Gartner is forecasting a 21.5 percent increase in spending on public cloud services in 2025. This increase is forecasted based on the investments in artificial intelligence (AI). The market research firm expects cloud spending to reach $723.4 billion, up from $595.7 billion in 2024.
Spending increases on infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), at 25 percent, and platform-as-a-service (PaaS) environments, at 22 percent, are once again at the forefront of the investments. The report projects a 19 percent increase in investments in software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications.
Trends to watch for
Gartner analysts specifically called out two cloud computing trends that managed service providers (MSPs) should closely monitor in the coming year.
The first trend is the continued rise of integrated cloud infrastructure and platform services (CIPS). This is driving the cost of IaaS and PaaS offerings down. Gartner projects spending on CIPS will grow 24.2 percent in 2025, reaching $301 billion. In 2025, CIPS offerings will account for 72 percent of IT spending on IaaS and PaaS, up from 70 percent in 2022.
Gartner analysts noted that cross-cloud integration frameworks (CCIF) that make multicloud a reality will be a key driver of the CIPS adoption model.
The second trend is a growing need to synchronize data between cloud computing and on-premises IT environments. Despite increased spending on cloud services, organizations continue to create and store data in on-premises IT environments. At the same time, organizations are investing more in multiple cloud computing environments. As a result, the need to synchronize data across multiple IT environments is becoming a more pressing requirement.
IT complexity boosts demand for external resources
In effect, IT environments are becoming more challenging to manage. As always, increased complexity creates more demand for external expertise to help manage IT environments.
Of course, many organizations will look to rely more on automation to reduce the total cost of IT whenever possible, but there will still be a significant gap between the level of skills any internal IT organization can bring to bear and the level of expertise needed to manage multiple IT environments. Savvy MSPs are helping organizations define hybrid IT strategies that they will support and enable.
Ultimately, no one knows for certain how the economic outlook for 2025 will actually manifest. There is plenty of cause for optimism but at the same time, a global trade war could be in the offing. Despite the level of investment in IT, many organizations will remain cautious about adding full-time employees to their payrolls. Some may choose to rely on external expertise that they can easily scale up or down as needed. MSPs with cloud computing expertise available on demand will be invaluable.
The right skills and certifications can drive profitability
The challenge, however, is that cloud computing environments have never been more challenging to master. A much wider range of services is being offered than ever, and as a result, the cost of acquiring cloud services expertise continues to rise. The issue for MSPs, as always, is ensuring that the skills and certifications they acquire are directly applicable to the services that will drive the highest level of profitability in the coming year and beyond.
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