ISG Provider Lens® Future of Work - Services - Digital Workplace Operations and Support Services - Large Account - U.K. 2026

Modern workplace in the UK market is becoming AI-augmented work transformation

The future of work services market in the UK is moving from workplace modernisation to AI-augmented transformation. This phase is less about deploying collaboration tools or managing devices and more about redesigning the way work is performed, governed, measured and experienced across digital and physical environments.

For the ISG Provider Lens® Future of Work Services 2026 study, we have an evaluation model built around workplace strategy and enablement, digital workplace operations and support, AI-augmented collaboration and experience, and smart and sustainable workplace services. Together, these areas recognise that the workplace is now digital, physical, human, data-driven and increasingly AI-enabled.

Market context

The primary finding is the increasing expectations of enterprises in the UK — they still need providers to manage endpoints, service desks, collaboration platforms and workplace infrastructure, but these capabilities are no longer sufficient on their own. Buyers increasingly expect providers to redesign workflows, govern AI, support responsible adoption, improve EX and connect workplace data with HR, facilities, real estate, security and sustainability objectives.

These changing expectations create a more complex competitive landscape. The strongest providers will be the ones that are able to combine advisory, implementation, operations and measurable outcomes across people, processes, technologies and locations.

UK demand

The UK policy environment is supportive of future of work services as AI adoption, workforce productivity and public sector transformation have become economic priorities. Public sector experimentation with AI-enabled productivity tools, the emergence of large digital workplace procurement frameworks and continuing pressure on public services are creating a demand for providers that can combine technology delivery with change management, governance and value measurement.

At the same time, like the global market, the UK market is not yet at the stage of enterprisewide AI maturity. Research indicates that many organisations are using GenAI frequently, but few have embedded AI into core operations at scale. Cultural resistance, limited upskilling, unclear governance and fragmented data remain barriers and represent opportunities for providers — clients need more than tools. They need operating model redesign, responsible AI controls, adoption programmes and measurable business outcomes.

The macroeconomic environment reinforces this shift. UK buyers remain under pressure to justify investments through productivity, resilience and security. Future of work providers must therefore show tangible value — minutes saved, ticket volumes reduced, increased adoption, improved employee sentiment, enhanced cyber posture, efficient office utilisation, low energy consumption and short business-process cycle times.

Enterprise priorities

The following five shifts are expected to be seen in the next 12-18 months:

GenAI as the operating layer of work

GenAI is the defining force in the 2026 future of work services landscape, with conversations moving from generic AI-readiness to use cases across ITSM, HR, knowledge management, collaboration, software development, service desk, procurement and employee self-service. The next stage will therefore be about AI as a controlled execution layer embedded into everyday workflows.

For providers, the battleground is workflow orchestration. Enterprises will need help identifying work suitable for AI delegation, establishing guardrails, integrating agents with enterprise systems and ensuring human oversight remains effective. They should assess providers on their ability to turn AI adoption into safe, governed and measurable changes in how work gets done, not merely on the number of licences deployed.

Hybrid work as intentional workplace design

Hybrid work has become the default model for organisations, but access remains uneven across roles, skills, income and sectors. The future-of-work agenda therefore needs to move beyond improved collaboration tools for knowledge workers and towards role-based workplace models for frontline workers, public servants, regulated-industry employees, contact centre agents, clinicians, engineers, knowledge workers and executives.

The concept of work is also getting repositioned; many employers seek higher attendance, but utilisation remains inconsistent. This creates a demand for providers that can combine workplace analytics, collaboration technologies, AV integration, space optimisation, employee sentiment and change management. The right question is no longer simply about where people work — it is what work should happen where, with what technology, under what management model and measured by which experience and productivity outcomes.

DEX, XLA and predictive support redefine workplace operations

Digital workplace operations and support are moving from reactive service management to predictive experience engineering. Traditional SLAs remain important, but they are increasingly being supplemented by XLAs that focus on the employee experience of technology. Static sentiment surveys are giving way to telemetry, behavioural analytics, proactive remediation and business-outcome reporting.

This changes the provider value proposition. The aim is no longer only to resolve tickets quickly; it is to prevent disruption, keep employees productive and connect technology experience with business outcomes. Enterprises must evaluate providers on proactive endpoint management, AI-assisted support, service-desk deflection, incident prevention, accessibility, security readiness and the ability to translate telemetry into experience and productivity improvements.

Collaboration as the employee-service interface

The collaboration layer is becoming the front door to work. Messaging, meetings and file sharing are converging with IT support, HR workflows, approvals, learning, onboarding, knowledge management and workflow automation. In this model, platforms such as collaboration hubs and EX suites have become the interface through which employees access services, knowledge and AI-enabled assistance.

