The emerging managed service market involves a growing plethora of different functions and operations.

These services could be simple support and maintenance, fault monitoring and management, administration management, IT and communications assessments, network design, build and systems performance analysis, or even business continuity and risk assessments. Add IP telephony, security and the usual IT outsourcing services then the list of choices for enterprises is mammoth, both from the perspective of service options but also the list of providers to select from.

According to Eric Haissaguerre, head of professional services, North-Asia at Equant, the managed services market is serving three customer scenarios. One is the simple taking over of mundane tasks such as fault management of networks and systems owned and managed by the customer. The second is what Haissanguerre refers to as "outtasking" of functions and operations such as application management or security functions like firewall and antivirus management. These are the types of services that are currently fueling the managed services market spree.

Option overload

The first two scenarios involve managing the customers' IT assets and operations with no transfer of systems, resources or people. The third scenario is complete outsourcing of operations and processes which include a transfer of assets from the customer to the service provider. In such a situation, "we become part of the IT organization which is distinctly different from outtasking," said Haissanguerre.