Networks are evolving faster than most operational models can keep up with.

Hybrid and multi-cloud infrastructure is now the norm. Change windows are shrinking. Security expectations are rising. And automation has shifted from “nice to have” to a requirement for staying competitive.

In this environment, network validation has become foundational. Because speed without confidence creates outages. Automation without verification creates risk. And change without governance creates instability.

That is why I’m proud to share that Itential has been recognized as a Fast Mover in the GigaOm Radar for Network Validation (December 2025), marking the fourth consecutive year we have been named in this report.

But what matters most is not the title. It’s what the recognition reflects:

The industry is moving toward validation as an operational control system, not a standalone tool.

And that is exactly where Itential is uniquely positioned.

For teams evaluating network validation solutions, one of the most important questions is: what actually counts as “validation” today?

Historically, validation meant configuration checks, policy comparisons, or testing logic in a lab environment.

But modern validation has to be broader. It must account for:

• Scale across multi-vendor environments
• Continuous change
• Hybrid and multi-cloud complexity
• Security and compliance requirements
• Operational readiness
• Automation integration and governance
• Proof that the network behaves as intended, not just as configured

That is why GigaOm’s Radar framework is useful. It evaluates providers based on their ability to deliver validation that is relevant to real enterprise operations today. It highlights vendors that can validate reliably across environments and evolve quickly as enterprise networking continues to change.

And it is why this year’s “Fast Mover” recognition is meaningful: it signals that Itential is accelerating innovation and execution in a market that demands more than static checks.

Most vendors in the network validation market are pure-play validation providers.

They help teams identify issues. They measure drift. They compare configurations. They detect policy violations. That is valuable.

But they stop where the hardest part begins.

Once validation flags a problem, teams still have to:

1. Create a ticket

2. Coordinate approval processes

3. Pick an automation tool or script

4. Push the change

5. Confirm the outcome

6. Document the results for audit and governance

In other words, validation becomes informational, not operational.

And that creates real friction:

Here is how validation becomes dramatically more powerful when it is built into orchestration:

With Itential, validation can be embedded into the change lifecycle, so it’s not dependent on individual engineers remembering to run checks.

A common pattern looks like this:

• Pre-change validation: confirm state, intent, compliance, and readiness
• Automated execution: orchestrate the change across devices and domains
• Post-change validation: confirm expected outcome and enforce governance
• Continuous assurance: detect drift, trigger remediation workflows, maintain standards

Pure-play validation solutions typically tell you:

“This is noncompliant.”

Itential can do more than detect. It can orchestrate the next action:

• Open an automated remediation workflow
• Apply a standardized configuration fix
• Execute an approved rollback
• Initiate a change request with the right context
• Route approvals to the correct owner
• Re-validate automatically to confirm success

For enterprises, validation isn’t just about correctness. It’s also about:

• Who approved the change
• What policies were enforced
• What was executed
• What the outcome was
• Whether compliance standards were met
• How to prove it during audit

In many enterprises, pure-play validation requires a second vendor or automation system to actually implement change.

That creates:

• Integration overhead
• Duplicated workflows
• Inconsistent enforcement
• Unclear ownership
• Higher operating cost

Many organizations have already proven they can automate.

The challenge is doing it safely, consistently, and across the full enterprise.

As networks become more dynamic and distributed, the future belongs to teams that can operate with:

• Standardization
• Governance
• Continuous validation
• Repeatable automation
• Verified outcomes

That is why validation is moving from a specialized tool to a strategic capability.
And why the combination of validation + orchestration is so powerful.

This is our fourth consecutive year being named in the GigaOm Radar for Network Validation.

To us, that consistency matters because it reflects long-term alignment between what enterprise teams need and what we are building.

We are not simply investing in better validation.

We are building the next operational model:

Validation-driven orchestration that enables safe, scalable network automation.

The GigaOm Radar for Network Validation evaluates the market landscape and highlights Itential as a Fast Mover in the category.

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