It’s no longer enough to stay the course in the IT services world. As successful as business might have been the last two years, the project-by-project way of driving revenue simply won’t keep you competitive in the next two years. That’s because there’s a window of opportunity that everyone in the industry sees, whether or not they embrace it. It’s simply a matter of who gets through that window first.

Recently we seen articles about treading carefully into cloud-based automation, and the benefits of a hybrid approach. Those are safe ways of thinking, and they might work for many businesses. But cloud services, especially for MSPs, are a golden competitive advantage. They’re survival in a market saturated with services providers.

The Landscape of Automation

Channel Insider recently published an exploration of a study performed by LogicNow. In it, they looked at IT services providers’ use of automation, and, more importantly, their perceptions of it.

To begin with, the study found that nearly half of ITSPs say they are managing more than 50 IT environments. It can be a major challenge to track and manage resources, so it’s critical to find efficiencies. Yet, according to the study, more than half of ITSPs say that using customer data to improve performance is either too complicated, or they lack the tools to make sense of that. Essentially, they’re overtaxed and okay with it.

Even more surprising, only 8% report having automated processes to transform data into actionable recommendations. That means that 92% of your competitors are inefficient, and you can leap over them by modernizing.

And here’s where it gets really interesting: 75% of IT services providers believe that using data-driven automation would empower them in the range of services they provide. They know it’s the road to winning more business, and they know it expands their abilities. But change is intimidating, and many companies have adopted a wait-and-see mentality about automation in the cloud.

Rising Above the Crowd

You can either pan for gold—sweating and hoping—or reap the rewards of letting automation do the work. Those that are embracing automation are seeing the results. They’re servicing more customers with more complex IT environments.

According to the LogicNow study, 20% of ITSPs who have automated say they have experienced 100% ROI. ITSP automation is expected to rise to nearly 50% in the next two years. Also, nearly 40% say automation has doubled their capacity without adding headcount. That’s the magic formula.

The New Normal

Data-driven, cloud-based automation…it’s a competitive advantage waiting to be captured. If you have the heart and mind of a ModernMSP, you’ll be among those rewarded with a sustainable edge. Everyone else will quickly realize that what seems like advanced technology today will rapidly become the norm in the next two years. And as such, it will be the kiss of death for those left behind.