What Keeps CIOs Up at Night: Five Key Concerns and How SASE Brings Peace of Mind 

Over the past nine years in the SASE business, I’ve had the privilege of speaking with hundreds of IT leaders—CIOs, CISOs, and IT executives. Through these conversations, I’ve found that five main concerns consistently keep them up at night. This blog aims to share those insights and highlight how I’ve seen Cato Networks’ SASE platform help address these challenges, allowing IT leaders to sleep a little easier. 

1. Availability and Resiliency 

Keeping the Business Running, No Matter What 

One of the most frequent concerns I hear from CIOs is the fear of infrastructure failure bringing business to a halt. Whether it’s due to unpredictable service provider outages, hardware failure, or regional disruptions, they worry about the reputational and financial damage that comes from downtime. In today’s digital-first environment, customers and employees alike expect always-on access to services and applications. Even a few minutes of downtime can unravel productivity, frustrate users, and cascade into lost revenue. 

What I’ve seen at Cato is how this fear can be turned into confidence. Our SASE platform is globally distributed and natively designed for resilience. It eliminates single points of failure with built-in redundancies and intelligent routing. When a backbone link goes down or a data center is impacted, traffic dynamically reroutes with no manual intervention. This architecture consistently delivers seamless failover and high availability—providing CIOs the continuity they need to keep operations running and reputations intact. 

2. Infrastructure Security 

Securing an Expanding Attack Surface 

Cyber threats have grown more sophisticated, and so have the environments CIOs are expected to secure. The pressure to protect a hybrid workforce, cloud assets, and an ever-expanding digital perimeter is immense. Many CIOs have confided that they fear not just the impact of a breach—but the possibility that an attacker could dwell undetected for weeks or months. As the number of security tools grows, visibility shrinks, and so does the confidence in being able to respond fast enough. 

At Cato, we’ve seen how a converged, cloud-native approach flips the security posture from reactive to proactive. Our SASE platform brings together Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), threat prevention, and intelligent inspection—all maintained and updated continuously. It provides a single source of visibility and control, giving IT teams the upper hand. CIOs gain the assurance that their environments are not only well-defended, but also primed for fast detection and rapid incident response. 

3. Future Readiness 

Keeping Pace with a Moving Business 

CIOs have repeatedly told me how overwhelming it can be to support a business that’s constantly evolving. Whether it’s mergers and acquisitions, rapid global expansion, or launching entirely new digital products, IT is expected to scale and deliver immediately. The challenge is that traditional infrastructures weren’t built for that kind of agility. Instead of empowering innovation, they often slow it down—making IT a bottleneck rather than a business enabler. 

What I’ve seen with Cato’s SASE platform is a dramatic shift in how quickly IT can respond to these business demands. Our cloud-native architecture is inherently elastic. It allows teams to bring new locations, users, and services online within minutes, not months. This kind of agility means CIOs can say “yes” to strategic initiatives without hesitation—removing barriers and accelerating business outcomes. 

4. Staff Satisfaction and Retention 

Building Teams That Stay and Thrive 

CIOs often share that talent churn keeps them up at night. With a global shortage of skilled IT and security professionals, it’s tough to keep experienced people engaged. Many teams are stuck in reactive mode, overwhelmed by fragmented tools and legacy infrastructure. This firefighting not only saps morale but also limits professional development, pushing top talent to look elsewhere for more fulfilling roles. 

At Cato, we’ve seen how consolidating capabilities into a single SASE platform changes the game. By removing the operational burden of point solutions and automating routine tasks, IT teams are freed to focus on higher-value projects. That clarity and purpose translates into better job satisfaction, stronger engagement, and higher retention—a true win for CIOs and their people. 

5. Recognition of IT’s Value 

Turning IT from Cost Center to Strategic Driver 

CIOs have expressed frustration about how often IT is viewed as a back-office function rather than a strategic force. Despite enabling every critical function of the business, IT is frequently seen only when something breaks or a budget line needs defending. This lack of visibility and recognition makes it harder to secure investment, align with top-level strategy, or attract top-tier talent. 

I’ve seen how SASE can flip that script. By consolidating capabilities and showing measurable outcomes—lower TCO, improved security posture, increased agility—Cato empowers CIOs to tell a different story. Instead of maintaining legacy infrastructure, IT becomes a driver of digital transformation. This shift not only elevates IT’s profile within the organization but earns it a seat at the strategic table where it belongs. 

Delivering Peace of Mind 

By addressing these five core concerns with a robust SASE platform, CIOs can rest easier, knowing their infrastructure is secure, resilient, and ready for whatever the future holds. They can lead with confidence, knowing their teams are engaged, their posture is solid, and their strategic value is understood across the business. 

I had the opportunity to present at an exhibition in late 2024, and while I was at Cato’s booth, a customer came by to say hello and share how happy he was with our solution. When I asked him what he liked most about the Cato SASE platform, his answer wasn’t about technology or features. He simply said, “I sleep at night.” 

Those four words spoke volumes. They captured the essence of what CIOs are really looking for—clarity amidst complexity, control amidst chaos, and the confidence that their infrastructure won’t just survive, but support the future of the business. That’s the true value I’ve seen Cato deliver, time and again.