When Less Really is More

Last Updated on March 10, 2023

Information security is a well easily fallen into. There are so many options on the market, and so many things to consider. 
It’s hard to determine what you actually need, and sometimes companies tend to just grab everything in sight to assure themselves that they are on point.
It’s time to think lean, scrutinizing each layer, while keeping your eye on what’s coming down the pike. 
There are plenty of ideas, platforms, papers, and regulations to keep in mind, but sometimes, less really is more. 
Jose Ciriaco, Director of Sales and Marketing at Tekscape, Inc. shares some refreshing ideas about keeping things streamlined and I am all ears.
A self-made IT sales & marketing exec, Jose has a proven record of maximizing clients value with as little spend and effort as possible. We discuss in detail:

• Real-world strategies around consolidation. 
• Analyzing valuable streamlining on a case by base basis 
• Digging through vendor options (and how to get the most out of them)

Take a moment to evaluate your needs

Time stops for no one, but right now, the state of business and life as we know it is definitely on another level. Companies are having to take a look at how they operate, and in many cases, completely rework their strategies. 
Regardless of the industry, now is the time to take a good long look at operations and processes and evaluate where things are, and where they may be going. 
While you may be tempted to get super lean, make sure you aren’t leaving yourself exposed or under serviced on the road to come. 

“You can’t just arbitrarily start cutting services because you deem it non-essential in the now”– Jose Ciriaco

Some services are more necessary than ever right now. Some may be superfluous.
There’s no fast way to rip the bandaid. You have to really take the time to plan where you’re going to have services live and if it makes sense, shrink the footprint with care.
From IT infrastructure to applications, finding efficiencies that make sense and do not compromise current or future security, can lower the overall spend. 

Real-world strategies: Look at your vendor relationships

Navigating vendors is a skill. Understanding who does what, who can work with what, what can work with what is a minefield sometimes. 
While a single vendor approach has advantages and disadvantages, the real value cost wise and when it comes to time and effort spent may be a best in class, “ecosystem” approach. 
A single vendor can represent many different vendors, and have a deep understanding of how all of the systems interact and complement one another. Definitely something to consider and something both Jose and us here at Pivot Point Security have seen a lot of success with.

Operational optimization

Some of the simplest and sometimes, easiest ways to consolidate is to look at your operations closely. Some of the solutions may seem obvious, and yet, they aren’t being done. Doing a step by step analysis of operational procedures can reveal some great opportunities for savings and streamlining. Jose kicked around a few really great ideas:
Some things to consider:

• Have a trouble shooting team on retainer to avoid high cost, low service fees
• Educate yourself about potential needs when outsourcing so you understand value and “speak the language”
• Explore collapsing two clouds into one
• Look at moving from an on-prem infrastructure to a hosted infrastructure that includes your specific analysis tools

Overall, each organization has unique needs, and there is no one size fits all approach. But there are a pretty vast amount of options and opportunities for consolidation, and right now is a great time to give things a close look and see what is working, what isn’t working, and how you can do better as needs, demand and the business environment as a whole shifts and adapts to business practices in a time of pandemic, and preparing for what comes next.

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