Businesses are investing heavily in technology to improve security, productivity and resilience. New platforms promise greater visibility, stronger protection, more automation and better control.
But buying the technology is only the beginning.
Behind every new platform is usually an IT team expected to deploy it, configure it, integrate it, monitor it and continually optimise it. Too often, that responsibility is added to an already demanding workload with little additional resource or support.
This creates what we call the IT value gap - the difference between what a technology platform is capable of delivering, and the value an organisation actually gets from it.
When new technology means more work
The challenge is easy to understand. A CISO or senior IT leader identifies a business or security requirement and invests in a platform to address it. But that isn’t the end of the problem. Somebody still needs to ensure that technology delivers against the intended business outcomes, integrates effectively with the wider environment and is continually configured, governed and optimised as policies and requirements evolve.
For IT administrators, this can mean learning yet another interface, understanding new configurations, keeping up with updates and developing expertise in a platform they may never have used before. And this additional learning is usually required on top of their existing workloads.
IT teams are already managing users, endpoints, networks, cloud environments, security incidents and everyday support requests. Learning a new platform becomes another task to fit around everything else. In some cases, administrators find themselves developing those skills in their own time simply because there aren't enough hours in the working day. Multiply that across several vendors and platforms and the problem becomes much bigger.
Underutilisation becomes normal
The result isn't necessarily that technology fails. Often, it works well enough. And that's part of the problem. A platform might be configured to perform its core function, but advanced features remain unused. Alerts aren't properly tuned. Automation isn't implemented. Integrations are overlooked. Configurations aren't regularly reviewed. Over time, businesses can become accustomed to getting only a fraction of the potential value from technology they are already paying for.
Meanwhile, IT teams can be reluctant to ask for help. Experienced administrators are expected to understand the technologies they manage, so admitting that they don't know how to configure a particular feature or resolve an issue can feel uncomfortable. This can leave individuals struggling alone, increasing pressure on already overstretched teams and ultimately contributing to burnout.
None of this means the IT team isn't capable. Modern IT environments have simply become too broad and complex for every administrator to be an expert in everything.
Support doesn't have to mean outsourcing IT
One reason organisations tolerate the value gap is the assumption that the alternative is expensive. But that cost needs to be considered alongside the investment already made in the technology. If an organisation has invested six figures in a platform but is only using a fraction of its capabilities, the bigger question is whether it is getting the return it expected from that investment. Factoring specialist support into the overall cost can help ensure platforms are properly configured, optimised and aligned with the outcomes they were bought to deliver.
But cost isn't the only concern. Internal IT teams may also be reluctant to hand over control of platforms they are responsible for, particularly if outsourcing means relying on a third party every time they need to make a change or resolve an issue.
This is where a co-managed approach can be valuable. Rather than taking control away from the internal team, a good MSSP should work alongside it. The customer retains full access and control, while specialists are available to provide additional expertise when needed. That might mean helping to optimise a particular platform, supporting a difficult deployment, reviewing configurations and policies, troubleshooting complex issues or advising on how the technology can be better aligned with changing business requirements. The MSSP becomes a safety net and source of expertise rather than a replacement for the internal team.
That collaboration can also help build capability internally. Instead of administrators repeatedly spending hours researching unfamiliar issues or learning through trial and error, they can work directly with specialists who use those technologies every day. Over time, knowledge is transferred into the business, helping internal teams develop their skills, become more self-sufficient and spend more of their time on work that delivers value to the organisation.
Closing the value gap
Technology investment shouldn't end when the licence is purchased or the platform goes live. Organisations should consider whether their IT team has the time, knowledge and support required to get the most out of the platforms.
Closing the IT value gap isn't about questioning the capability of internal teams. It's about recognising the reality of modern IT. Technology estates are growing more complex and the number of specialist platforms is increasing. IT professionals cannot reasonably be expected to master everything on their own.
Sometimes, giving an IT team access to the right expertise when they need it can be the difference between simply owning powerful technology and actually getting value from it.
At Principle Networks, our co-managed approach is designed to provide that expertise without taking control away from internal teams. By working alongside customers to optimise platforms, align technology with business and security requirements and share specialist knowledge, we help organisations get more from their existing investments while strengthening the capabilities of their own IT teams.