In today's complex digital landscape, medium and enterprise-sized businesses face growing challenges in managing IT infrastructure, cybersecurity, compliance, and digital transformation. While maintaining an internal IT team remains essential for some organisations, partnering with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) can provide strategic advantages that elevate IT operations, increase business agility, and reduce costs.
Recent years have seen managed services experience a sharp rise in popularity, with the industry forecasted to grow 13% in 2025, while 51% of businesses state cost savings as their top reason for working with MSPs. Elsewhere, data protection (53%), data and analytics (48%), and cloud services (45%) are among the most utilised MSP technology benefits, increasing opportunities for resilience and growth in the process.
This blog outlines why businesses should consider partnering with an MSP, either in conjunction with or in place of an internal IT department.
7 benefits of a Managed Service Provider
Breadth of technical expertise
MSPs work across a wide range of industries and technology environments, giving them exposure to a broad spectrum of systems, tools, architectures, and business models. Research suggests that 49% of enterprises outsource their IT systems, stating access to specialised skills as an essential benefit.
Unlike internal IT teams that are typically limited to the technologies within their organisation, MSPs continuously evolve their expertise through:
- Managing diverse client environments
- Supporting a wide array of platforms (Windows, macOS, Linux, hybrid cloud, SaaS, etc.)
- Implementing managed security services and frameworks across regulated and unregulated industries
This diversity fosters innovation, cross-pollination of ideas, and proactive identification of vulnerabilities or inefficiencies that internal IT may overlook due to narrower exposure.
Depth of experience
MSPs deploy and manage the same core technologies across multiple clients repeatedly - whether it’s Microsoft 365, Azure, VMware, Intune, or cybersecurity solutions. This implementation:
- Deepens their knowledge and capability to tailor deployments
- Builds well-documented, tested, and refined best practices
- Enhances troubleshooting speed and resolution accuracy
Internal IT teams may only deploy a given technology once every few years, leading to knowledge gaps and longer project timelines. MSPs, by contrast, continuously refine their processes and proficiency through real-world applications in varied environments.
Risk reduction and compliance expertise
Navigating regulatory frameworks and maintaining compliance is increasingly burdensome for businesses, especially in sectors like healthcare, finance, and legal services. MSPs help offload this risk by:
- Designing and implementing systems aligned with frameworks such as GDPR, ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials, and CIS Controls (Levels 1 and 2)
- Monitoring, auditing, and maintaining compliance documentation
- Providing proactive updates and patches to keep systems secure and compliant
With specialised compliance teams and audit-ready methodologies, MSPs reduce the risk of fines, breaches, and operational disruption.
Freeing up internal IT for strategic leadership
In highly regulated or complex industries, internal IT leaders play a critical role in shaping technology policy and long-term strategy. MSPs enable these leaders to focus on high-value initiatives by:
- Taking over routine support and maintenance tasks
- Executing technology rollouts based on strategic blueprints and compliance requirements defined by internal IT
- Supplying real-time insights and reports aligned with internal governance frameworks
All this together increases the impact of internal IT while expanding the organisation’s technical capabilities.
Cost savings through vendor partnerships
MSPs maintain strategic partnerships with major technology vendors like Microsoft, Cisco, Dell, and others. These partnerships allow MSPs to:
- Offer cloud licenses (e.g., Microsoft 365, Azure) at discounted rates not available to most businesses directly
- Bundle licensing with value-added services such as support, monitoring, and security
By leveraging the MSP's buying power, businesses can reduce licensing costs and streamline vendor relationships without compromising service quality.
Preferred access to vendor engineers
Through partner status tiers (e.g., Microsoft Solutions Partner), MSPs gain:
- Exclusive and prioritised access to vendor engineers and escalation teams
- Early insights into product roadmaps, updates, and patches
- Specialised support channels unavailable to most end-user businesses
This access ensures faster resolution of complex issues and informed decision-making during technology rollouts or transitions.
Shared knowledge base and engineering talent
MSPs often employ a larger and more diverse pool of engineers than an individual business could sustainably hire. This breadth includes:
- Specialists in cloud infrastructure, security, networking, compliance, and more
- Round-the-clock monitoring and support coverage
- A centralised, continuously updated knowledge base and playbook
Is your business right for an MSP partnership?
Consider the following questions to determine whether partnering with an MSP could benefit your business. If you answer “Yes” to several of these, it may be time to explore an MSP relationship:
- Is your internal IT team stretched thin with support tickets and routine tasks?
- Are you operating in a regulated industry where compliance is critical (e.g., GDPR, ISO 27001, HIPAA)?
- Would your business benefit from access to a wider range of specialised technical skills?
- Do IT projects frequently run over budget or beyond deadlines?
- Have you experienced security incidents or struggled to maintain cybersecurity standards?
- Do you lack visibility into licensing agreements or feel you're overpaying for cloud services?
- Are there gaps in your business continuity, disaster recovery, or backup strategies?
- Is your internal IT leadership looking to focus more on strategic initiatives?
- Do you struggle to recruit or retain top-tier IT talent?
- Would your organisation benefit from 24/7 IT monitoring and support?
By partnering with an MSP, businesses gain access to this collective intelligence and experience, empowering their IT strategy without bearing the full cost of recruiting, training, and retaining high-level experts internally.
Embrace the benefits of MSP services
While internal IT teams bring value through organisational familiarity and on-site presence, the dynamic and evolving nature of technology demands a broader and deeper approach. A strategic partnership with an MSP offers unmatched advantages in expertise, scalability, vendor leverage, and operational efficiency. Medium and enterprise-sized businesses that embrace this hybrid or outsourced model position themselves to better compete, adapt, and innovate in a digital-first economy.
As a leading UK digital agency, Blue Frontier is a trusted technology partner for businesses seeking to transform IT. With industry-certified experts, deep vendor relationships, and a proven track record across industries, we help organisations maximise the value of their IT investments.
Contact us today to learn how we can advance your IT infrastructure and end-user systems.
