Opening SoftScot 2023, Karen Meechan, the CEO of ScotlandIS, announced the establishment of the body’s new IT Managed Service Providers Cluster and best practice charter, aiming to elevate Scotland’s IT Support Cluster.

“By the community and for the community,” Meechan described the cluster and charter, which aim to significantly strengthen the ITMSP industry and provide a new set of standards for excellence across the nation.

Highlighting the rapidly evolving digital landscape, where technology is integral to business success, adherence to best practices is paramount.

From data security to avoiding technical debt and the pitfalls of mismatched legacy hardware and software, centring IT best practices across sectors is integral to digital transformation and advancing Scotland as a digital nation.

ScotlandIS is recognising the importance of fostering collaboration within the tech community to harness its full potential by establishing this cluster and charter.

As the demand for ITMSPs continues to grow, and with more organisations outsourcing their IT services amid the skills shortage, ScotlandIS has developed the ITMSP Cluster.

“There are huge barriers of growth for our members,” Meechan said at SoftScot, “and that tends to centre around the lack of skills.

“There’s a lack of skills, a lack of talent, and a lack of people coming into the sector.”

This cluster creates a dedicated hub for the industry, cultivating knowledge sharing, quality standardisation and enriched partnership working among ScotlandIS’ extensive network of over 200 IT Managed Services Providers.

“In today’s digital landscape, where digitalisation is imperative and the risk of cyber threats is high, effective IT management plays a pivotal role,” Meechan said.

“The seamless operation, success and strength of a business hinges upon the robustness of its IT infrastructure. This new cluster supported by the Scottish Governments Cyber Resilience Unit, is hugely important in ensuring that Scotland is cyber resilient and allows companies to share a wealth of expertise in one place.”

Complimenting the cluster, the Best Practice Charter aims to reduce the potential for gaps in a business’s IT robustness, ultimately enhancing its cyber posture. It’s designed to standardise service quality and clarify roles of clients and ITMSPs.

Launched in Meechan’s opening at the ScotSoft conference in Edinburgh, the charter establishes clear standards that customers can expect from IT Managed Service providers across Scotland.

It also aims to empower businesses with the knowledge and tools needed to deliver exceptional services, maintain high levels of cybersecurity, and build customer trust.

Recommended reading

• ScotlandIS Seeks Tech Experts for Digital Critical Friends Programme
• ScotlandIS Launches Business ‘How-To’ Platform: Future Ready
• Innovation and Societal Impact Celebrated at ScotlandIS Awards

Additionally, the Charter serves as a badge of excellence, signifying a steadfast commitment to best practices that elevates business reputation within the industry and with clients.

Spearheaded by ScotlandIS head of cyber, Beverly Bowles, the charter is 18 months in the making, and brought together individuals from across the spectrum of IT Managed Service Providers from the length and breadth of Scotland.

ScotandIS attempted to truly reflect the wants and needs of the ITMSPs who will adhere to the Charter.

Karen Meechan added: “The Charter has been established to help protect both parties. It will enable businesses to define the boundaries of their digital protections while allowing IT service providers to clearly communicate and agree on their scope.”