Service Management Contract Job Trends

Service Management
UK

The table below provides summary statistics and contractor rates for jobs requiring Service Management skills. It covers contract job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 3 September 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
3 Sep 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 94 83 94
Rank change year-on-year -11 +11 -7
Contract jobs citing Service Management 1,554 957 935
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 2.90% 2.94% 2.44%
As % of the Processes & Methodologies category 3.42% 3.26% 2.86%
Number of daily rates quoted 1,020 579 626
10th Percentile £261 £208 £220
25th Percentile £413 £350 £400
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £525 £500 £515
Median % change year-on-year +5.00% -2.91% -1.90%
75th Percentile £625 £575 £600
90th Percentile £725 £675 £680
UK excluding London median daily rate £523 £500 £501
% change year-on-year +4.60% -0.10% +0.10%
Number of hourly rates quoted 81 72 17
10th Percentile £14.50 - £17.17
25th Percentile £16.30 £12.62 £20.74
Median hourly rate £55.00 £18.73 £27.50
Median % change year-on-year +193.65% -31.89% -49.07%
75th Percentile £85.00 £31.40 £48.75
90th Percentile £92.53 £46.13 £54.25
UK excluding London median hourly rate £35.53 £18.73 £27.50
% change year-on-year +89.70% -31.89% +25.54%

All Process & Methodology Skills
UK

Service Management falls under the Processes and Methodologies category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring process or methodology skills.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for process or methodology skills 45,377 29,398 32,720
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 84.63% 90.44% 85.46%
Number of daily rates quoted 27,769 18,279 20,543
10th Percentile £325 £300 £310
25th Percentile £425 £402 £413
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £525 £500 £525
Median % change year-on-year +5.00% -4.76% -3.49%
75th Percentile £625 £625 £638
90th Percentile £725 £725 £750
UK excluding London median daily rate £500 £475 £500
% change year-on-year +5.26% -5.00% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 2,906 1,760 1,592
10th Percentile £14.00 £14.20 £14.16
25th Percentile £17.73 £17.30 £18.69
Median hourly rate £41.00 £25.15 £42.50
Median % change year-on-year +63.02% -40.82% +2.41%
75th Percentile £67.84 £47.03 £65.00
90th Percentile £80.00 £67.50 £75.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £42.58 £22.63 £43.00
% change year-on-year +88.14% -47.37% +14.67%

Service Management
Job Vacancy Trend

Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings citing Service Management relative to all contract IT jobs advertised.

Service Management job vacancy trend in the UK

Service Management
Daily Rate Trend

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Service Management.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Service Management

Service Management
Daily Rate Histogram

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Service Management over the 6 months to 3 September 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Service Management in the UK

Service Management
Hourly Rate Trend

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Service Management.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Service Management

Service Management
Hourly Rate Histogram

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Service Management over the 6 months to 3 September 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Service Management in the UK

Service Management
Top 17 Contract Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Service Management within the UK over the 6 months to 3 September 2026. The 'Rank Change' column provides an indication of the change in demand within each location based on the same 6 month period last year.

Location Rank Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Matching
Contract
IT Job Ads
Median
Daily Rate
Past 6 Months
Median Daily Rate
% Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Live
Jobs
England -11 1,344 £525 +5.00% 1,200
UK excluding London -13 897 £523 +4.60% 896
London +33 496 £525 +5.00% 480
Work from Home +12 418 £516 +3.20% 596
South East +14 289 £565 +13.00% 284
North of England -17 251 £469 +3.48% 214
North West -21 150 £480 +3.17% 120
South West -33 110 £575 +6.48% 97
Midlands -43 108 £500 -1.96% 119
West Midlands -27 101 £510 -2.86% 71
Yorkshire -12 94 £443 +24.79% 76
Scotland +7 88 £520 +12.43% 70
East of England -9 47 £518 -5.91% 72
Wales -10 13 £800 +247.83% 18
Northern Ireland +7 8 - - 32
East Midlands -34 7 £206 -31.25% 48
North East -42 7 £500 +156.41% 19

