Why SASE Is the Architecture of Business Agility

When I first started helping organisations explore SASE (Secure Access Service Edge), the conversation was often very technical - firewalls, SD-WANs, policy enforcement, and so on.  Important stuff, of course. But it sometimes missed the bigger point. Because, although a SASE framework delivers technical innovation, it’s more than that. In my opinion SASE isn’t just a network and security play. Instead, I would go as far to say that it’s a business agility enabler.

Let me explain.

Agility Isn’t Just for Developers

We often talk about agility in the context of software teams: shipping faster, iterating quickly, adapting to change. But true organisational agility depends just as much on how your infrastructure supports people, systems, and services - especially when they’re spread across

geographies, clouds, and devices.

That’s where SASE comes in.

SASE brings together networking and security into one cohesive, cloud-delivered architecture. Instead of stitching together VPNs, on-prem firewalls, remote access gateways, and SaaS controls, you get a unified platform that flexes as your business evolves.

Need to onboard 50 new users in a different region? Roll out a new SaaS tool company-wide? Support remote access without adding more risk?

SASE lets you do all that without the usual drag.

Agility With Control

What I really like about SASE is that it gives you freedom with control.

You’re not choosing between flexibility and security - you’re getting both. Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), for example, allows users to connect from anywhere, but with strict identity and device checks. SD-WAN optimises performance across sites and clouds, while enforcing traffic prioritisation and failover policies. And CASB tools help you govern SaaS usage without blocking innovation.

In short, SASE lets you say “yes” to the business more often, without losing sleep over compliance or complexity.

The Pressure to Move Faster (Securely)

Most of the IT leaders I speak to feel the same pressure: “We need to support hybrid work.”

“We’re scaling faster than we can secure.”

“We’ve got to simplify the stack without slowing things down.”

SASE helps on all three fronts. But the key is to approach it as a strategic evolution, not a one- off upgrade.

The most successful projects I’ve seen start small - maybe replacing legacy VPNs with ZTNA, or piloting SD-WAN at a few branch locations - and then scale up over time. It’s not about buying everything at once. It’s about building the foundation for future speed, safety, and

simplicity.

Start With the Business, Not the Tech

If there’s one piece of advice I’d give any IT leader exploring SASE, it’s this:

Don’t start with the tools. Start with what your business needs to do faster, safer, or more efficiently.

Once you’ve got that, it’s easier to map SASE components to those outcomes - and avoid wasting time (and budget) on tech for tech’s sake.

Need a Practical Roadmap?

I’ve captured everything I’ve learned from real-world projects in our latest guide:

“SASE is a Journey, Not a Product: How to Start Without Buying Everything at Once.”