Why MSP Alignment Matters in 2026: What UK IT Leaders Need to Prioritise
Date: February 11, 2026
As organisations across the UK push ahead with digital modernisation, the role of managed IT services has never been more critical. Businesses are moving more operations to the cloud, tightening their cyber security posture, and trying to maintain resilience under growing budget constraints.
In that environment, choosing the right managed service provider (MSP) is now a strategic decision, not just a procurement exercise. And yet, many organisations still find themselves locked into partnerships that fail to deliver meaningful value.
Recent UK-specific research from 2022 to 2025 highlights one central theme: alignment between an organisation and its MSP directly affects security, performance and long-term digital strategy.
What IT Leaders Need To Know:
Third-Party Risk Is Unavoidable
97% of the UK’s FTSE 100 companies experienced a cybersecurity breach via a third-party supplier in the past year.
Attackers are increasingly targeting MSPs and IT supply chains, meaning one breach can expose every client they support. In finance, 58% of large UK firms faced at least one supply chain attack in 2024.
Supplier security is a part of your own security posture. Due diligence, ongoing monitoring and clear cyber controls are essential, yet only 11% of UK organisations regularly assess supplier cyber risk.
Few MSPs Offer Strategic Value
63% of outsourcing clients globally say their MSP delivers mediocre value at best.
This is a predictable outcome when an MSP is selected primarily for cost or convenience. Traditional SLA-driven contracts often result in reactive support and minimal innovation.
Businesses that expect more (improved uptime, stronger cyber protections, help modernising infrastructure) need an MSP that operates as a strategic partner, not just a helpdesk.
This is where standard IT support gives way to genuinely strategic services.
Cost-Cut Deals Fail Businesses
54% of outsourcing deals pursued primarily to reduce cost fail to meet strategic objectives within two years.
Choosing the cheapest service provider UK-wide may lower spend, but hidden costs emerge quickly:
Slower response times
Increased downtime
Security gaps
Misaligned roadmaps
Internal teams compensating for poor service
Cost matters, but capability and alignment matter more.
Rushed MSP Choices Often Lead To Regret
A significant number of businesses would spend more time on vendor evaluation if they could restart their MSP contracts. Many would introduce competitive bidding instead of defaulting to a preferred supplier.
In practice, this means:
Defining requirements clearly
Comparing multiple managed IT services providers
Scrutinising governance, security, and roadmaps
Assessing whether the MSP’s expertise matches your sector and size
A careful process at the start prevents costly realignments later.
Cost Counts But Resilience And Expertise Win
In the 2023 UK IT Sourcing Study, 57% of organisations cited cost reduction as a top reason for outsourcing, tied with access to talent.
This shift aligns with what we see across the UK market: organisations are still cost-conscious, but they’ve realised that inadequate managed IT support becomes expensive very quickly.
Security, agility, and access to skills are now just as important as price.
Insourcing Grows When MSPs Fail To Align
70% of executives globally have brought previously outsourced IT functions back in-house over the last five years.
This often happens when the MSP fails to:
Deliver proactive improvements
Understand internal processes
Modernise legacy systems
Support cloud adoption
Maintain strong cyber security
Reversing outsourcing arrangements is disruptive and costly. It’s far better to get alignment right from the start.
Businesses Are Increasingly Outsourcing To Focus On Core Strategy
In 2022, “focus on core business” overtook cost as the top reason UK organisations outsource, cited by 57% of respondents. Access to talent followed closely at 56%.
This reflects a positive shift: outsourcing to unlock innovation, not just reduce spend. When internal teams can step away from break-fix tasks, they can focus on transformation, governance, and digital strategy.
MSPs that act as an extension of your team (delivering reliable infrastructure, strong security, managed backup services, and proactive guidance) make this possible.
High‑Performing MSPs Deliver More Through Innovation
The leading 5% of MSP relationships deliver 3× more value through innovation than through cost savings.
This includes:
identifying optimisation opportunities
improving resilience
enhancing cyber security posture
modernising cloud and network infrastructure
introducing new technologies such as managed SOC services or SentinelOne managed services
This is the real differentiator between an MSP that “keeps the lights on” and one that drives operational excellence.
This is the real differentiator between an MSP that “keeps the lights on” and one that drives operational excellence.
What IT Leaders Should Prioritise in 2026
Across all findings, one conclusion stands out:
• A Misaligned MSP Creates Risk, Frustration & Hidden Cost.
• A Well-Aligned MSP Accelerates Strategy, Resilience & Innovation.
To Get This Right, Organisations Should:
Evaluate Multiple Providers — Don’t Rush The Selection
Look For Providers Offering Proactive Improvement, Not Just SLA Adherence
Prioritise Strategic Fit Over The Lowest Monthly Cost
Ensure Your MSP Can Support Your Cloud, Security & Data Ambitions
Choose Managed IT Services That Strengthen Cyber Resilience
Treat The Partnership As An Extension Of Your IT Team — Not A Vendor To Manage
Successful organisations consistently partner with MSPs that understand their sector, their challenges and their long-term roadmap.
Ready to assess your MSP alignment?
You don’t need to overhaul everything at once. What matters is having a clear plan, addressing the highest-risk areas first, and building a partnership that supports your long-term strategy.
At Galtec, we work with organisations across the UK to help them:
Evaluate their current MSP relationships and identify alignment gaps
Strengthen cyber security and supply chain resilience
Modernise infrastructure and cloud platforms
Improve governance, reporting and roadmap delivery
Build MSP partnerships that drive innovation, not just operations
If you’d like support reviewing your current MSP, creating a roadmap for improvement, or finding a provider that aligns with your goals, get in touch with Galtec. We’re here to help you move forward with confidence.