In today’s rapidly evolving SaaS ecosystem, enterprises are adopting dozens sometimes hundreds of cloud applications. While IAM (Identity and Access Management) and SMPs (SaaS Management Platforms) provide valuable visibility and control, they often stop short of solving one of the most critical challenges in modern governance Application Ownership.
Enterprise Application Governance (EAG) bridges this gap by creating a structured model to assign ownership, establish accountability, and automate compliance workflows. To help organizations assess where they stand and how to evolve, we’ve developed the EAG Maturity Model.
Understanding the EAG Maturity Model
The EAG Maturity Model provides a strategic roadmap for organizations to measure and improve their governance posture across five distinct stages. Each stage represents a level of sophistication in managing application ownership, visibility, and automation.
Stage 1: No Ownership
Organizations at this stage have little or no visibility into who owns which applications. Shadow IT is rampant, and there are no clear accountability structures. Compliance and security risks remain high because ownership data is fragmented or completely missing.
Stage 2: Manual Ownership
Here, ownership is informally tracked often in spreadsheets or ad-hoc tools. Some applications have defined owners, but the process lacks standardization, and updates depend on manual effort. This stage often coincides with the early adoption of SaaS Management Platforms.
Stage 3: Defined Ownership
Organizations begin to formalize ownership policies. Each app has a designated owner responsible for user access reviews, license utilization, and compliance alignment. Ownership data is stored centrally, often integrated with CMDB or IAM systems.
Stage 4: Governed Ownership
Governance workflows are now established. Application owners are automatically notified for periodic access reviews, license renewals, and compliance checks. The system enforces approval policies and tracks accountability metrics. Collaboration between IT, security, and business units is structured and visible.
Stage 5: Automated Governance
At this level, governance becomes intelligent and adaptive. EAG platforms integrate deeply with IAM, GRC, and SMP solutions to enable continuous monitoring, AI-driven ownership recommendations, and real-time compliance automation. Risk and usage data flow seamlessly across systems, creating a self-sustaining governance loop.
Why the EAG Maturity Model Matters
- Creates a measurable roadmap for governance improvement.
- Helps CISOs and IT leaders communicate progress to executive teams.
- Aligns people, process, and technology to reduce operational risk.
- Lays the foundation for AI-driven compliance automation.
Moving Forward with AppGovern
At AppGovern, we’re helping organizations move from Stage 1 to Stage 5 by combining application discovery, ownership intelligence, and automated governance workflows all within one integrated platform.
If you’re ready to assess your EAG maturity or explore how governance automation can strengthen your security posture, visit appgovern.com or reach out for an early access demo.
