Networking for banks, retail stores, clinics, restaurants, and other types of branch locations generally relies on a variety of point products. However, this is becoming unsustainable due to the operational complexity and high costs of managing multiple solutions, security concerns from gaps between products, and the potential for misconfigurations leading to outages and vulnerabilities. Additionally, limited visibility into distributed networks and across cloud providers has made troubleshooting challenging, leading to slower issue resolution and a degraded user experience that can impact a company’s productivity and bottom line.
These issues are growing more acute in the AI era. Maintaining an exceptional end-user experience with strong security while supporting AI workloads is challenging. To keep every branch running smoothly, companies require a solution that combines security, reliability, and centralized management. And, especially when on-site IT resources are limited or unavailable, another major benefit of an integrated solution is greater simplicity.
It’s all available in Cisco Unified Branch.
The power of Cisco Unified Branch
Cisco is redefining how organizations design, deploy and manage their branch infrastructure with Cisco Unified Branch (Figure 1). This unique solution delivers:
- Operational simplicity, powered by AgenticOps: A single centralized management dashboard provides automation of operational processes for faster scalability, end-to-end visibility, and AI-powered analytics. Automation based on decades of Cisco experience helping IT teams scale faster with confidence.
- Scalable infrastructure purpose-built for AI: AI-ready Secure Routers, Smart Switches built on Cisco silicon, and scalable Wi-Fi 7 devices with a common programmable operating system that provides superior security, scalability, and performance.
- Security fused into the network: Hardware-based security and post-quantum cryptography (PQC) protect against current and future threats. Additionally, hybrid mesh firewalls, secure access service edge (SASE) with identity services, and zero-trust network segmentation enforce policies across all users and applications.
Figure 1. New AI-driven automation and implementation for agile branch operations
Implementing Cisco Unified Branch is a streamlined process, supported by services that guide organizations from the initial design to day-to-day operations, enabling organizations to efficiently deploy a trusted, secure branch network.
Automation of network operations without validation can result in instant, incorrect configurations network wide, causing massive outages with no safety check to catch errors before they propagate across infrastructure and network layers. What makes Unified Branch automation unique are the Cisco Validated Designs (CVDs), which are based on over 30 years of Cisco expertise in networking and security. Cisco offers two flexible approaches for automating branch networking operations:
- Branch as Code empowers DevOps teams to provision, configure, and manage branch networks entirely through code, applying DevOps best practices like continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD), version control, and rollback to networking for rapid, consistent, and low-risk deployments at scale.
- Cisco Workflows automates routine NetOps tasks directly from the Meraki dashboard. The CVD-guided Unified Branch workflowcan be used out of the box or customized, helping organizations to streamline operations and adapt quickly to changing business needs.
Enhancing both approaches is Cisco AgenticOps, a next‑generation AI operations framework that allows IT teams to initiate, monitor, and manage branch deployments entirely through an intelligent Cisco AI Assistant (Figure 2). Another key feature of Cisco AgenticOps is Cisco AI Canvas, an interactive environment where customers can visually design, customize, and orchestrate automation workflows by combining AI‑powered components and logic blocks.
Figure 2. Lifecycle management with Cisco AI Assistant
Accelerate your branch success with Partner Managed Services and Success Tracks with expert guidance
Achieving a modern, scalable branch network is even easier with the support of Cisco’s extensive partner ecosystem and Customer Experience (CX) services. Our specialized managed services partners offer proven expertise in designing, deploying, and operating branch networks—ensuring your network is secure and high-performing from day one. Partners can help tailor Unified Branch solutions to your unique operational needs, including customizing branch-as-code toolkits for your unique requirements.
Cisco partner, Presidio, for example, understands the networking challenges that branches are facing.
“In partnership with Cisco, Presidio helps organizations meet the rising demands of security and AI by delivering secure, high-performance branch networks through Cisco’s Unified Branch. This fully managed, automated solution streamlines deployment, enabling new sites to go live in minutes, empowering customers to stay ahead of today’s AI-driven challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities.”
• Brian Wisler, VP Modern Networks, Presidio
Additionally, Cisco CX Success Tracks provide expert guidance throughout every stage of your journey, from planning to deployment to ongoing optimization.
The future of branch connectivity
As the demands on branch networks continue to rise, Cisco Unified Branch delivers the agility, performance, and confidence needed to stay ahead of the curve and drive business success. This solution enables you to rapidly roll out new branches and scale your operations while maintaining consistent security and high performance across every location. By reducing change window duration by up to 50% and cutting change execution time by 80%, Cisco Unified Branch empowers your teams to move faster. Embrace the future of branch networking with Cisco Unified Branch, a foundation designed for resilience, scalability, and lasting value.
Find out more about Cisco Unified Branch
