Four SSE stumbling blocks and how companies can overcome them

Pain Point #1: The complexity of migration

One of the biggest pain points when introducing SSE components such as Secure Web Gateway (SWG), Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB), and Firewall-as-a-Service (FWaaS) is their high complexity. All of these technologies have a profound impact on existing IT, network, and security infrastructures. Since SSE components either replace old systems or have to be integrated into them, companies face a number of challenges. They need to update their access and identity models, standardize their policies, and adapt or even completely redesign their data flows. In addition, the integration of cloud and SaaS applications requires a high degree of technical coordination, especially with regard to performance, data protection, and governance. Different provider architectures, interfaces, and operating models further increase the integration effort. The challenge lies less in individual technologies and more in the holistic orchestration of these services into a stable, high-performance, and uniformly manageable security platform.

Pain Point #2: The fragmented security landscape

Another pain point for companies is inextricably linked to the «best-of-breed» approach that is unfortunately still often pursued: the desire to find the supposedly most powerful and feature-rich individual solution for each SSE component. The fragmented introduction of SSE in the form of individual products rather than an integrated SSE platform automatically leads to greater complexity, inconsistent security, and unmanageable operating costs. Each system comes with its own management interfaces, policy engines, logging mechanisms, and integration requirements, which, among other things, leads to redundant configurations and thus to considerable additional work for the IT department. Security policies must also be maintained multiple times by those responsible, which increases the likelihood of inconsistencies and misconfigurations. This also results in fragmented monitoring, which makes it difficult to analyze the causes of security or performance problems. The approach is also inefficient in terms of cost-effectiveness: multiple contracts, interfaces, and support channels increase costs and reduce flexibility. A unified SSE platform, on the other hand, allows for centralized policy management, consistent monitoring, and significantly more efficient operation.

Pain Point #3: The global rollout

An additional pain point in the introduction of SSE primarily affects internationally active companies. Different local infrastructures, data centers, and Internet connections make uniform implementations difficult. At the same time, regional compliance and data protection requirements such as GDPR adjustments and policy deviations are necessary. Global users may also suffer from latency issues if network traffic is not optimally managed across different points of presence. From an organizational perspective, time zones, local IT teams, and training requirements complicate rollout and change management. Overall, these factors increase costs, operational overhead, and complexity, making it difficult to implement a consistent, globally scalable SSE architecture.

Pain Point #4: Change Management

In addition to the technological challenge, the introduction of SSE also means a profound organizational change. Employees must get used to new access procedures, authentication processes, and security guidelines, while IT teams take on new roles, tools, and responsibilities. Without targeted communication and training, the transition often leads to uncertainty, resistance, and misuse. The paradigm shift to zero trust in particular requires a new understanding of security and the dismantling of old ways of thinking. Successful change management therefore relies on early information, transparent target visions, pilot phases, and the close involvement of all stakeholders. Only when the benefits for users, IT, and the organization are clearly communicated can acceptance be achieved and change be sustainably anchored.

The most sustainable and economical alternative to isolated individual solutions is a holistic approach: Secure Access Service Edge (SASE). This framework combines cloud-based network functions with an integrated security architecture (SSE) to form a single, consistent platform. The concept is particularly effective in the form of Managed SASE, which provides companies with all network and security technologies from a single source—operated, monitored, and continuously optimized by an experienced managed service partner. This reduces internal effort, improves scalability, and ensures a consistently high standard of security.

«No company that wants to remain competitive can ignore SSE today,» emphasizes Stefan Keller, Chief Product Officer at Open Systems. «Secure and consistent network operation is the backbone of every digital organization—and therefore crucial for stability, efficiency, and growth.»

Source: Open Systems

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/vier-sse-stolpersteine-und-wie-unternehmen-sie-ueberwinden/