The short answer
Most organisations see the best results with a full IT benchmark every 18 to 24 months, plus a light annual pulse on a handful of core measures. If an IT outsourcing contract renewal is due within 12 to 18 months, if service concerns are increasing, or costs are creeping up, the right time is now.
An independent benchmark provides a correctly matched peer set, based on complexity, scope and workload normalisation, and provides clear recommendations so decisions are evidence based.
Tip: if you already track KPIs in a dashboard, add a quarterly pulse review. It keeps the next full benchmark faster, cheaper, and more focused.
Recommended IT benchmarking schedule
The schedule should be a regular habit that keeps targets on track and negotiations fair.
Every 18 to 24 months: full benchmark.
A comprehensive review across cost, service quality, and user experience, normalised against peers, prevents gaps in rates, scope, and performance targets.
Annually: light pulse.
A short 2 to 4 week review to check direction of travel, review unit costs, and identify early risks. Typical headline metrics include:
- Cost per user, per device, and per ticket
- Incident rate per 1,000 users
- Mean Time to Resolve (MTTR) / Incident Solution Time (IST)
- Request lead times and age of the backlog
- Attainment against Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
- An experience signal such as Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT), Net Promoter Score (NPS), or Experience Level Agreements (XLAs)
Monthly or quarterly: transparency service.
Implement an IT cost and data transparency service, that provides clear IT spend and performance “actuals” against budgets and plans. This will enable clear show-back and prepare the way for charge-back of IT services.
Before key milestones.
Plan a benchmark 12 to 18 months ahead of outsourcing contract renewals or major transformations. That leaves room to renegotiate, re-scope, or re-source and plan differently.
Why your schedule may differ.
Heavily outsourced organisations benefit from closer checks on rates, SLAs, and scope changes. In-house teams tend to focus on productivity, maturity, and automation. Public sector bodies and regulated sectors will also align to procurement cycles and assurance needs.
7 signs it’s time for an IT benchmark
You don’t need all seven. One or two are usually enough to act.
- Outsource contract renewal within 12 to 18 months. Independent evidence on rates, scope, and SLAs strengthens negotiation or a move to market.
- Service pain you can feel. Rising incidents, slower fixes, change failures. Turn noise into a clear improvement plan.
- Cost creep without a cause. Unit costs increasing while demand is flat. Separate genuine scope change from inefficiency.
- Big technology shifts. Cloud moves, AI impact, or tool consolidation. Prove the benefits landed and lock in a fair baseline.
- Organisational change. Mergers and acquisitions, shared services, or a new operating model impact the numbers. Reset what “good” looks like.
- Vendor performance. Missed targets and service credits. Reset fair targets and prepare for constructive negotiations.
- Board challenge on value. Replace opinion with a defensible peer comparison and a credible action plan.
What a robust benchmark should cover
A good IT benchmark is broader than price comparisons. It connects cost, service, and experience, then ties it back to scope so recommendations are fair and actionable.
- Cost. Per user, per device, and per ticket by service area; cloud unit economics and discount structures; third-party rate cards and cost per headcount.
- Service quality. Incident and request productivity, MTTR, change success, availability, problem elimination, and backlog age — see the article What is ITIL? Your guide to the IT Infrastructure Library for an ITIL overview.
- Experience. CSAT and XLA views by line of business, response rates, and what users actually feel.
- Scope and productivity. Tickets per FTE, AI impact, resolver model, shift-left, knowledge usage, handovers, and bottlenecks.
Reputable benchmarking companies will show exactly how all the above, and more, can be achieved.
Three ways to benchmark IT: Pulse Check, Full Benchmark and Transparency Service
Most organisations use one or all of these at different times, depending on the decisions facing them.
Pulse Check (2 to 4 weeks).
A quick look at 6 to 10 core measures against peers, highlighting immediate opportunities and risks. Useful for board papers or shaping early outsource contract negotiations.
Full Benchmark (6 to 10 weeks).
A deeper comparison by service area with a documented peer set, clear normalisation, a quantified value gap, and a prioritised roadmap you can deliver.
Transparency Service (monthly or quarterly)
A monthly or quarterly data feed that ingests financial and service related data into a normalisation engine, based on a clear taxonomy. This is then automated to feed back outputs of clear actual vs budget in a set of BI dashboards. Also includes peer comparisons.
If a material decision sits inside the next 12 to 18 months, choose the full benchmark. Otherwise, start with a Pulse Check or Transparency Service and scale up as required.
By the end of the IT benchmark you will have
Not just a report, but the means to act.
- A quantified value gap across cost, service, and experience
- A documented peer set and scope normalisation pack
- A prioritised 12 to 18 month improvement roadmap with sized benefits
- A concise outsource negotiation brief with asks, evidence, and fallback positions
- A starter KPI pack and a regular schedule for ongoing governance
- A baseline for show-back and charge-back mechanisms
What good support looks like
Choosing the right partner matters as much as timing.
- Independent and evidence led. No vendor agenda. Scope and context are normalised so you compare like with like.
- Defensible peer sets. Criteria reflect size, workload, complexity, and delivery model, and are documented.
- Practical outcomes. Findings translate into savings, service improvement, and risk reduction.
- Public and private sector fluency. Awareness of procurement rules, social value expectations, and multi-supplier realities.
If you prefer an external partner, ImprovIT provides this kind of independent benchmarking and sourcing negotiation support.
Common questions
Can we benchmark service quality without costs?
Yes – for operational improvement. For contract renewals or board value cases, cost and service together tell the full story.
How much data is needed?
Typically 12 months of volumes and unit costs, SLA outcomes, resolver model, and relevant contract schedules or rate cards, as appropriate. A good partner will provide a clear data list on day one.
What results should we expect?
Clarity on savings potential, fair targets, and a prioritised plan that balances value, service, and risk. Outsource negotiations also improve when the evidence is strong.
My organisation is unique – how can we be assessed fairly?
A good benchmarking company will compare you objectively against peers of similar size, complexity, and service scope, and explain any adjustments. They will also draw on cross-industry best practice, because innovation and excellence can come from any sector.
How do I choose between benchmarking companies?
Look for transparent peer-set criteria, clear scope normalisation, documented assumptions, and practical outputs. Ask for examples that match your size and delivery model.
Is an IT benchmark appropriate for insourced or outsourced IT Service?
Both. A good benchmarking company can cover insourced, outsourced and a hybrid IT delivery model.
How often should you benchmark IT?
Run a full independent benchmark every 18–24 months, add a light annual pulse on core KPIs, and schedule one 12–18 months before major outsourcing renewals or big change. If costs creep or service pain rises, benchmark now.
Unsure when to benchmark IT?
Book a 20-minute call and we’ll quickly confirm whether a pulse check or full, independent IT benchmark is right for you, the data required, and the results you can expect.
