O'Brien believes that any service provider will today find itself with an evolving solutions portfolio that will change with the times and with customer requirements.

He added at the usual SLA and quality guarantees should not be the swaying factor in evaluating service offerings. "These benchmarks get commodified quickly, and most reputable firms should follow and honor the industry baselines," said O'Brien.

"In other words, don't look for technology or up-time guarantees, focus instead on what the managed service provider is willing to do to help you improve the cost effectiveness of delivering connectivity and ITC services to your company's constituents."