Service Management
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities by Category

The following tables expand on the one above by listing co-occurrences grouped by category. They cover the same employment type, locality and period, with up to 20 co-occurrences shown in each category:

Application Platforms
1 115 (7.40%) SharePoint
2 59 (3.80%) Microsoft Exchange
3 55 (3.54%) Confluence
4 15 (0.97%) Skype for Business
5 6 (0.39%) OpenStack
6 3 (0.19%) CMS
7 2 (0.13%) Apache
8 1 (0.064%) CICS
8 1 (0.064%) Exchange Server 2010
8 1 (0.064%) HCL Notes
8 1 (0.064%) JBoss
8 1 (0.064%) Mattermost
8 1 (0.064%) Oracle Collaboration Suite
8 1 (0.064%) Palantir Foundry
Applications
1 89 (5.73%) Microsoft Office
2 40 (2.57%) Microsoft Excel
3 17 (1.09%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 12 (0.77%) Microsoft Project
4 12 (0.77%) MS Visio
5 10 (0.64%) Chatbot
6 2 (0.13%) Spreadsheet
7 1 (0.064%) Maple
Business Applications
1 57 (3.67%) Remedy ITSM
2 11 (0.71%) SAP S/4HANA
3 7 (0.45%) Primavera
4 5 (0.32%) ContrOCC
4 5 (0.32%) Dynamics CRM
4 5 (0.32%) NEC Housing
5 4 (0.26%) Workday HCM
6 3 (0.19%) Oracle ERP
6 3 (0.19%) SAP CO
6 3 (0.19%) SAP FI
6 3 (0.19%) SAP FI/CO
6 3 (0.19%) SAP SM
7 2 (0.13%) Exchequer
7 2 (0.13%) Oracle Applications
7 2 (0.13%) Oracle EBS
7 2 (0.13%) Remedy AR System
7 2 (0.13%) SAP PS
7 2 (0.13%) Teamcenter
8 1 (0.064%) iTrent
8 1 (0.064%) Salesforce CRM
Cloud Services
1 279 (17.95%) Azure
2 200 (12.87%) Microsoft 365
3 130 (8.37%) AWS
4 116 (7.46%) Entra ID
5 74 (4.76%) Power Platform
6 65 (4.18%) SaaS
7 55 (3.54%) OneDrive
8 37 (2.38%) Azure DevOps
9 32 (2.06%) GCP
10 20 (1.29%) GitHub
10 20 (1.29%) Microsoft Copilot
11 17 (1.09%) Azure Monitor
12 14 (0.90%) OCI
13 11 (0.71%) Google Workspace
14 10 (0.64%) Power Automate
14 10 (0.64%) Serverless
15 9 (0.58%) Azure Sentinel
15 9 (0.58%) IaaS
15 9 (0.58%) PaaS
16 8 (0.51%) Amazon S3
Communications & Networking
1 82 (5.28%) Firewall
2 68 (4.38%) DNS
3 55 (3.54%) VPN
4 49 (3.15%) DHCP
5 48 (3.09%) TCP/IP
6 44 (2.83%) WAN
7 42 (2.70%) Network Security
8 36 (2.32%) LAN
9 23 (1.48%) Wi-Fi
10 21 (1.35%) Wireless
11 17 (1.09%) SD-WAN
12 16 (1.03%) Skype
13 15 (0.97%) VLAN
14 13 (0.84%) BGP
15 11 (0.71%) Intrusion Detection
15 11 (0.71%) SSH
16 9 (0.58%) 5G
16 9 (0.58%) Internet
16 9 (0.58%) OSPF
16 9 (0.58%) SSL
Database & Business Intelligence
1 51 (3.28%) Power BI
2 30 (1.93%) SQL Server
3 16 (1.03%) Metadata
4 9 (0.58%) Oracle Database
5 8 (0.51%) SQL Server Integration Services
6 7 (0.45%) MySQL
6 7 (0.45%) Oracle Database 11g
