By Richard Copeland, CEO, Leaseweb USA
I’ve been talking to a lot of managed service providers lately, and almost every conversation starts the same way: “Our customers are all over the place.”
Some are still kicking the tires on public cloud, curious but cautious. Others went all-in a few years ago with one of the huge hyperscalers and are now quietly admitting it’s not the miracle for which they had hoped. Bills got messy… Performance dipped… Compliance got complicated… Of course, there are also the new startups that want to do everything right the first time, but don’t know the right place where they should begin.
You are not alone if that sounds familiar. The MSP world has always been about meeting customers where they are… and right now, that’s somewhere between on-prem, cloud, and “please just make it work[NG1] .”
The Challenge – Keeping Customers in a Cloud-Crazy World
During a recent conversation with an MSP prospect, I learned that they had a longtime customer who left for a big-name public cloud provider. The promise was simplicity and lower costs. Six months later, the customer called her back in a panic: “My bills doubled, and I still can’t get the latency under control. However, getting my data back and going somewhere else also seems impossible.”
That story isn’t rare. Public cloud is great for some things, but it isn’t the ideal fit for every scenario. MSPs know that better than anyone, but the challenge is convincing customers that “hybrid” doesn’t mean “half-baked.” It means smartly mixed.
The Goal – Give Customers Real Choices
The customers who stay loyal to their MSPs are the ones who feel like they have options. They want to know they can run each workload in the place it performs best and move it easily and efficiently when they need that flexibility.
That might mean:
- Bare metal – for the high-performance apps that need every ounce of compute power
- Private cloud – for customers who want security and control without running their own data center
- Kubernetes – for modern, containerized apps that need to scale fast
- Cloud connectivity ensures seamless integration across all environments – so they can still access AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud when it makes sense
One MSP I spoke to calls it “custom-fit infrastructure.” He said, “I don’t sell them cloud or on-prem. I sell them confidence.” That’s the sweet spot hybrid cloud hits.
The Solution – Hybrid Without the Headache
Hybrid cloud doesn’t have to be complicated. The right setup gives MSPs predictable pricing, performance that feels enterprise-grade, and the ability to support customers across every environment.
It also helps MSPs keep control. By avoiding dependence on a single vendor or model, you can manage costs, deliver top-tier support, and provide the flexibility clients expect from their provider.
It’s how you keep happy customers, win back those who left, and attract new ones who are still finding clarity about their next steps.
The Opportunity – Turning Flexibility Into Profit
Here’s where it gets fun. Every MSP I know who’s made hybrid cloud part of their core offering says the same thing: it opens doors.
You’re not just selling servers or cloud seats anymore, you’re selling strategy. You’re helping clients modernize without losing control. You’re making their IT more efficient and their spending more predictable.
That translates directly into revenue.
- You can build recurring income from managed hybrid services
- You can offer premium consulting for compliance, performance tuning, and data governance
- You can grow your margins because you’re delivering value that public cloud alone can’t match
How MSPs Future-Proof their Business
Customers don’t want to be told where to run their workloads. They want partners who help them make the right call for each one.
If you’re an MSP, that’s your superpower. You understand the mix. You can give clients the performance of dedicated infrastructure, the scalability of the cloud, and the predictability everyone’s been begging for.
The MSPs who lean into hybrid cloud aren’t just surviving, they’re thriving. In a world obsessed with the �next big thing,’ they’ve uncovered the real secret: combining the best attributes of both worlds still wins.
Questions to Ask Your Cloud Provider Before You Commit
Before locking into any one environment, ask these questions to uncover what’s really behind the fine print, and to see if a hybrid strategy might be the smarter path:
1. Performance
- How is latency-sensitive workloads or applications that require guaranteed throughput handled?
2. Scalability
- Can I scale resources both up and down quickly?
- How do you charge for unused capacity?
3. Availability
- What uptime guarantees / service-level agreements (SLAs) do you offer and is it across regions?
4. Security
- How is security ensured?
- Is data encrypted in transit and at rest?
- Which individuals or teams are granted access to the data?
5. Regulatory Compliance
- Are frameworks like HIPAA, GDPR, or PIPEDA supported, and in what manner?
6. Legal Compliance
- Where exactly is my data stored?
- Which jurisdictional laws are applicable to this environment?
7. Ingress/Egress
- How easy is it to move data in and out of your cloud, and what are the associated fees?
8. Cost Transparency
- What hidden costs should I expect (storage, bandwidth, transactions, monitoring, services, etc.)?
9. Total Cost Over Time
- What does my cost curve look over three to five years compared to hybrid or on-prem options?
10. Integration
- How easily can your environment connect with private infrastructure, colocation, or other cloud providers?
The answers to these questions often lead to the same realization – hybrid cloud isn’t a compromise. It’s the control point that balances cost, compliance, and performance in one smart, future-ready architecture.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Richard Copeland is the Chief Executive Officer of Leaseweb USA. He is responsible for managing the company’s business across nine data center locations throughout the United States while executing and developing the company’s vision and strategy in the region. For over 20 years, Richard has held key sales leadership and account management roles within Leaseweb USA and Verizon Business. Richard holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is passionate about working with his team to achieve company goals, maintaining employees’ work-life balance, and ensuring customer satisfaction. In his free time, Richard enjoys exercising, watching movies and sports, and spending time with his family and friends.
