A shift toward cloud computing, supporting broader digital transformation initiatives and regulatory compliance were cited as key drivers for network transformation projects 

ZURICH, August 27, 2024 — Open Systems, the leading provider of native, managed SASE solutions, today announced the results of its 2025 IT Infrastructure Report. According to the report, many U.S. organizations expect to spend more on networking and security in 2025, particularly on SASE-related expenses.

Open Systems commissioned Osterman Research to survey 200 IT leaders in the U.S. about their priorities, challenges, and budgets related to SASE and network transformation. The report’s findings highlighted a trend toward increased IT spending and a growing preference to outsource SASE management to a third party.

Key findings:

1. Organizations are moving toward SASE, despite the implementation barriers that many face such as infrastructure problems and lack of skilled staff. What’s more, many organizations are allocating extra budget to address these barriers. For example, nearly two-thirds of IT leaders who cited infrastructure problems as a barrier to SASE implementation reported that their IT budget will significantly increase in the next 12 months.
2. Managing SASE internally is more expensive: 43% of organizations currently managing SASE internally expect to significantly increase their budgets over the next 12 months. By comparison, only 31% of those managing SASE externally are planning a significant budget increase. Keeping up to date with new equipment and finding new staff members to manage the deployment often equates to a big price tag.
3. Organizations increasingly want to outsource SASE management to external providers. Seventy percent of organizations already rely on an external provider to manage their SASE deployment and that figure increases to 73% three years from now. Additionally, more than 70% of organizations managing SASE internally see complexity, limited budget, and a lack of expertise as their main challenges to SASE implementation.

“Despite challenging economic times, organizations see the value of investing in IT needs, especially networking and security,” said Stefan Keller, Chief Product Officer, Open Systems. “Our research shows that while many companies face challenges in implementing SASE, they are still moving forward with SASE adoption and are dedicating resources to ensure a successful implementation. It’s gratifying to see that many organizations understand the benefits of outsourcing SASE management to a third party like Open Systems.”

The report also explored what IT leaders look for in a SASE service or solution and respondents cited 24/7 customer support from experts, technical integrations, service agility, and having a single-vendor SASE solution as equally important factors. Interestingly, having a single-vendor SASE solution was less important to those who manage SASE internally than it is to those who outsource SASE management.

For further analysis of the survey findings and to download the full report, visit https://go.open-systems.com/LP-ITIndustrySurvey-US.html.

About Open Systems  

Open Systems is a leading provider of native, managed SASE solutions that enable organizations to simply connect and secure hybrid environments to meet their business goals. Backed by our Service Experience Promise, Open Systems’ SASE Experience helps reduce risk, improve efficiency, and accelerate innovation with a comprehensive, easy-to-implement and use combination of SD-WAN and Security Service Edge delivered as a service with a superior user experience. SASE Experience combines SD-WAN, firewall, SWG, CASB, and ZTNA into a framework that supports secure connectivity across cloud and hybrid environments and locations. It provides a comprehensive SASE solution through an easy-to-use customer portal, underpinned with a unified data platform to drive future innovation, all delivered as a 24×7 managed service. To learn more about Open Systems, visit www.open-systems.com. Follow Open Systems on LinkedIn and X/Twitter.