ConnectWise unit maps IT pay trends, automation push

Service Leadership, part of ConnectWise, has released its 2026 Annual IT Solution Provider Compensation (Remuneration) Report, outlining pay benchmarks and workforce trends across managed services providers and other IT solution providers.

The report compiles compensation and related data for more than 60 roles across service delivery, sales, and management. It also links pay patterns with profitability, contrasting higher- and lower-performing organisations.

Positioned as a specialist benchmark for businesses that deliver outsourced IT and managed services, it focuses on role types and organisational structures common to that operating model rather than broad cross-industry salary surveys.

Pay and profitability

A central feature is the attempt to correlate compensation with financial performance. The analysis highlights differences in how top and lower performers use pay structures and incentives, with labour remaining the largest cost line for many service providers.

The dataset includes W2 compensation data for the United States and maps to common payroll and tax documentation in other markets, including T4 in Canada and P60 in the UK. It also references income statement measures for Australia and gross earnings measures for New Zealand.

Beyond base compensation, the report covers variable incentive pay, average billable rates, and annual compensation growth trends-inputs many providers use for pricing and margin planning.

Service Leadership also segments the data by region and city tier and, where available, breaks results down by metropolitan area to reflect labour market variation within countries.

What changed

New in the 2026 edition is analysis by ownership type, separating privately owned providers from those backed by private equity. The report also adds data on the number of full-time consultant employees and average consultant costs, which can affect utilisation, project mix, and gross margin.

The study introduces a measure of "Digital Workers," defined as AI agents and automation bots used by IT solution providers, signalling a broader industry focus on automation in service operations and back-office processes.

Service providers have faced pressure to meet rising demand while managing hiring constraints and wage expectations in many markets. The report lays out benchmarks and pay structures that Service Leadership links to more sustainable growth.

Key findings

Among the headline findings, wage inflation peaked in 2022 and has eased significantly since then. Top-performing IT solution providers also awarded fewer large pay increases in 2025.

Hybrid work remains the dominant model across the industry. The report also notes continued global demand for advanced technical roles, affecting recruitment, training budgets, and the use of subcontractors in many markets.

The global dataset highlights regional differences in workforce and pay trends, providing context for how providers in different markets respond to similar economic and operational pressures.

Executive commentary

Peter Kujawa, EVP & GM of Service Leadership and IT Nation at ConnectWise, said the benchmarks are intended to give service providers a clearer view of labour costs in the current market.

"This report provides IT Solution Providers with a clear view of the real costs associated with recruiting and retaining talent in today's market," Kujawa said.

He also said the findings underscore the need for operational discipline as labour remains a dominant expense line across many IT services firms.

"As labor remains the largest expense for most firms, understanding how top-performing organizations structure compensation and improve operational efficiency is critical to maintaining profitability and long-term growth," he said.

Kujawa added that wage inflation has eased since its 2022 peak, which he described as a positive shift for solution providers. He also pointed to automation as part of the operational response as providers seek to scale while managing staffing and compensation pressures.

ConnectWise has been expanding its portfolio in automation, security, and service management tools for managed services providers. Kujawa pointed to zofiQ, a product built on the ConnectWise platform, as an example of software designed to automate routine tasks and augment service teams.

Service Leadership plans to offer a complimentary executive summary alongside purchase options for the full report.