Simplified information technology management is the primary benefit of using managed services, according to a new survey from JDL Technologies.

Improved security ranked a close second as a managed services benefit, according to the survey.

Almost 80% of survey respondents currently use managed services, and 21% are considering doing so in 2016.

They cited simplified IT management (37%), improved security (33%) and increased efficiency (29%) as the top three benefits of using these services.

When it comes to factors that initially drive the use of managed IT services, the top three are: becoming more efficient (36%), dealing with growing information technology complexity (34%) and improving reliability/reducing downtime (32%).

These drivers are in line with two of the three top benefits of managed services use, and highlight the fact that improved security is often unexpected benefit, JDL says.

When asked for the most important factor in selecting a managed service provider, the availability of 24/7 support was cited by most respondents (46%), with managed service provider reputation a close second (40%).

Geographic proximity ranked low on the list (19%), highlighting the effectiveness of remote service management in the managed services model.

Of the managed services currently in use, backup/disaster recovery/storage is the most commonly managed information technology service (69%), followed by networking (66%) and hardware/infrastructure management (65%).

In addition, more than half of respondents (52%) entrust their end-user support to a managed service provider.

The survey of chief information officers, vice presidents, directors and managers was conducted by Spiceworks on behalf of JDL Technologies in November 2015 to provide insights into the use of managed services and managed service providers.