April 22, 2021 | 3 min read
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The key opportunities and challenges of SASE

Expereo team

SASE gives network and security the update needed to future-proof any international business. On a more practical level, SASE promises to enable migration to the cloud and working from home. However, SASE also comes with a number of challenges. To get the most out of SASE, you should take these challenges into account before embarking on your journey and balance them against the opportunities that suit your business.

The benefits of implementing SASE

In our previous blog about SASE, we discussed SASE and its main promise: laying the basis of a future-proof network and state-of-the-art security.

But what are the more practical benefits that applying SASE can bring? Most importantly, SASE delivers automated, secure access for any user or device regardless of its location and whether it needs to connect to the cloud or be on-premise.

Aside from secure global access, SASE also delivers:

  • Costs and complexity decrease: SASE merges network and security software into one integrated solution. That means fewer vendors, fewer physical and virtual appliances in a branch, and fewer agents on end-user devices. All this has a positive impact on costs and management complexity.
  • Performance and security improvements: Because SASE consolidates network and security, secure access will be based on user, device and context, increasing security over the entire network, regardless of the route of the traffic. And since traffic will follow the optimal route based on requirements and security policies, overall performance will also be enhanced.
  • Enabling new business models: Collaboration with partners and contractors will become easier and more secure with SASE. This means that business models based on collaboration can be elevated to the next level.

The challenges of SASE

However big the benefits of SASE can be, we have to take into account challenges that arise from its application. We’ll outline them here so you can make your decisions with all the information available.

SASE poses the following challenges when deploying it into an enterprise:

  • Security professionals or network specialists might make SASE their project (when it should be a joint venture): Since security and networking were traditionally two distinctly different areas of expertise, most companies today have two siloed departments. However, if executed right, SASE is a joint venture: both network specialists and security professionals need to have a say in what components are best for the company. Therefore, align both teams to aim for one overarching goal.
  • Some locations might need on-premise security and routing capabilities: Sometimes, a standalone SASE is not enough to fulfill all the requirements a company may have. For example, branch-heavy requirements that require applications and data to be locally hosted, or when local security is needed to separate OT and IT at a branch location. In that case, consider a hybrid build-up to balance on-premise and cloud networking and security in specific situations.
  • No single platform is superior to all others: Following on from the second challenge, but also since different companies have different needs, don’t just follow Gartner’s Magic Quadrant. An all-in-one platform has the benefit of a single policy engine, to combine policies for networking and security. However, it may come with some functional limitations compared to a best-of-breed solution. Therefore, to each their own. Select the must-have components and requirements first in order to make the right decision.

SASE isn’t just a product or service, it’s a change of process due to the need to combine security and network specialists. As such, the decision to implement it shouldn’t be taken lightly. Make sure you understand your business goals and talk to an expert to answer any questions you might have before making that decision.

Ready to implement SASE within your connectivity portfolio to go faster to the future?

If you still need more information on what SASE is and whether it’s a good fit for your business, get in touch today to speak to one of our experts.

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