By anchoring the project in clear, business-driven objectives, teams can create a vision of the ideal SASE setup, ensuring that it aligns with broader digital transformation strategies. Important factors to consider include any hybrid/remote work set up and cloud adoption, including whether the organization plans to integrate any further technologies and databases or change its work structure, as these decisions will have impact on the SASE solution ultimately deploy. Recent findings from Xalient’s global research, “Why SASE is the Blueprint for Future-Proofing Your Network in 2025,” which surveyed 700 organizations that have already implemented a SASE solution, identified that the main driving factors for SASE implementation were addressing performance issues with businesscritical SaaS apps (15 percent), securing remote access for the hybrid/ remote workforce (14 percent), and addressing the rising cost of traditional network architecture (13 percent). However, security was also a key concern, as 99 percent of organizations had suffered a security breach in the last 12 months, and 44 percent identified remote, hybrid or roaming workers as a leading risk factor for these breaches. These findings indicate that business strategies must be aligned with IT security and networking goals before embarking on the procurement journey. 2. Assess Existing Infrastructure and Identify Gaps Once business objectives are defined, the next step is to evaluate the current IT infrastructure, as organizations need to identify gaps that could hinder the implementation of SASE. A further benefit from this exercise is to identify any areas where SASE can add value. Whilst addressing the existing infrastructure, teams should also consider their current security policies and any upcoming regulations that may affect them, such as NIS2 or DORA, to identify any further areas for improvement. With this context, teams will be equipped with the information required to customize SASE architecture to ensure compliance and fit the specific needs of the organization. Components of SASE Solution Respondent Actively Use Secure service edge (SSL) 31% Secure web gateway (SWG) 30% Cloud access security broker (CASB) 28% SD-WAN 28% Firewall-as-a-service 27% DNS layer security 23% Zero trust network access (ZTNA) 23% Source: Xalient The Top Three Challenges The Top Three Challenges The Top Three Benefits The Top Three Benefits Single-Vendor SASE Solutions Multi-Vendor SASE Solutions Source: Xalient Amount of cloud infrastructure organizations currently have in place Source: Auvik, 2024 % of US Companies by Number of Days Required in Office per Week 28% 25% 25% 27% 27% 25% 26% 26% 24% 28% 28% 22% A more predictable return on investment (ROI) owing to fewer point solutions A single supplier provides more economies of scale A single-vendor has more tightly integrated components More vendor integration mean a wider spread of capabilities and enhanced security Flexibility to introduce different vendors on a best-ofbreed basis Better security controls Controls are not as effective with a single-vendor compared to a multi-vendor solution It is hard to get the security controls we need in the right way Vendor lock-in – there are no alternatives Multi-vendor are more challenging to manage ourselves, we need a partner to help us While controls might be better, sometimes this doesn’t represent the best velue The pricing isn’t always clear Le. what is included and what is extra Entirely on-premises 1% 50/50 29% Minority cloud, majority on-premises 9% Majority cloud, minority on-premises 44% 100% Cloud-based technology (nothing on premises) 17% What are Source: Fort Phishing/ Smishing 81% 83% 46 CHANNELVISION | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2025
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