The final sprint of the year is almost behind us, and soon it will be time to put our feet up for a few days. But before things quiet down, we would like to take one more look back. 2025 gave us twelve wonderful months—and above all, we owe that to our customers, partners, and the USO team. So first and foremost: thank you!

We firmly believe that you achieve more together. That is why strong partnerships are such an important part of our business, and in 2025, we were delighted to welcome several new ones.

Together with Descope, we are putting secure digital identities for customers, partners, and service providers center stage. The company offers a drag-and-drop platform that makes it easy to manage external identities. It also takes into account the identities of customers, partners, and service providers connected to your own customers, partners, or service providers. This means the solution can secure identities across the entire B2B2X environment.

No more point solutions: with Silverfort, we are excited to have a partner that puts an end to identity silos. In their place comes an all-in-one tool that keeps track of human, non-human, and AI-agent identities alike—whether they are in the cloud or on premises. What convinced us most were the insights into technical user accounts and user accounts being misused for technical purposes, along with the matching countermeasures. The result is fast value—from analysis and risk assessment all the way to mitigation.

Most access rights in companies go unused and end up serving as entry points for cybercriminals. That is why our partner CyberDesk helps organizations govern all data access adaptively through its platform. The least privilege principle is applied rigorously throughout. The question of who has access to what can be answered reliably through contextual information about responsibilities, permissions, and actual usage. Particularly exciting for us: finally, a provider from Germany delivering world-class identity management.

One absolute staple for us—and a must-attend event yet again this year—was KuppingerCole’s EIC at the Congress Center on Berlin’s Alexanderplatz. Of course, the now almost legendary Berlin edition of IdentiBeer was part of it too, with founder Espen Bago and co-host Martin Sandren from IKEA joining the event. Martin Kuppinger himself also attended the “sub-event” for the second year in a row. We took away unforgettable moments, IdentiBeer, pork knuckles, and many new connections.

Another highlight of the year was our visit to Identiverse 2025 in Las Vegas. Four intense days that once again showed why this conference is the global event for identity professionals. More than 100 sessions, international experts, and in-depth discussions turned the trip into a real knowledge boost. You can read more about what was discussed there around AI in the identity space, Fine-Grained Authorization (FGA), and more in our blog post “Viva Las Vegas!” We were especially proud that our Managing Director Sebastian Rohr was invited to give a presentation on CRA, NIS2, and DORA. And of course, there was also an IdentiBeer at BrewDog the evening before—with dozens of representatives from the identity management “who’s who” in the United States.

In November, we stepped a little outside our usual trade fair territory—and were rewarded for it. At the CRM & Contact Center Strategy Days at Schloss Bensberg, we introduced participants to the world of identity security. One thing is clear: CIAM and CRM belong together. Secure yet user-friendly customer interactions only happen where identity management and customer experience are considered together. For IT, sales, and marketing, that means working together on a CRM approach that protects the identities of customers, partners, and service providers. Ideally with Descope—and with us—by your side.

After our traditional year-end team event—our 2024 Christmas celebration—the wish came up to meet more often in person again as a team. First Anja and later Nahomi took that as a cue to organize a two-day meeting every quarter, focused on cross-company exchange and team building.

Alongside “small psychology games with Dr. Rohr” (or, more accurately, simple personality analysis based on SDI), photo shoots, laser tag, and great food became some of the standout moments that we will remember for a long time.

With this positive look back, we are ready for the year ahead. We are looking forward to new projects, valuable partnerships, and great identity security events where we can gather fresh inspiration and connect with the community. Maybe we will even see you in 2026—we would be delighted.