Step 1
Strategy, Risk Posture, and Baseline Assessment
Confirm business and security objectives, current WAN state (MPLS/IP VPN/internet), cloud/app dependencies, risk posture, and measurable success metrics.
Enterprise-grade SASE and SD-WAN advisory for security leaders, IT, and network operations
SASE and SD-WAN are not just network upgrades. They are architectural shifts that converge connectivity and next-generation security into a unified fabric. The right outcomes are improved with an expert strategic advisor to validate design choices, performance implications, and security posture – then negotiate commercial terms from a position of clarity when dealing with multi-billion-dollar providers.
SASE and SD-WAN. We support SASE and SD-WAN engagements from enterprise to SMB – helping cybersecurity and IT leaders evaluate, negotiate, and deploy cloud-based connectivity and security at scale. Our advisory experience includes work across providers and ecosystems such as Cisco, Cato Networks, Fortinet, Netskope, Palo Alto Networks, and Zscaler, along with adjacent components across identity, endpoint, observability, and network operations.are not just network upgrades.
Most SASE/SD-WAN initiatives struggle with complexity when architecture, security, performance, and commercial design are treated as separate workstreams. They are inseparable.
SASE and SD-WAN designs span edge, cloud, identity, policy, routing, and inspection. Hidden dependencies across native features and third-party components can create operational fragility if not engineered correctly.
Embedding next-generation security into the network fabric is powerful—but encryption, inspection, and routing choices can introduce latency or degrade user experience if not designed and validated under real-world conditions.
Traditional MPLS and IP VPN models often restrict access, routing control, and agile changes. Security and IT teams need visibility and policy control that carriers do not permit—especially for hybrid and cloud workloads.
Organizations often accumulate overlapping tools across WAN, firewall, SWG/CASB/ZTNA, and endpoints. We think endpoints needs the s there.
SASE and SD-WAN pricing models can be difficult to compare (bandwidth tiers, site/user licensing, add-ons, security bundles, support tiers, renewals). Without expert advisory, contract structure becomes the hidden driver of cost and lock-in.
SASE and SD-WAN decisions require understanding the architecture: what is truly native, what requires third-party components, how policy and inspection operate, and what the performance ramifications are for real applications and users.
A methodical approach that converts uncertainty into clarity—and clarity into a defensible decision backed by evidence, performance validation, and measurable financial impact.
Confirm business and security objectives, current WAN state (MPLS/IP VPN/internet), cloud/app dependencies, risk posture, and measurable success metrics.
Define technical and operational requirements: segmentation, ZTNA, SWG/CASB, firewall strategy, branch/user experience, traffic inspection, routing, resilience, observability, and governance.
Run structured validation against your real workflows: branch patterns, remote users, cloud traffic, application performance, and policy enforcement. Compare providers using fit-gap scoring and references—not demo narratives.
Normalize pricing models, benchmark terms, and negotiate performance protections: pricing and renewal controls, add-on governance, SLAs, support escalation commitments, implementation obligations, and exit portability.
Deploy with governance: phased rollout, performance baselines, security policy validation, monitoring/observability, incident workflows, and continuous optimization.
Strategic advisory prevents expensive missteps and accelerates a secure, high-performance architecture that delivers measurable ROI.
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02
Design for real conditions: branch diversity, remote workforce, SaaS and cloud traffic, segmentation, and inspection—without compromising experience.
03
Reduce network carrier spend, eliminate redundant tools, avoid rework, control add-ons, and optimize commercial structures that otherwise create cost leakage.
04
Implement consistent policy enforcement across users, branches, and apps—enhancing existing firewalls or enabling a practical upgrade path to modern SASE firewall capabilities.
05
Providers negotiate every day; most enterprises do not. Advisory ensures pricing, terms, SLAs, support, and renewal protections reflect your leverage and your operational requirements.
In a focused working session, we will clarify goals, map use cases, identify architecture and performance constraints, and outline the shortest path to a defensible decision—plus strong commercial terms and renewal protections.
These are the questions that determine whether SASE/SD-WAN becomes a strategic advantage—or a long-term operational burden.
We start with your use cases (branches, remote users, cloud apps, security posture), then map requirements into an architecture blueprint and fit-gap scorecard. Providers are evaluated based on evidence and operational impact—not demo performance.
We CAN design a “bring your own bandwidth” model that is fully managed by network experts. SD-WAN policy and routing control enable resilience and visibility that legacy carrier networks typically cannot provide.
There are no advisory fees, a defined scope and deliverables, and a performance-backed guarantee tied to decision quality, reduced risk, and measurable outcomes—so there is no downside to engaging.
SASE and SD-WAN decisions carry two simultaneous accountabilities: security posture and network performance.
CISO, Security Architecture, SecOps
We define the target security model up front (ZTNA, SWG, CASB, firewall policy, segmentation, identity alignment), then map it into enforceable requirements and validation steps. The result is consistent policy enforcement across users, branches, and applications—not a patchwork of tools.
We evaluate identity integration, app discovery, access policies, exception handling, and user experience. We test real access flows and operational workflows (onboarding, offboarding, privilege changes, incident response) so ZTNA works at scale.
We assess whether security should be delivered through native SASE capabilities, an enhanced firewall posture, or a staged “SASE firewall upgrade” path. We design policy ownership, inspection boundaries, and governance so your security architecture remains clear and defensible.
We create a consolidation roadmap that unifies endpoint capabilities into a centrally managed, advanced security stack where appropriate—eliminating redundant tools and spend. We validate coverage, operational processes, and controls so security improves as complexity drops.
We require evidence and specificity: control mapping, logging/telemetry, data handling, retention, incident response, and contractual commitments. We align obligations in the contract so security requirements are enforceable—not implied.
No. We will work with you to determine existing deployment architecture and security policies and leverage existing platforms through their lifecycle. Our unique architectural expertise allows us to protect your current firewall and SDWAN hardware investments and increase capabilities with a modular approach.
CIO/CTO, Network Engineering, and Infrastructure
We start with your use cases (branches, remote users, cloud apps, security posture), then map requirements into an architecture blueprint and fit-gap scorecard. Providers are evaluated based on evidence and operational impact—not demo performance.
We validate traffic paths, inspection points, encryption handling, and routing design using performance baselines and real application testing. We identify performance ramifications early so you avoid latency surprises and degraded user experience.
We define the observability and control plane requirements: telemetry, path selection, policy visibility, segmentation, and operational dashboards. You gain centralized insight and control that legacy carrier WAN models usually restrict or do not enable.
We create a consolidation roadmap that unifies endpoint protection where appropriate, centralizes management, and eliminates redundant spend—while validating coverage, operational workflows, and control effectiveness.
No. We will work with you to determine existing deployment architecture and security policies and leverage existing platforms through their lifecycle. Our unique architectural expertise allows us to protect your current firewall and SDWAN hardware investments and increase capabilities with a modular approach.
We can design a “bring your own bandwidth” model that is fully managed by network experts. SD-WAN policy and routing control enable resilience and visibility that legacy carrier networks typically cannot provide.
There are no advisory fees. We develop a clearly defined scope and deliverables, and a performance-backed guarantee tied to decision quality, reduced risk, and measurable outcomes—so there is no downside to engaging.