US Enterprises, Service Providers Emerge From Pandemic as Transformation Partners Enabling Hybrid Work Modes

“Enterprises and providers are building deeper partnerships to frame workplace transformation strategies and manage increasingly diverse technology ecosystems.”

The 2021 ISG Provider Lens Future of Work Services and Solutions report for the U.S. finds the trend toward hybrid work, with some employees coming to the office while others work at home, is gaining traction after workplace technologies helped companies remain connected and productive during COVID lockdowns. Enterprises are interested in similar technologies to provide a seamless experience for employees wherever they work, which is now a major factor in attracting and retaining qualified workers.

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“U.S. companies increasingly are working with their service providers to enable hybrid work,” said Dee Anthony, leader, ISG Future Workplace Solutions in the U.S. “Enterprises and providers are building deeper partnerships to frame workplace transformation strategies and manage increasingly diverse technology ecosystems.”

In the U.S., as in other regions, the pandemic has brought workplace and work-related technologies to the forefront as vital business enablers, ISG says. Service providers around the globe are moving beyond the traditional practice of implementing end-user computing elements to become cross-industry experts offering strategy, consulting and transformation services.

While firms in the U.S. are not expecting all employees to continue working from home, they are planning for lower office occupancy, according to ISG. Investments in virtual collaboration tools are a top priority for 72 percent of U.S. companies, the report says, citing third-party research. ISG finds that between 20 percent and 50 percent of managed service providers’ U.S. clients have stepped up their engagement with workplace transformation consulting.

U.S. companies are also seeking a broader range of managed services from their providers, looking beyond service desk operations toward device provisioning, lifecycle management and greater use of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation for predictive support, the report says. In addition, 35 percent of U.S. clients are migrating or have already migrated to a device-as-a-service model based on public clouds.

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The scope of managed employee experience services is also expanding, ISG says. In addition to automated ticket resolution and predictive analytics, which are now standard offerings, providers are now demonstrating correlations between high-quality digital employee experiences and improved business performance. This market also has the potential for significant growth, as only 15 percent to 30 percent of providers’ U.S. clients have signed managed service contracts with service agreements based on specific digital experiences of end users, the report says.

The 2021 ISG Provider Lens™ Future of Work – Services and Solutions report for the U.S. evaluates the capabilities of 33 providers across four quadrants: Workplace Strategy Transformation Services, Managed Digital Workplace Services – Large Accounts, Managed Digital Workplace Services – Midmarket and Managed Employee Experience Services.

The report names HCL, TCS, Unisys and Wipro as Leaders in three quadrants each. Accenture, Atos, DXC Technology, Hexaware, Infosys and NTT DATA are named as Leaders in two quadrants each. Capgemini, Cognizant, Compucom, IBM, LTI and Zensar are named as Leaders in one quadrant each.

In addition, Bell Techlogix and Tech Mahindra are named as Rising Stars—companies with a “promising portfolio” and “high future potential” by ISG’s definition—in one quadrant each.

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