6 7 (0.45%) PostgreSQL
7 6 (0.39%) Oracle Reports
7 6 (0.39%) SQL Server Reporting Services
8 5 (0.32%) Amazon RDS
8 5 (0.32%) MariaDB
8 5 (0.32%) Relational Database
8 5 (0.32%) SQL Server Analysis Services
9 3 (0.19%) Amazon Aurora
10 2 (0.13%) Amazon Redshift
10 2 (0.13%) Azure SQL Database
10 2 (0.13%) Looker
10 2 (0.13%) Microsoft Analysis Services
10 2 (0.13%) SQLite
Development Applications
1 146 (9.40%) JIRA
2 25 (1.61%) Git
3 23 (1.48%) Jenkins
4 19 (1.22%) Bitbucket
5 12 (0.77%) Atlassian Bamboo
6 8 (0.51%) GitLab
7 5 (0.32%) Browser DevTools
8 4 (0.26%) Maven
8 4 (0.26%) MLflow
8 4 (0.26%) ScriptRunner
8 4 (0.26%) webpack
9 3 (0.19%) Fiddler
9 3 (0.19%) Gradle
9 3 (0.19%) Hudson
9 3 (0.19%) Rational DOORS
10 2 (0.13%) Firebug
10 2 (0.13%) IntelliJ
10 2 (0.13%) Sonatype Nexus
11 1 (0.064%) Gemini Tracker
11 1 (0.064%) IBM UrbanCode
General
1 613 (39.45%) Social Skills
2 255 (16.41%) Analytical Skills
3 254 (16.34%) Finance
4 196 (12.61%) Public Sector
5 76 (4.89%) Telecoms
6 62 (3.99%) Organisational Skills
7 60 (3.86%) Documentation Skills
8 54 (3.47%) Banking
9 53 (3.41%) Influencing Skills
10 46 (2.96%) Legal
11 35 (2.25%) Inclusion and Diversity
12 31 (1.99%) Military
13 26 (1.67%) Aerospace
14 22 (1.42%) Local Government
15 21 (1.35%) Presentation Skills
16 18 (1.16%) Retail
17 14 (0.90%) Police
18 12 (0.77%) Manufacturing
19 10 (0.64%) Financial Institution
19 10 (0.64%) Law
Job Titles
1 162 (10.42%) Architect
2 158 (10.17%) Analyst
3 149 (9.59%) Lead
4 117 (7.53%) Senior
5 111 (7.14%) Service Manager
6 109 (7.01%) Consultant
7 72 (4.63%) IT Manager
7 72 (4.63%) Project Manager
7 72 (4.63%) Support Engineer
8 62 (3.99%) Developer
9 53 (3.41%) Delivery Manager
10 52 (3.35%) IT Support
11 50 (3.22%) Solutions Architect
12 49 (3.15%) Service Analyst
13 42 (2.70%) Service Architect
14 40 (2.57%) ServiceNow Developer
15 36 (2.32%) Transition Manager
16 35 (2.25%) IT Engineer
17 34 (2.19%) IT Analyst
18 33 (2.12%) Infrastructure Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 76 (4.89%) REST
2 49 (3.15%) Terraform
3 32 (2.06%) SOAP
4 19 (1.22%) HTML
5 18 (1.16%) CSS
6 16 (1.03%) XML
7 15 (0.97%) Web Services
8 14 (0.90%) Middleware
9 12 (0.77%) JSON
10 10 (0.64%) SAML
11 9 (0.58%) AngularJS
11 9 (0.58%) Elastic Stack
12 7 (0.45%) ARM Templates
13 6 (0.39%) .NET
13 6 (0.39%) OAuth
14 5 (0.32%) Node.js
14 5 (0.32%) OpenID
15 4 (0.26%) Bootstrap
15 4 (0.26%) OAuth2
15 4 (0.26%) Oracle Fusion
Miscellaneous
1 167 (10.75%) Onboarding
2 122 (7.85%) CMDB
3 76 (4.89%) Management Information System
