5 Rules for MSP Managed Service Providers

Over the years, managed service providers have based their offering primarily on application monitoring and support, but today this is no longer enough.

And the hybrid model is causing an increase in the demand for managed services, expecting a year-on-year growth for this type of solutions of 16.6% (data from the CAGR 2017-2022), much higher than the demand for other types of services such as applications or infrastructures.

This is shown by the data extracted from the Report “Trends in the European sector of hosters and managed service providers”, prepared by 451 Research, which details new business opportunities and the roadmap for hosters and MSP to adapt their offer to the new reality.

These figures show that the delivery of managed services in the new IT model is increasingly relevant for companies and that IT providers that do not include them in their portfolio are doomed to failure.

They must become the main supplier to their customers

To do this, MSPs have to implement a series of strategies based primarily on
expanding their solutions in the cloud and, through alliances, integrate complementary offerings and create
new service packages.

Now they must provide end-to-end solutions, include managed connectivity, with a special focus on security in multi-cloud environments, as well as on automating services and collaborating with other companies.

Interconnectivity as a key element of the business

Hybrid and multicloud IT architectures require interconnection. Therefore, service providers have to continue to develop technologies that link the services provided to and from third-party data centers, as well as within their facilities or in the public cloud.

A new wave of interconnectivity is coming. In it, levels of control, data center requirements extend beyond centralized nodes to include decentralized data centers, remote offices, and other connections in cities. This is why scalability, redundancy and security are essential in the new connected world.

Alongside managed connectivity, one must consider that security requirements grow as more applications and infrastructures are adopted and interconnected. It is essential to expand the security offer to face changes in the cloud, as well as consolidate these services in multicloud environments.

Automation will be another basic factor for the survival of the MSP. Automating processes is a critical component of complex and personalized services. Vendors should consider developing capabilities adjacent and complementary to their existing competencies to service new automation needs.

Finally, there are more and more opportunities for collaboration on this journey to the cloud. Today service providers can benefit from the ecosystems of other providers (of upstream platforms, for example) by integrating their services with other IT providers.

In this more dynamic, elastic and liquid environment, those MSPs that already offer managed network services or control network resources will triumph.

In addition, it is important to offer programs for the distribution of your own services through the channel, with sales, marketing and product development support to specialized partners.

Ultimately, technology providers, service providers and distribution channel partners focused on managed services and hosting have new business opportunities, but also new challenges, especially in terms of changes in demand.

They must take into account that new competitors will appear and therefore the managed connectivity that guarantees the best performance and the lowest latency can become a differentiating factor for the IT provider.