A survey conducted in collaboration with analytics firm Canalys offers a detailed look at some of the biggest future MSP trends
PRAGUE, February 12, 2024 – ZEBRA SYSTEMS, a distributor of N-able solutions in the Czech and Slovak markets, has presented The MSP Horizons report created in collaboration with leading analytics firm Canalys. This report on the managed services provider (MSP) market explores some of the
key expected trends for 2024 and provides MSPs with useful insights for the future of their business.
“MSPs are currently probably the most optimistic of all the business sectors we cover worldwide,” said Jay McBain, Chief Analyst at Canalys. “65% of respondents expect double-digit growth in their business in 2024, and we ourselves forecast an annual growth rate of 11% through 2027. The MSP Horizons Report 2024 aims to help these businesses identify and capitalize on market opportunities and drive growth in this sector.”
The survey was conducted from October 2023 to November 2023. The MSPs approached were asked to provide feedback through an online questionnaire on the Canalys Candefero website. The survey recorded responses from 354 partners across EMEA, North America, Asia-Pacific and Latin America. The report combines results obtained from the online survey and qualitative interviews.
The report presents key findings in these areas:
Growth. According to the study, the MSP business is on a solid growth trajectory – 97% of respondents expect revenue from MSP services to grow this year, while more than 335,000 IT providers worldwide delivered $419 billion in MSP services in 2023. Their main challenges were acquiring new customers, tight IT budgets and acquiring new skills.
Technology. The survey showed that security is becoming more sophisticated, with more than 80% reporting growth in cybersecurity services, and four of the six areas with the greatest opportunities over the next three years concern MDR, network security, endpoint security (EDR) and vulnerability scanning. Cloud and endpoint management also ranked highly; however, 66% of respondents said they practice a hybrid model and that there is still demand for on-premise solutions, with only 7% saying they consider it “dead.” In addition, the research revealed that traditional remote monitoring and management (RMM) remains at the core of the MSP model. As for RMM itself, survey respondents cited the need for broader integration with EDR and other security functions, and for these capabilities to work seamlessly within RMM.
Changing models. Despite the ever-changing MSP environment, more than half of respondents said they are fully embracing the new ecosystem model and taking advantage of more co-managed opportunities, collaboration and hybrid approaches.
Artificial intelligence. Regarding AI, 88% said they use it as an integrated feature of their existing toolset and want more integrated AI features. Most said they use it for content generation, but automation of cybersecurity, backup and data analytics is also in high demand.
“Today’s MSPs want to go further and faster, and we are striving to help them do so,” said N-able President and CEO John Pagliuca. “That is why we partnered with Canalys to create the MSP Horizons Report 2024. We cannot answer all the questions this report raises on our own, but we can help start a discussion – a discussion that will help guide our partners toward real transformation to ensure their long-term success.”
The MSP Horizons Report can be downloaded at https://www.n-able.com/resources/the-msp-horizons-report-2024.
Article author: ZEBR.ai editorial team
