From Patchwork to Policy: Unifying Network Security After an Acquisition 

For IT leaders tasked with integrating newly acquired business units, the road to standardized network security is often paved with mismatched tools, inconsistent policies, and outdated infrastructure. Other projects get pushed to the back burner as IT must scramble for a solution, knowing they are vulnerable to data breaches, downtime, and lost productivity.  This may sound like a nightmare scenario, but Portnox can help you turn that nightmare into a streamlined, scalable process. 

Let’s look at the advantages Portnox brings that can help tame the wild west of integrating new business: 

1. Simplified Deployment, Onboarding, and Scalability

• Quick Setup Across Diverse Environments: Portnox Cloud eliminates the need for on-premises hardware, enabling rapid deployment in diverse network environments. Unlike legacy solutions like Cisco ISE, which require complex configurations and are hardware-dependent, Portnox can be operational in minutes, even in resource-constrained IT environments. 

• Scalability for Growth: Its cloud-native architecture allows seamless scaling to accommodate new business units without costly upgrades or additional infrastructure.  

2. Vendor-Agnostic Integration

• Compatibility with existing hardware: Unlike other solutions developed by vendors to work only with specific network hardware, Portnox’s vendor-agnostic approach ensures compatibility with any networking hardware that supports industry-standard protocols.  And new features will never be hamstrung by requiring you to have a certain model of network device. 

• Compatibility with Existing Tools: Portnox’s API integration ensures compatibility with existing security tools, so you won’t be forced reinvent the wheel for secure access control.  

• Unified Security Policies: Portnox enables centralized enforcement of security policies across all business units, regardless of their existing network stacks or device management platforms. 

3. Automated Compliance and Risk Mitigation

• Automated Remediation: Portnox offers automated actions such as updating antivirus software or starting essential services to bring devices into compliance without manual intervention. This reduces the operational burden on IT staff, particularly in subsidiaries with limited resources. 

• Real-Time Risk Monitoring: The solution continuously monitors endpoint risks and enforces compliance policies, ensuring that only managed and compliant devices are allowed on the network. 

4. Cost-Effectiveness

• No Maintenance Overhead: As a SaaS platform, Portnox eliminates maintenance costs associated with legacy systems like Cisco ISE, including patches and upgrades. This reduces both complexity and cost for the IT team. 

• Centralized Management: With a single platform managing access control across networks, applications, and infrastructures, IT teams save time and resources while maintaining robust security. 

• Faster time-to-value: Nothing drains your IT resources (and will to live) faster than a project that drags out with multiple hurdles to overcome.  With Portnox, you’ll get up and running in hours—not weeks—so you can start securing your network and showing ROI almost immediately. 

5. Zero Trust Security

• Cloud RADIUS Authentication: Portnox provides secure RADIUS authentication for wired and wireless networks, enabling zero trust access control without the need for extensive on-premises infrastructure. 

• Conditional Access for Applications: It extends zero trust principles to SaaS and on-premises applications, ensuring comprehensive and consistent security across all digital assets. 

6. 6. Ease of Use – for Users and IT

• Streamlined Onboarding: One of the hardest challenges can be simply getting everyone on the network, but Portnox has several options to make this process easier.  Users can use the self-onboarding portal, they can download AgentP, or be automatically onboarded with endpoint management. 

• Monitor-Only Mode: Work out the kinks in your policies without risking an angry mob of users with pitchforks outside your door.  Monitor-only mode lets you see how your policies will impact the network before they actually have any impact on the network, ensuring a smooth transition for everyone.   

When dealing with mergers & acquisitions,  IT leaders need solutions that simplify complexity—not add to it. Portnox’s cloud-native NAC provides a scalable, cost-effective way to unify network security across newly acquired business units without disrupting operations or overhauling existing infrastructure. By streamlining policy enforcement, enhancing visibility, and accelerating onboarding, Portnox empowers organizations to turn post-acquisition chaos into centralized, consistent control.