As we enter into 2026, UK SMEs face a choice: evolve or be outpaced, but isn’t that always the case when it comes to tech? Technology more than ever is at the centre of every organisation’s competitiveness, and Managed Services Providers (MSPs) are no different, after all, if the tech team doesn’t deliver, where would their business be? We all have the same access to the same technology but what has changed is the speed and ease at which we adopt it. How do we reduce and manage risks? How do we create opportunity, and drive transformation? Here are Converged Solutions Group’s predictions for 2026; some might already be here, but they will undoubtedly continue to have an impact on businesses in the year ahead.
AI will be everywhere – but most SMEs aren’t ready
Nothing has been more hyped than AI, and AI tools will continue to flood the market in 2026.
However, few SMEs will have the data structure to use AI platforms to their full potential.
Without clean, structured, and accessible data, AI is just noise, lipstick on a bulldog. Worse, poor implementation will risk compliance breaches, bad decisions and lost productivity.
What to do?
SMEs must invest in data readiness, governance, architecture, people and integration. Teams within every business need to be able to understand their business’ goals so that they can work out what gaps exist and how AI could support these.
MSPs must stop selling AI as a plug-and-play silver bullet and start helping clients build proper foundations.
Cybersecurity will be a dealbreaker
Cyber threats will continue to escalate, and regulators are watching. It feels like the UK is finally starting to catch up with the EU in terms of business compliance. In 2026, a failure to address cyber compliance won’t just lead to embarrassment and damage to credibility: it could become punitive. SMEs must treat cybersecurity as non-negotiable – like payroll or tax.
Yet many SMEs will continue to treat security as optional.
What to do?
Organisations need a well-versed and well-tested cybersecurity, business resilience and recovery plan – one that suits its business – which is clear and makes resilience its core focus.
MSPs must support this, assisting the achievement of minimum compliance standards and operational practices, while being prepared to walk away from customers who won’t comply.
Hybrid work will demand smarter support
Love it or not remote, flexible work is here to stay, but many SMEs still rely on outdated tech to manage it, with many continuing to use obsolete policies, standards and fragmented systems.
Almost side by side with the work anywhere revolution, is how organisations depend on cloud-native platforms, zero-trust models, and unified communications.
What to do?
MSPs must support modernisation, starting with understanding what is in place before a solution is sold or applied. This might mean hard conversations about sunken costs, but it’s a conversation worth having.
Digital skills are the new currency
Tech adoption without proper capability is fundamentally wasted spend.
Adopting new technologies like AI when organisations don’t know how to use them can turn them into, at best, a distraction, or at worst a drain on resources, finances and an amplification of security risks.
SMEs will struggle to recruit and retain talent in this space unless they invest in upskilling, and moreover in thinking about how they can make these investments differently.
What to do?
Every new piece of technology brought into a business must have a defined purpose – how it will contribute to business productivity.
Executives responsible for integration must focus on two things: training and productivity. To get the most out of investment in new tech, leadership need to ensure their people can use it properly and appoint leads or champions to ensure adoption and management. They also need to be sure it helps boost productivity and isn’t being used for the sake of novelty.
MSP’s need to assist and bridge the gap in skills and understanding of how new technology can benefit the customer and ensure that old technology gets switched off where appropriate.
Sustainability will drive procurement
Carbon-conscious operations are becoming a requirement, not just a preference. SMEs will need to report on digital sustainability – from energy-efficient hardware to green hosting.
However, this shouldn’t be limited to just energy efficiency and consumption – businesses need to consider the materials and waste they’re generating too. Globally, around 6% of total oil consumption is used for plastics production. This includes both the raw material (feedstock) and the energy required for manufacturing
Demand for oil in plastics production is expected to grow. In 2019, it was about 9 million barrels per day, and projections suggest it could reach 23 million barrels per day by 2060 if recycling technologies don’t improve.
What to do?
The circular economy has never been more critical at home and at work. Businesses need to consider the impact of all their practices; they must not only offer low carbon solutions but help with the consumption of petrochemical derived materials and products.
MSP’s must do their part in reducing their dependence on petrochemicals in their supply chain, whether that be in their use of plastic, or in emissions generated from transportation and shipping. Businesses need to work with customers on reducing this at the point of ordering and consumption, but also offer repurposing, upcycling and recycling options as part of their services.
Final Thought:
2026 will probably have more disruption, change and challenge for businesses than almost any year before.
As always this isn’t about tools: it’s about people, planning, readiness and following through. SMEs must stop dabbling and start designing their tech strategy around structured data, secure systems, and skilled people. MSPs must stop just selling products, and start being reactive and leading on service.
Ultimately, 2026 is the year to stop talking about “digital transformation” and start delivering it, with discipline, urgency and purpose.
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