Executive Summary
- With the rapid adoption of digital solutions for businesses, few sectors have grown as fast as IT. It’s grown so fast that you might just be surprised by some of the statistics – so we’ve found 8 of the best.
- In this rundown, we’ll share various insights about the way businesses are leveraging IT support solutions, improving their cybersecurity, recovering from the global pandemic, and more.
Introduction
From digital transformation to cloud-based SaaS solutions, business technology has changed a lot in the last decade alone.
With such a rapid pace, it’s not always easy for UK businesses to stay on top of current trends and statistics – especially when you have a business to run and a global pandemic to navigate.
To save you some time, we’ve compiled a quick list of 8 key statistics about IT support and related technologies to help give you a better understanding of where the chips lie.
All set? Then bring on the stats!
#1: The world spent £2.6 trillion on IT hardware and software during 2020
2020 was a notable year for many reasons, but outside of the global crisis, it was its knock-on effects which resonated for many businesses. Few areas were more impacted than IT hardware and enterprise software – and it should be fairly obvious why.
The shift to remote working meant that companies all over the globe suddenly had to provide IT support at home, meaning purchases of PCs, laptops, smartphones, printers, and even software like Microsoft 365, skyrocketed. The result was that the worldwide spend on IT hardware and software like this rose to a whopping £2.6 trillion for the year. (Source).
#2: Business spend on IT support services will reach £1 trillion by 2022
As a result of the paradigm shift in the way we work during 2020, it’s not just the hardware and software side of IT which is seeing more demand.
The umbrella of “IT services” is set to grow to over £1 trillion in spend over the course of 2021. This catch-all category includes installing, configuring, and managing software and equipment to enable comprehensive IT support solutions on-premises and remotely. It’s this category that our very own IT support agreements fall under – though we can’t say we’re pushing the trillion pound mark just yet. (Source).
#3: More than 11 million UK employees worked from home during 2020
We’ve all seen and heard the stories about the migration to home working since the pandemic began, but what do the hard numbers really look like?
According to a report by the Office for National Statistics in April 2021, 35.9% of the working population did at least some work from home during 2020. This represents a third of the adults in employment in the UK, and, in real terms, equates to just over 11 million employees out of a total workforce of 31.1 million adults. (Source).
#4: Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) now represents the largest segment of the cloud computing market
We’ve come a long way from the days of installing our software from 5 CD-ROMs we picked up from Dixons. Today, the Software-as-a-Service model means that we can get started with a new software package within moments – just download, install, and connect to cloud-based servers from anywhere.
But just how big is the SaaS market in the context of the overall cloud computing space?
The answer is simple: it’s the biggest. In 2019 alone, SaaS software represented over £100 billion of revenue, making it the largest money-maker in cloud computing – and it’s only set to grow from there. (Source).
#5: With 17% of market share, Microsoft is now the largest provider of SaaS products
If you’re a regular here on the Get Support blog, you’ll know we’re big fans of the Microsoft 365 productivity suite.
This is the flagship SaaS product developed by the US-based tech giant, comprising many different apps and services including Microsoft Office, SharePoint, Exchange, OneDrive, and much more. But how popular is it? To put it in context, recent statistics suggest that Microsoft is now the single largest provider of SaaS products, accounting for a 17% share of the SaaS market. Nice job, team Microsoft! (Source).
#6: Microsoft Teams now boasts 145 million active daily users
Speaking of Microsoft 365, it’s not likely that the boom in the use of Microsoft Teams has escaped your notice in the last year.
Alongside platforms like Zoom, the Teams platform has become a go-to digital collaboration tool for many different companies across the UK, and the world. Where once Teams was an oft-forgotten tool that few people used on a daily basis, it has now experienced explosive growth. How much growth, you ask? 145 million daily active users kind of growth.
Those are astronomical numbers, going to show just how invaluable Teams really is for remote workforces across the world. (Source).
#7: 69% of businesses are using digital solutions to improve their customer experience
It’s clear that the global pandemic has been a big driver towards digital transformation, but experts tell us it would have happened anyway. The slow and steady move towards pure digital solutions has been a long time coming, but why exactly – outside of the global situation – are businesses making the move?
According to statistics, 69% of businesses claim the biggest reason to move to digital platforms and solutions is to improve their customer experience. And when you consider just how convenient apps, websites, and social media integration can be, it really is kind of a no-brainer.
If you’re still edging towards a more digital way of doing business, be sure to ask about our IT support services and how they could help you achieve your goals faster. (Source).
#8: 39% of UK businesses suffered a cybersecurity attack or breach in the year following March 2020
Another unfortunate result of the global pandemic has been growth in the area of cyberattacks, putting the importance of good cybersecurity into sharp focus. While data breaches and cyberattacks were always a risk for UK businesses, 2020 proved to be one of the riskiest times to do business online.
According to the government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2021, 39% of UK businesses experienced a cyberattack or breach of some kind last year. (Source).
Looking for IT support by the numbers? We’re here to help
If there’s a single point we can take away from all of these IT statistics, it’s this: every business needs IT support. It’s unquestionable that business is now done in the digital space, and your company needs a robust IT infrastructure to ensure your success.
So, if you’ve not yet formalised your IT support and instead are still trying to manage it all in house, it might be time to look into a Get Support IT support agreement. Find out more about what’s included.
If you’d like a more specific understanding of how we could help your business thrive, just call the team on 01865 59 4000 or fill in the form below.
