IGEL Blog
A Signal to Close the Endpoint Gap for Operational Resilience
The 2026 chip and memory crunch is exposing further weakness in the traditional endpoint model. As this crisis unfolds, it reveals a widening rift in this model requiring CIOs and leaders to walk an even tighter rope.
As PC prices surge, delivery timelines become less predictable and refresh cycles extend. Enterprise IT leaders are confronted with a legacy endpoint model that is deficient and no longer fit for purpose.
Forward-looking organizations do not react by delaying refresh plans and absorbing more risk. They re-evaluate the status quo and consider alternatives to reduce dependence on expensive, complex endpoint models. They consider alternatives to strengthen the trusted device layer beneath modern secure access.
This article explains why the global chip shortage is more than a procurement challenge, rather a catalyst for endpoint modernization.
It also outlines:
- the operational impact of the memory chip shortage
- the risks this creates for enterprise IT
- why the endpoint trust gap is significant today
- what organizations can do to improve resilience, security and ROI
The chip shortage is exposing a growing endpoint trust gap
For decades, enterprise IT have followed an established model to refresh PCs on a predictable cycle, layer software onto the endpoint to mitigate risk and manage complexity with additional tools, policies and resources.
That model was already under pressure from rising cybersecurity risk, distributed operations and the growth of cloud-delivered work.
The current memory chip shortage is widening the fault line.
The rapid expansion of AI data centers and workloads has spiked demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and high-capacity DDR5. In response, memory manufacturers have reallocated capacity away from DRAM and NAND used in PCS, laptops and end-user devices toward high-margin memory solutions to support AI.
The result of this supply restriction is higher prices, less predictable hardware delivery and more pressure on endpoint standardization, lifecycle planning and endpoint trust.
The impact on CIOs and enterprise IT leaders
For CIOs in end user computing across all industries, the chip shortage turns hardware procurement from a predictable lifecycle discipline into a broader risk-management issue.
It becomes harder to control:
- device cost
- delivery timing
- endpoint standardization
- security posture
- user productivity
- refresh planning
In practical terms, that means leaders are being asked to do more with aging devices, tighter budgets and less certainty.
A recent Gartner article projects global PC shipments will fall 10.4% in 2026, driven in part by a 130% increase in combined DRAM and SSD prices, which it says will raise PC prices by 17% versus 2025. Gartner also expects business buyers to keep PCs in service 15% longer by the end of 2026.
That is a strong signal for enterprise IT to move from reactive response to proactive control.
The Key Challenges of the Global Chip Shortage for Enterprise IT
-
Procurement delays disrupt operations
Extended hardware lead times
IT procurement for laptops, workstations and network hardware now requires longer planning with lead times often extending weeks or months beyond expectations.Infrastructure project bottlenecks
Upgrading or expanding servers, storage area networks (SANs) and backup appliances is difficult, leading to delays in critical IT projects.Unpredictable delivery dates
Lead times can shift after orders are placed, complicating or preventing effective, long-term project planning. -
Cost escalation creates budget pressure
Memory price surge
The 2026 shortage is increasing demand for high-bandwidth memory and DDR5, pushing memory module prices higher and increasing laptop and desktop costs.Rising total cost of ownership
Higher input costs for PCs, servers and storage are being passed into enterprise budgets, increasing the cost of maintaining the traditional endpoint model.Shorter Quote Validity
Vendor pricing windows are shrinking, forcing faster decisions and reducing room for deliberate planning. -
Operational and strategic risk increases
Aging Infrastructure Risk
When new hardware is delayed or unavailable, organizations must keep older devices and systems in service longer, increasing the likelihood of downtime, inconsistency and security exposure.Strategic planning disruption
Procurement shifts from just-in-time to just-in-case, which complicates inventory strategy, cash flow planning and operational forecasting.
Why this is an endpoint trust and resilience issue
Rising PC costs are not just a short-term procurement challenge. They are a security, resilience and endpoint ecosystem challenge. As secure access architectures mature across identity, SaaS, enterprise browser, SSE and SASE, the endpoint itself must become more trustworthy and easier to govern. Otherwise, the broader architecture depends on a device layer that remains inconsistent, difficult to control and harder to recover.
This is the real endpoint gap: organizations continue modernizing access and application delivery while relying on an endpoint model that remains costly, mutable and operationally fragile.
Close the endpoint trust gap for operational resilience
In a volatile market, gain resilience by reducing dependence on hardware supply constraints and legacy endpoint assumptions. The smartest response to rising PC costs is to not stretch hardware budgets further, rather re-evaluate the endpoint model itself.
Reduce dependence on expensive, complex, locally managed endpoints by modernizing how work is delivered and how access is secured. Go back to the source to close the endpoint trust gap.
Organizations need an endpoint foundation that is:
- easier to trust
- easier to govern
- easier to recover
- better aligned to modern secure access architecture
- less dependent on frequent hardware refreshes
An opportunity to revitalize a legacy model
This market disruption creates an opportunity to rethink endpoint strategy rather than simply postpone decisions.
Organizations should evaluate where they can:
- expand SaaS access for users who do not need a full traditional desktop
- use DaaS or VDI to centralize delivery and reduce endpoint dependence
- align secure access with SSE and SASE models
- simplify the endpoint itself to improve trust, governance and recovery readiness.
The goal is not only to keep operations moving through a constrained hardware cycle. It is to create a more resilient endpoint model for the future.
How does endpoint modernization improve ROI?
Endpoint return on investment improves when organizations reduce the total burden of the endpoint, not just the upfront hardware cost.
That means looking beyond purchase price and focusing on:
- secure hardware lifecycle extension
- lower support burden
- greater IT labor efficiency
- reduced software sprawl
- simplified operations
- improved recovery readiness
IGEL’s research found an average 62% reduction in endpoint IT expenditure and more than $900,000 in annual savings per organization. The savings mix was driven by 52% from hardware lifecycle extension, 25% from IT labor efficiency, and 23% from software savings.
That is why endpoint modernization is not just a response to cost inflation. It is also a way to improve long-term resilience and economics.
What enterprise leaders can do next
If hardware shortages and endpoint inflation are putting pressure on your organization, now is the time to reassess the endpoint model, not just the refresh schedule.
Leadership teams can consider:
- which users truly need a full traditional desktop
- where SaaS or browser-delivered work can reduce endpoint burden
- where DaaS or VDI can improve control and simplify delivery
- how to strengthen the trusted endpoint layer beneath secure access
- how to reduce cost without increasing operational risk
Webinar Invitation
Join the discussion: Navigate the Chip Shortage to Strengthen Operational Resilience.
Date: May 20, 2026
Time:10:30 AM CEST.
If hardware shortages and rising endpoint costs are challenging your plans, this webinar will offer a strategic perspective on what to do next.
In this session, you will explore how to:
- modernize endpoint strategy, not just refresh plans
- reduce operational risk by improving endpoint resilience and recovery readiness
- offset endpoint inflation by extending hardware life and reducing operating burden
- use the chip and memory crunch as a catalyst to simplify the endpoint and strengthen secure access
Build operational resilience by reducing dependence on hardware supply and closing the endpoint trust gap on the devices you already have.
