It doesn't happen that frequently but sometimes customers do drive demand of technology ahead of MSPs raising the issue. The Apple iPad in the enterprise was the last time I remember it happening on a large scale but it is about to happen again. This time, the stakes are a lot bigger than just asking corporate IT to make the iPad work within an enterprise environment.
Customers Facing Pressure to Deal with Cyber Risk
A recent Wall Street Journal article titled "Corporate Boards Face Mounting Pressure to Cope with Cyber Risk." The article explains that just like banks cannot avoid banks being robbed, similarly, corporates cannot stop cyber attacks from happening. It is now a fact of life and corporations must come to grips with this new reality.
The last several years has seen a dramatic increase in the discussions around security within the MSP community. I would characterize these discussions a basic. Now, it is time for MSPs to raise the stakes and take their managed security game to the next level. 2018 is going to be another record year for cyber attacks and MSPs must be ready.
The different in 2018 is that the end user corporation seems to be finally ready to meet their own challenge and responsibility of taking cyber security more seriously. This means that companies who do not have the capability to manage the cyber risk themselves must outsource to a MSP. Naturally, MSPs must be ready and willing to meet the challenge.
Are MSPs Ready For the Challenge of Security?
I believe MSPs are ready to meet the cyber security challenge they are about to see in 2018. Rank and file MSPs who have only performed performance or "maintenance" managed services must now take on additional responsibility to help customers safeguard data. This does not mean MSPs must shoulder this burden alone. There are many best practices available to MSPs for mitigating their own risk in a cyber world. Insurance, certification, and up to date contracts are just a few.
MSPs must be ready to revamp their own service offerings to meet the cyber security challenges in 2018 and beyond. Customers will be waiting for them!
