Key Takeaways:

• Global MSP Day on June 10 highlights how MSPs have moved beyond traditional IT support.
• Cybersecurity, AI governance, backup resilience, identity management, and employee training are now central to the MSP role.
• As businesses adopt AI tools, MSPs may become even more important because AI creates new risks around data access, shadow AI, automation, and compliance.
• Apex Technology Services helps organizations think about IT as a business risk issue, not simply a help desk function.

June 10 is Global MSP Day, a useful moment to recognize how much the role of the MSP has changed.

Not that long ago, many business owners thought of their MSP as the company they called when email stopped working, a laptop failed, or the office needed a new firewall. That work still matters. In fact, it matters more than ever. But the modern MSP has become something bigger and more strategic.

Today, the MSP is often the outside technology team helping businesses make decisions about cybersecurity, AI adoption, cloud platforms, employee access, backup resilience, vendor risk, and business continuity. In many cases, the MSP is also the partner that translates fast moving technology trends into practical steps a business can actually take.

That shift is worth paying attention to.

Barracuda is marking the 9th annual Global MSP Day on June 10, 2026, with programming focused on helping customers build cyber resilience. That framing is telling. The conversation is no longer just about managing devices or resolving tickets. It is about resilience, risk, and strategic guidance in a market where technology is now deeply connected to business operations.

For small and mid sized businesses, this matters because technology decisions have become harder to separate from business risk. A weak password policy can become a breach. A poorly configured cloud folder can expose sensitive data. A failed backup can turn a ransomware incident into an operational crisis. An unmanaged AI tool can create legal, compliance, privacy, or intellectual property exposure.

That is why the MSP conversation is changing.

Cybersecurity is now central to managed services

Cybersecurity has become one of the clearest examples of how the MSP role has expanded.

A business may not have an internal security team. It may not have a CISO. It may not have someone reviewing every endpoint, identity policy, email filter, backup job, employee training program, and insurance requirement. But the risks are still there.

This is where a modern MSP can provide real value. The work includes endpoint protection, email security, MFA, privileged access review, backup testing, patch management, phishing simulations, incident response planning, and ongoing monitoring.

The business owner may not care which console is used or which alert triggered a response. What they care about is whether the company is protected, whether employees can keep working, whether customer data is safe, and whether the business can recover when something goes wrong.

That is a strategic conversation, not just a technical one.

Industry research cited by Acronis points to cybersecurity and AI as two defining forces in the MSP market in 2026. The same analysis notes growth opportunities in managed security, while also warning that traditional help desk and per user services are becoming more commoditized.

In plain English, that means MSPs that stay focused only on reactive support may face pressure. MSPs that help clients reduce risk, adopt AI safely, and improve resilience may have a more valuable role to play.

AI makes the MSP relationship more important

There is a belief in some corners of the market that AI will reduce the need for IT support. In some limited ways, AI may automate pieces of support. It may help technicians resolve tickets faster. It may help users troubleshoot basic issues. It may summarize logs, draft documentation, and speed up repetitive work.

But AI also creates new problems.

Employees may paste sensitive customer data into public AI tools. Teams may use unsanctioned applications without telling IT. Managers may connect AI systems to files, emails, calendars, CRMs, or finance systems without fully understanding who has access to what. Automated workflows may make decisions or trigger actions that were never reviewed by security, legal, or operations.

That is not theoretical. ChannelPro recently reported on the AI control gap, noting research that found 72 percent of organizations believe they have full visibility into AI usage, while 65 percent are still finding shadow or unauthorized AI activity. The report also emphasized that policies alone are not the same as control.

That point is important. A business can have an AI policy sitting in a folder and still have employees using unmanaged tools every day. The risk is not always malicious. In many cases, employees are trying to be more productive. But without guardrails, even well intentioned usage can create exposure.

A strong MSP can help close that gap.

The starting point is usually visibility. What tools are employees using? What data can those tools access? Which users have broad permissions they no longer need? Are company files properly classified? Are sensitive folders isolated? Are AI tools being deployed with logging, governance, and human oversight?

From there, the MSP can help create practical controls. Not fear based bans. Not vague policies. Practical controls that let employees use AI where it makes sense while reducing the chance of data leakage, unauthorized access, or uncontrolled automation.

That is where AI readiness becomes a real service category.

The new MSP mandate: guidance, not just support

Global MSP Day is a good reminder that the best MSP relationships are no longer limited to fixing what breaks. They are about helping businesses make better technology decisions before something breaks.

That might include questions like:

Are our backups tested often enough?

Do we know which employees have access to sensitive information?

Are we ready to deploy AI tools safely?

Can we recover quickly from ransomware?

Are our cybersecurity controls aligned with insurance requirements?

Do employees know how to spot phishing and social engineering attacks?

Are we prepared for future risks, including quantum related threats to encryption?

These are boardroom and ownership questions. They affect revenue, liability, reputation, operations, and customer trust.

For many businesses, the MSP is becoming the partner that helps connect those dots.

Apex Technology Services works with organizations that want IT support tied to business outcomes. That includes cybersecurity planning, AI readiness, employee training, backup resilience, identity controls, cloud management, and longer term risk planning. The goal is not to overwhelm clients with technology jargon. It is to help them understand where they are exposed, what should be addressed first, and how to build a more resilient technology foundation.

June 10 may be called Global MSP Day, but the larger message applies all year. Businesses need technology partners that can do more than respond to tickets. They need partners that can help them prepare for what is next.

In a market being reshaped by cybersecurity threats, AI adoption, and rising operational complexity, the MSP has become a strategic guide. For business owners, that may be the most important takeaway of all.

Aside from his role as CEO of Apex Technology Services and CEO of TMC, Rich Tehrani is CEO of RT Advisors and a Registered Representative (investment banker) with and offering securities through Four Points Capital Partners LLC (Four Points) (Member FINRA/SIPC). He handles capital/debt raises as well as M&A. RT Advisors is not owned by Four Points.

The above is not an endorsement or recommendation to buy/sell any security or sector mentioned. No companies mentioned above are current or past clients of RT Advisors.

The views and opinions expressed above are those of the participants. While believed to be reliable, the information has not been independently verified for accuracy. Any broad, general statements made herein are provided for context only and should not be construed as exhaustive or universally applicable.

Portions of this article may have been developed with the assistance of artificial intelligence, which may have contributed to ideation, content generation, factual review, or editing