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How MSSP Adaptivity Breeds Business Success
Operating a thriving Managed Security Service Provider, or MSSP, business can be tough. Not only do MSSPs need to keep up-to-date with constantly evolving security trends and threats, but they must also adapt as the security market and tooling change.
Otherwise, MSSPs face a real risk of becoming outdated – and losing out on customers and major revenue opportunities.
If you’re an MSSP who is not deploying the tools your customers expect, you can expect your customers to move on and acquire the solutions they seek from a competing MSSP firm.
That’s why understanding what’s happening in the cybersecurity tool market is an essential step toward MSSP business success. MSSP leaders need to know which types of cybersecurity solutions are emerging, as well as which vendors can operate as the most effective partners. They need to evaluate which tools are both cutting-edge and cost-effective.
After all, the MSSP market is growing rapidly. As IDC’s Martha Vasquez writes, “The security services market, specifically Managed Security Services (MSS), has been one of the fastest-growing areas, experiencing double-digit growth rates over 5 years.” Capturing your share of that growth requires staying on top of the latest trends.
With that reality in mind, here’s a look at what MSSPs need to know about the state of the cybersecurity market today, along with tips on how to adapt to embrace new trends and remain relevant and valuable in the eyes of customers.
Thriving Amid Change: Strategies Deployed by 3 Leading MSSPs
Let’s begin by taking a look at the strategies that a few major MSSPs leverage to keep up with the constantly changing MSSP software market – as they must do if they want to continue to deliver value to their customers.
Accenture’s 23% YoY growth rate
Accenture is a standout MSSP because it has attained the highest total market share in the MSSP market, according to “Market Share: Managed Security Services, Worldwide,” which Gartner published in 2022. HFS Research also named Accenture the top MSSP.
In addition, Accenture says that, measured in terms of revenue, its security practice has grown by 70 percent over the past three years – a year-over-year growth rate of more than 23 percent. Accenture also reports that its MSSP business is expanding at about three times the rate of the market as a whole.
Yugal Joshi, partner at the Everest Group, attributes this success to Accenture’s ability to innovate constantly in the realm of cybersecurity strategy and solutions. “Accenture stands out for the value and transformational impact it delivers to clients, as well as for its innovative vision, future roadmap and strategy,” he says.
The takeaway: If you want your MSSP not just to stay ahead of the competition, but to grow by leaps and bounds, you need to be constantly on the lookout for opportunities to innovate – including in the realm of MSSP services and software.
WiPro, the fast-growing MSSP invested in MSSP software efficiency
WiPro is also an MSSP that has achieved impressive growth rates. The company reported in 2022 that its cybersecurity services contributed 8% to its overall revenue in 2021, and that they’ve grown by more than 40% over the three preceding years to reach a total of $706 million annually.
If you take a close look at WiPro’s MSSP strategy – like the concepts laid out in this webinar – you’ll notice that it places strong emphasis on optimizing efficiency by consolidating and combining its MSSP tools, in addition to improving its operational processes with help from intelligent automation.
WiPro has also done a great job of unlocking new revenue opportunities and expanding its services. But what we find most notable about its success is the role that efficient MSSP tooling has played. WiPro has learned that if you want to grow as an MSSP, you need to invest in software and services that not just keep you at the top of the market, but also breed efficiency – which translates, in turn, to better outcomes for your clients, at a lower cost.
SecureWorks’s focus on maximizing MSSP ROI
SecureWorks, which reported annual growth of 37 percent recently, has adopted a similar tactic in its bid to sustain healthy growth rates: Focusing on maximizing the ROI of the services it delivers to customers. The company boasts a 413 percent ROI over three years among businesses that adopt its services.
SecureWorks has done this, in part, by embarrassing AI to accelerate data analysis and free up its analysts to focus on higher-level tasks than parsing. At the same time, innovations like these reduce customer costs and speed response.
The bottom line here is clear: Highly efficient and effective software creates value and drives growth in the MSSP software market.
How to thrive in the MSSP services market
Want your MSSP business to achieve outcomes like those described above? Embrace these five key practices for sustaining MSSP growth in a highly dynamic market.
1. Follow the market
First and foremost, keep your finger on the pulse of the security market. There are thousands of security tools and service vendors out there, but few are true innovators. Most simply ride on the innovators’ coattails.
To bring customers the solutions they want most, MSSPs need to follow market trends to identify what’s really new, and which solutions make it possible to do things that are just not possible with conventional tools. For example, one new trend is that Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI), Digital Risk Prevention (DRP) and External Attack Surface Management (EASM) are consolidating into one broader category, often called External risk Mitigation and Management (ERMM) or Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM). If you’re an MSSP, now’s the time to update your security solutions to reflect this innovation, allowing you to remain operationally efficient while bringing your customers the best protections available on the market today.
2. Embrace new services
MSSPs should also perform an honest assessment of their capabilities, find areas where they are underperforming and then identify vendors who can help them fill the voids. In this way, MSSPs can expand their service offerings to grow revenue and reach more clients.
For instance, if you’re not up to snuff on Dark and Deep Web monitoring, that might be an area where you could invest in new solutions to drive business growth. Or, if you’re struggling to help clients take down phishing content quickly, consider phishing takedown solutions that can help you accelerate that process.
3. Consolidate tools to reduce costs
As we noted above, some of the top MSSPs aren’t just driving growth by launching new services. They’re also consolidating their tooling, which helps them reduce costs and remain competitive.
Consolidation is especially valuable because too often, MSSPs rely on individual point solutions. They might have one tool for attack surface management, another for brand protection, and so on.
This leads to inefficiency because it’s typically challenging to move information between disparate solutions. It also bloats costs compared to using a consolidated MSSP software product.
“In order to navigate an increasingly complex security landscape, a large part of the solution will be found in simplification,” Jonathan Reed writes on SecurityIntelligence.com. “Consolidation makes security insight, strategy and response easier for security teams.”
4. Re-Evaluate existing tools
Along similar lines, re-evaluating existing tools is a critical best practice for driving MSSP growth. The solutions that worked well for your business and your customers in the past may no longer be the best due to changes in the market, your operations or both.
So, perform frequent assessments to determine whether the solutions you’re using are still the most cost-effective and efficient. Consider metrics like how many false positives each tool produces and how long it takes you to detect and remediate threats using the tools.
5. Ensure tool manageability
The best MSSP software is easy to manage. It’s simple to deploy, works in multi-tenant environments and integrates seamlessly with whichever other software you have in place.
If your MSSP tools and services don’t deliver this value, reassess, and consider consolidating to a product that covers all of your needs in an efficient, cost-effective way.
How Cyberint supercharges MSSP services
At Cyberint, we’ve built a comprehensive security platform that helps MSSPs meet a broad and diverse set of customer needs – from threat intelligence, to attack surface management, to digital risk protection and far beyond.
In addition, as a consolidated platform, Cyberint eliminates the need for MSSPs to juggle disparate tools. And our competitive pricing helps maximize ROI and increase MSSP profit margins.
To learn more, request a demo.
