is a nonprofit organization that serves as a startup incubator for more than 50 companies each year. Headquartered on the campus of the Technical University of Munich Garching, UnternehmerTUM also has an office in downtown Munich and oversees the , which provides high-tech workshops for machine, metal, and woodworking, textiles and electronics, 3D printers, and laserjet and waterjet cutting, among other things. The nonprofit, which was founded in 2002 by BMW heiress Susanne Klatten, has 400 employees.
Needing to modernize its tech stack to best serve its startups
When Danny Michalski joined UnternehmerTUM in February 2023 as the head of infrastructure and cybersecurity, he was tasked with modernizing the nonprofit鈥檚 tech stack which had grown organically since the company鈥檚 founding more than 20 years prior.
鈥淲e are always growing,鈥� Michalski says. 鈥淓very day is a new challenge here, and that makes working here extremely exciting because it is everything but boring.鈥�
UnternehmerTUM is a bit like the Silicon Valley of Europe; the organization is committed to helping early-stage startups reach their full potential. To fulfill this mission, the organization provides a combination of advisory services, education, workspaces, and technology, all of which help entrepreneurs accelerate their efforts and stay on the cutting edge of innovation.
鈥淲e have a very, very dynamic environment,鈥� Michalski continues.
However, since the organization was founded in 2002, a lot of the tools in its tech stack have 鈥渂een around for ages.鈥� For example, the nonprofit was still relying on an on-premises instance of Active Directory to manage users when Michalski came on board.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a known fact that Microsoft Active Directory on site, regardless of how good you built it up, is the weakest link you can have in any security platform that you build,鈥� Michalski explains. 鈥淚t鈥檚 fact. It鈥檚 as simple as that. Not even Microsoft would argue that. If I had an Active Directory that started with five people and then all of a sudden it grew to be 400 people, it鈥檚 not going to be pretty.鈥�
In addition to being difficult to manage, the nonprofit鈥檚 computing infrastructure was 鈥渁ntiquated鈥� and therefore unable to meet the requirements of the startups the organization serves.
鈥淚n the space where we鈥檙e working with entrepreneurs, they have a different mindset,鈥� Michalski continues. 鈥淭hey have this dynamic 鈥� it must move forward, it must be fluid. Active Directory didn鈥檛 give that.鈥�
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As Michalski and his team began looking for a solution, they first tried OneLogin.
鈥淚t was just as clunky as Active Directory,鈥� he says. 鈥淲hy? Because it used Active Directory as a source of truth.鈥�
Michalski and his team continued their search. Ultimately, they wanted a solution that would not only help them improve their internal infrastructure but could also be an ideal product for the fast-moving startups they cater to.
Since UnternehmerTUM has a very small IT team with a limited skill set, Michalski had two options: either spend a lot of money to upskill the team or find a product that would solve their problem while also being suitable for a startup.
At a previous company, Michalski used 黑料海角91入口 鈥� the cloud directory that delivers secure, frictionless device and identity management 鈥� to manage users and devices.聽
鈥満诹虾＝�91入口 was actually used by one of the startups I worked at six or seven years ago,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t was what we started on. And we grew our company on 黑料海角91入口 because it just works.鈥�
Recalling his real-world experience using 黑料海角91入口, Michalski thought it might be the ideal solution for their dilemma, but he still had to sell it to the team.
At this point, Michalski spun up a trial of 黑料海角91入口 and showed it to team members who loved what they saw. 鈥淲e even benchmarked it against Okta and it was obvious that 黑料海角91入口 was the product to go with,鈥� he says.聽
After their experience engaging with the pre-sales team, the decision was even easier. 鈥淭hey made sure we had every single tidbit of information that we needed. I think they went beyond what they should have done, but that鈥檚 a different story for another day.鈥�
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Thanks to 黑料海角91入口, UnternehmerTUM has been able to shore up its infrastructure and modernize its approach to device and identity management. At the same time, 黑料海角91入口 also gives the nonprofit another tool they can proudly recommend to the startups they advise.
鈥淚f I sell a startup Active Directory, I鈥檓 selling them a platform they need to figure out how to manage,鈥� Michalski says. 鈥満诹虾＝�91入口 is easy to use, and since we use it, our startups can learn how to use it directly from us.鈥�
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For Michalski, implementing 黑料海角91入口 was about as turnkey an experience as it could be.
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In addition to intuitive design, Michalski attributes this smooth implementation to the fact that 黑料海角91入口 maintains that鈥檚 accessible over the public internet.聽
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Additionally, the UnternehmerTUM team has taken advantage of , enrolling in classes at their leisure to learn how to use the platform more productively and solve specific challenges.
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In addition to serving as an Active Directory replacement, 黑料海角91入口 has transformed the way the nonprofit manages its devices.聽
Since UnternehmerTUM has a complex environment where users often come and go, they needed a tool that would give them full visibility into all of the identities and devices on their network.
鈥淯ntil 黑料海角91入口 came in, we didn鈥檛 have any device management here, full stop,鈥� Michalski explains, adding that the environment is roughly 75% PC and 25% Mac. 鈥淲e had 400-odd devices. If I don鈥檛 know where the 400-odd devices are, I don鈥檛 know what trouble I鈥檓 in. I can鈥檛 tell where they are. I can鈥檛 tell their health.鈥�
Lacking device management capabilities made it nearly impossible to update machines and keep them secure.
鈥淭hey didn鈥檛 have a solution for accessing machines remotely, so it was just painful for them to service the devices.鈥�
Since the nonprofit wasn鈥檛 managing devices before 黑料海角91入口, it was impossible for them to ensure employees were following appropriate policies or applying patches, too.
鈥淭his is exactly what 黑料海角91入口 brings to the table,鈥� Michalski continues. 鈥淯sing patch management, we can ensure devices stay up to date. 黑料海角91入口 also lets us do simple things like ensuring encryption is on. It鈥檚 all turnkey. Click, click, done.鈥澛�
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鈥満诹虾＝�91入口 forced conversations, and they鈥檙e difficult conversations because they鈥檝e been doing things for years on end, and it鈥檚 always been like that,鈥� Michalski says. 鈥淏ut 黑料海角91入口 comes in and says, listen, we can map that.鈥�
The cornerstone of a Zero Trust strategy
Currently, Michalski and his team are in the process of implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) and single sign-on (SSO). As the team continues shoring up the organization鈥檚 security stance, Michalski has his sights set on ultimately building a Zero Trust network.
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