SaaSMe Unfiltered: The SaaS Management Podcast · Zylo

Securing Executive Buy-In for SaaS Management in the Enterprise with Siroui Mushegian (Barracuda Networks)

·32 min·2 clips

Sirui's nine-box slide exposed hundreds of SaaS apps and tens of millions in spending, leaving executives stunned.

This episode features host Meredith interviewing Sirui Mushagan, a CIO with nearly 30 years of experience at companies like Blackline, Ralph Lauren, and Barracuda Networks. They discuss her practical strategies for securing executive support for SaaS management initiatives. Sirui explains that her initial need for a SaaS management tool at a previous role stemmed from an audit finding requiring a centralized application inventory. She developed a "nine-box" slide with attention-grabbing metrics like the total number of SaaS applications and exact enterprise spending. Presenting this to executives revealed hundreds of applications and tens of millions in spending, which immediately captured their attention. Sirui emphasized the goals of increasing efficiency, saving money, and improving security through application rationalization. She notes the particular challenge of "shadow IT," where employees expense or use personal productivity tools outside of official enterprise agreements. Manual data gathering from ERP or expense systems was inefficient and prone to inaccuracies, making an automated tool essential. Sirui tailored her "what's-in-it-for-me" narrative for different departments, focusing on reinvestment for go-to-market teams and security risks for IT. She argues that duplicate tools create silos that hinder collaboration and scale. At her new role at Barracuda Networks, a company with 20 acquisitions in 20 years, she anticipates discovering unique software proliferation patterns. The stakeholder interview process is critical for understanding why teams are attached to specific tools, like various project management applications. Involving teams in the rationalization process fosters buy-in, whereas simply removing tools would be counterproductive. As a security company, Barracuda prioritizes rigorous application reviews to protect its brand, treating every unknown tool as a potential risk. Sirui warns that even a $20 app can significantly expand an organization's attack surface if not properly vetted. She connects innovation funding to savings from application rationalization, setting "BHAG" goals to finance new projects. Her personal favorite app is a map application she uses as a travel diary, fulfilling a childhood interest in cartography. The conversation is highly practical and conversational, focusing on real-world tactics and leadership advice. IT leaders, CIOs, and anyone managing SaaS sprawl will find actionable strategies here. Listeners seeking a theoretical discussion or deep technical dive into software features might find the episode too focused on management and persuasion.

As heard by us

A practical look at how SaaS rationalization can surface value inside a complex enterprise.

It treats SaaS management less like software inventory and more like a job of sorting out how the business actually works. Sirui Mushagan’s effort at Barracuda Networks, after 20 acquisitions in 20 years, gives the episode its shape.

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Why you'd press play

You want to win executive backing for SaaS rationalization in a 20-acquisition enterprise.

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