This means the AI-augmented Collaboration and Experience Services quadrant has been assessed differently in 2026. Strong providers have been recognised not only for platform migration, voice integration or meeting-room modernisation; they have been identified for being able to create role-based AI and agent use cases, improve knowledge quality, build prompt and workflow libraries, protect sensitive data, drive adoption and integrate collaboration platforms with ITSM, HRIS and business systems.

Convergence of sustainability with IT services

Smart and sustainable workplace services are becoming a priority with sustainability as a key workplace strategy; organisations are using smart building technologies, energy management systems, occupancy analytics and IoT to improve space management, reduce waste and support responsible operations.

This focus is expanding the future of work provider ecosystem beyond traditional IT services. Workplace strategy, facilities operations, AV, occupancy data, EX, energy management and ESG reporting are now interconnected. Enterprises are assessing providers on their ability to orchestrate these domains, especially in regulated industries where resilience, sovereignty, data governance and auditable AI controls are critical.

Provider dynamics

Throughout this ISG Provider Lens® evaluation, we report on the providers where the most important evidence is not simply the number of devices managed, collaboration seats deployed or AI licences sold. In the UK, measured adoption, productivity outcomes, experience improvements, AI governance and operational maturity are now enterprise priorities, with leading providers transforming from legacy services to meet enterprise demands.

The providers qualified for this report shared quantifiable UK-specific examples across a breadth of delivered results and benefits such as active AI usage, minutes saved per user, service-desk deflection, ticket reduction, device incident prevention, employee satisfaction, XLA improvement, security incidents avoided, accessibility benefits, office utilisation, carbon and energy impact, and businessprocess cycle-time reduction.

The most visible shift is the evolution of GenAI and agentic AI across portfolios. Enterprise priorities are developing at pace with regards to adoption of the leading-edge technologies, such as AI, with quality of services and delivered results being as critical as any conventional focus on cost take-out. The priority for providers is bringing all of the established towers or siloes across IT services into much closer alignment and integration, to deliver true observability across the enterprise landscape as a clear differentiator for the mature providers.

Strategy providers are building AI governance, human-AI role design and adoption readiness into advisory methods. Operations providers are adding AI-assisted service desks, automated remediation, self-healing endpoints and predictive support. Collaboration providers enhance Microsoft Teams, Webex, Zoom and knowledge platforms with copilots, meeting intelligence, contextual assistants and inflow support. Smart workplace providers are applying AI to occupancy insight, space optimization, energy management and building intelligence. Providers need to demonstrate differentiation, regardless of the services or capabilities offered, and AI is an enabler of differentiated services.

Sustainability is no longer an add-on.

Device lifecycle management, circular workplace technology models, smart office analytics, energy optimisation and ESG-aligned reporting are embedded into mainstream workplace service portfolios. No longer restricted to the sustainable workplace quadrant, providers are shaping portfolio capabilities from workplace strategy, through operations and support and connecting sustainability with operating data, to drive increased outcomes.

Large global providers compete on scale, integrated portfolios, platform partnerships and multinational delivery. UK and regional providers often compete through local proximity and trusted execution. Productled specialists differentiate through focused AI, DEX, collaboration or smart workplace capabilities. The leading providers will combine demonstrable regional evidence with repeatable methods, measurable outcomes and clear governance around AI-supported work. ‘Digital workplace transformation’ messaging is no longer enough, as enterprises demand workplace services which enable proven cost controls and governance and also improve quality of service without increasing regulatory, operational or employee-trust risk.

Outlook

The future of work services market in the UK in 2026 will reward providers that operate and deliver at the intersection of people, process, technology and location. GenAI is the catalyst, but operating model change is the real battleground. Data readiness, responsible AI, employee trust, experience measurement, workflow redesign and sustainable workplace orchestration will determine which providers create the most lasting value.

Through the emerging agentic IT configuration, any traditional digital workplace and IT service providers will risk becoming obsolete, as the operational models transform. Business advisory, the translation of advisory into agentic workloads and change management that helps employees trust, adopt and adapt AI will shape tomorrow’s success for providers and enterprises alike.

Providers are investing in internal AI deployment, platform partnerships, analyst recognition and global case studies, although not much is public knowledge. Few providers showcase UK-specific client references detailing quantified and delivered outcomes. Providers that can substantiate their claims with current UK evidence into the future years will be best placed to lead the next phase of the future of work services market in the UK. As the providers demonstrate evidence of their results consistently across workplace services, this will enable clients to truly understand the art of the possible more clearly and realise their business objectives and aspirations through defined measurable productivity gains, robust governance models and proven experience improvements.

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