Achieving sustainable value: your SASE journey to measurable security transformation

Introduction

The strategic decision has been made, the contract is signed and the real work of transformation begins. Success of this journey is not measured by the "go-live" date, but by the tangible business outcomes you achieve in the weeks, months and years that follow. A true strategic partner will work with you to translate the vision from your business case into your new operational reality. This process should be structured, measurable and focused on continuous improvement.

The first 90 days are critical. The initial phase of your partnership should be a meticulously planned onboarding process led by a professional services team, focused on deploying the first "quick win" identified in your roadmap. Success should be tracked from day one using clear KPIs - a quantifiable reduction in web-based threats, improved user response times, and positive feedback from your pilot users. Early successes validate the decision and build momentum for the journey ahead.

Structured onboarding for early wins

Modern SASE transformations begin with a carefully orchestrated onboarding process designed to deliver immediate, measurable value. Research shows that organisations implementing structured onboarding with dedicated professional services see up to 50% faster time-to-value compared to those attempting self-implementation. The key is starting with high-impact, low-disruption use cases that demonstrate clear business benefit.

Your partnership should commence with a comprehensive discovery and assessment phase. This involves customer workshops to understand your current network and security landscape, identify key user groups and establish compliance requirements. The output should be a customised SASE readiness assessment and business-aligned outcomes map that serves as your implementation blueprint.

The next phase focuses on solution design, where access policies and segmentation rules are defined, and the SD-WAN/SSE integration model is determined. For organisations with existing Fortinet infrastructure, this phase can leverage current investments to lower migration costs and accelerate time-to-value. The result is a high-level architecture and recommended security connectivity model tailored to your specific environment.

Prototype and validation represents the critical proof-of-concept phase. This typically involves deploying pilot services such as Secure Web Gateway combined with Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA). During this phase, organisations should expect to see immediate improvements in key metrics. For example, companies implementing ZTNA pilots typically experience an 80% reduction in VPN-related helpdesk tickets within the first month.

The new operational reality: achieving "secure simplicity"

As the phased rollout continues, your team's day-to-day experience will fundamentally transform. The chaotic "swivel-chair" administration disappears, replaced by a single management console for unified network and security operations. Research indicates that organisations consolidating from 70+ security tools to unified platforms report 72-day faster threat identification and 84-day faster mitigation compared to fragmented environments.

Your team's posture shifts from reactive to proactive, leveraging integrated tools like Digital Experience Monitoring (DEM) to resolve issues before users are even aware of a problem. DEM solutions provide real-time insights into application and network performance from the user's perspective, enabling proactive detection and resolution of performance issues. This transformation is particularly evident in New Zealand businesses, where Kordia's best-connected infrastructure with direct peering to major cloud providers ensures the lowest-latency connections to business-critical applications.

Most importantly, with day-to-day platform management supported by your partner, your internal team is finally freed from the cycle of firefighting and burnout. Studies show that 90% of CISOs are concerned about burnout affecting their teams, leading to an expensive cycle of staff attrition. Tool consolidation addresses this directly - 64% of security teams report that pivoting between tools directly inhibits their ability to do their job effectively. With unified operations, your team can leverage their skillsets, focusing on high-value strategic work that drives the business forward.

Measuring what matters: your value realisation scorecard

A long-term partnership is built on accountability. Your partner should provide regular, transparent reporting that tracks progress against your original business case objectives. This can be captured in a simple scorecard, reviewed quarterly, to make the value of your investment tangible and measurable.

Research demonstrates that organisations using consolidated security platforms generate four times greater ROI (101%) compared to those struggling with fragmented security stacks (28%). The key is establishing baseline metrics before implementation and tracking improvements across four critical dimensions.

Security Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) measures the reduction in security tools and associated licensing costs. Organisations implementing SASE solutions typically achieve 15-25% reduction in direct licensing costs and 50-60% reduction in hidden operational and compliance costs. For a medium enterprise spending $500,000 annually on security tools, this could represent savings of $125,000 to $375,000 per year.

Security posture improvement tracks mean time to detect and contain threats. Consolidated security platforms reduce threat dwell time by an average of 72 days for detection and 84 days for containment. Given that the global average cost of a data breach reached record highs in 2024, this improvement in response time delivers substantial risk reduction value.

User productivity enhancement measures the reduction in connectivity-related support tickets and improvement in application performance. Organisations implementing ZTNA solutions typically see an 80% reduction in VPN-related helpdesk tickets, while those deploying comprehensive SASE architectures report significant improvements in user experience metrics.

Team retention and satisfaction tracks voluntary attrition rates within the security team. Given the global cybersecurity skills shortage, retaining skilled professionals is crucial. Organisations that successfully consolidate security tools report improved job satisfaction among security professionals, as they can focus on strategic work rather than tool management.

Continuous optimisation through strategic partnership

The evolution from vendor to strategic partner becomes evident through ongoing optimisation and regular business reviews. Quarterly business reviews (QBRs) provide a structured framework for assessing progress, identifying opportunities, and adjusting strategies based on changing business requirements. These reviews should focus on both backward-looking metrics and forward-looking strategic initiatives.

Effective QBRs in the security context should examine account growth through expanded security capabilities, customer satisfaction through user experience surveys and support resolution times, and engagement metrics such as platform utilisation and feature adoption. The goal is to ensure that your SASE investment continues to deliver value as your business evolves and grows.

For New Zealand organisations specifically, the local support advantage becomes particularly valuable during these ongoing optimisation phases. Having access to over 30 Fortinet-certified professionals and a local Security Operations Centre means that adjustments and enhancements can be implemented quickly, without the delays associated with offshore support models. This sovereign capability ensures that your security posture can adapt rapidly to changing business requirements and emerging threats.

The partnership model should also include proactive service reporting and continuous improvement recommendations. This might involve quarterly security posture assessments, threat landscape updates specific to your industry sector, and recommendations for new capabilities as they become available. The objective is to ensure that your security architecture remains optimised for both current threats and future business growth.

Next steps

You now have a scalable foundation to protect your organisation not just from today's threats, but to provide the agility to thrive in the future. The successful implementation of a unified SASE architecture, combined with ongoing strategic partnership, positions your organisation to achieve the measurable outcomes promised in your original business case.

To learn more about how partners like Kordia work with New Zealand businesses for long-term success through comprehensive onboarding, value tracking, and continuous optimisation, the next step is engaging with experienced professionals who understand both the technology and the unique requirements of the New Zealand market.

How do I get started with Kordia Secure Edge?

Contact us today to discuss how Kordia Secure Edge delivers real business outcomes