads one at a time. HR-driven provisioning → EmpowerNow, SAP IDM → read-only. Repeat for each account type, application, and downstream system. Rollback is always available.
When all workloads are migrated and validated, decommission SAP IDM. Full cutover, proven stability, zero rollback risk.
How EmpowerNow compares
| Capability | SAP IDM 8.0 | DIY/ABAP | SailPoint | EmpowerNow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active product roadmap post-2027 | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| RFC Command Coverage | N/A | Partial | 5–10 | 63 |
| GRC SOAP Services | Native | No | No | All 16 |
| SAP Cloud Operations (IAS + BTP) | N/A | No | Partial | 106 |
| Initial Coexistence Deployment | In place | 3–6 mo | 2–16 wk | 2–7 days |
| Coexistence (No Rip-Replace) | N/A | Risky | Complex | Native |
| Governance & Proof | Policy engine | None | Limited | Auditor-verifiable proof chain |
Based on current product analysis, public vendor documentation, and field deployment experience. Request the full comparison brief →
Security & Compliance Through the Migration
Migrating off SAP IDM does not mean losing governance. EmpowerNow runs the same proof chain, the same policy enforcement, and the same audit trail from day one of coexistence through final decommission.
GRC bridge, not replacement
All 16 GRC SOAP services integrated. SoD detection, access-risk analytics, and remediation workflows stay connected to your existing SAP GRC.
Auditor-verifiable proof chain
Every provisioning action — SAP or downstream — produces a cryptographically signed receipt. Auditors verify independently, no vendor tooling required.
Zero governance gap during migration
Both systems run in parallel. Policy enforcement applies to every workload regardless of which system drives it. No blind spot between phases.
Rollback without risk
Every phase is validated before the next. If a workload migration surfaces issues, roll back to SAP IDM for that workload without affecting others.
One authorization engine through every migration phase
As workloads move from SAP IDM to EmpowerNow, authorization stays consistent. The same AuthZEN PDP that governs your SAP connectors also enforces IGA guardrails on provisioning actions — one policy language, one audit trail, zero governance gaps during transition.
Connector authorization
Every SAP connector action — IAS user provisioning, BTP role assignment, GRC access request — is authorized by the PDP before execution. Constraints (scope, time windows, rate limits) and obligations (audit log, approval gates) travel with each decision.
IGA guardrails on provisioning
Separation of duties, birthright rules, and contractor restrictions evaluate as PDP policies — not separate GRC logic. The provisioning engine checks the same authorization engine that governs runtime access.
Proof chain continuity
Every connector execution produces a signed receipt tied to the PDP decision and policy version hash. When auditors ask about SAP access changes during migration — you have cryptographic proof, not log files.
The PDP governs 106 SAP MCP tools across 6 connectors. Set an authorization policy once — it's enforced across IAS, BTP, and downstream provisioning.
Three editions. Same platform.
Every edition runs the same authorization engine, the same proof chain, and the same connector infrastructure. Pick the scope that matches your migration.
Starter
Single SAP system. Visibility + limited write.
IAS connector, read-only security dashboards, config-driven provisioning. The fastest way to get SAP IDM coexistence running and validate the migration path.
Professional
Full migration motion. Up to 3 SAP systems.
All 6 SAP connectors, 63 RFC commands, 16 GRC SOAP services, full security dashboards with access-risk analytics, advanced provisioning workflows, and downstream targets.
Enterprise
Multi-landscape. Advanced governance. Priority support.
Everything in Professional plus multi-landscape rollout across dev/staging/prod, multi-tenant delegation, custom provisioning workflows, and premium SLA-backed support.
SAP IDM maintenance ends Dec 2027. Migration takes 18–36 months.
Get a migration plan tailored to your SAP landscape — which workloads to move first, how long it takes, and what coexistence looks like from day one.