4 57 (3.67%) Product Ownership
5 53 (3.41%) Enterprise Software
6 47 (3.02%) Data Centre
7 32 (2.06%) PKI
8 28 (1.80%) Operational Technology
9 27 (1.74%) Data Protection Act
9 27 (1.74%) Virtual Team
10 24 (1.54%) Hybrid Cloud
11 23 (1.48%) Security Operations Centre
12 20 (1.29%) Cloud Native
13 18 (1.16%) Clustering
14 17 (1.09%) Self-Motivation
15 16 (1.03%) AI Agents
15 16 (1.03%) Analytical Mindset
16 14 (0.90%) NHS
16 14 (0.90%) Video Conferencing
17 13 (0.84%) Cyber Threat
Operating Systems
1 311 (20.01%) Windows
2 89 (5.73%) Windows Server
3 85 (5.47%) Linux
4 69 (4.44%) Windows 10
5 31 (1.99%) Apple iOS
6 29 (1.87%) Mac OS
7 22 (1.42%) Unix
8 20 (1.29%) Windows 7
9 17 (1.09%) Android
10 12 (0.77%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
11 6 (0.39%) Windows Server 2019
12 3 (0.19%) Windows Server 2012
12 3 (0.19%) Windows Server 2016
13 2 (0.13%) Solaris
13 2 (0.13%) Ubuntu
13 2 (0.13%) Windows XP
13 2 (0.13%) zOS
14 1 (0.064%) Rocky
14 1 (0.064%) VMS
14 1 (0.064%) Windows Server 2008
Processes & Methodologies
1 815 (52.45%) ITIL
2 694 (44.66%) ITSM
3 471 (30.31%) Stakeholder Management
4 415 (26.71%) Continuous Improvement
5 331 (21.30%) Service Delivery
6 314 (20.21%) Problem-Solving
7 312 (20.08%) Agile
8 240 (15.44%) Stakeholder Engagement
9 238 (15.32%) Change Management
10 192 (12.36%) Roadmaps
11 183 (11.78%) Customer Service
12 164 (10.55%) Incident Management
13 159 (10.23%) DevOps
14 153 (9.85%) Cybersecurity
15 139 (8.94%) Decision-Making
16 137 (8.82%) Project Delivery
17 133 (8.56%) AI
18 127 (8.17%) Migration
19 116 (7.46%) Project Management
20 114 (7.34%) Risk Management
Programming Languages
1 136 (8.75%) PowerShell
2 88 (5.66%) Python
3 73 (4.70%) SQL
4 55 (3.54%) JavaScript
5 47 (3.02%) Bash
6 17 (1.09%) VBScript
7 15 (0.97%) Java
7 15 (0.97%) VB
8 11 (0.71%) PL/SQL
9 10 (0.64%) Bicep
10 8 (0.51%) Groovy
11 7 (0.45%) C#
11 7 (0.45%) Shell Script
12 6 (0.39%) C
13 5 (0.32%) Apex Code
13 5 (0.32%) Perl
13 5 (0.32%) T-SQL
14 4 (0.26%) TypeScript
15 3 (0.19%) Lua
16 2 (0.13%) ActionScript 2.0
Qualifications
1 572 (36.81%) Security Cleared
2 389 (25.03%) SC Cleared
3 148 (9.52%) Degree
4 147 (9.46%) DV Cleared
5 64 (4.12%) ITIL Certification
6 57 (3.67%) PMP
7 52 (3.35%) PMI Certification
8 45 (2.90%) BPSS Clearance
9 36 (2.32%) Microsoft Certification
10 35 (2.25%) CISSP
10 35 (2.25%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
11 32 (2.06%) CISM
12 29 (1.87%) Computer Science Degree
13 28 (1.80%) Cisco Certification
14 26 (1.67%) A+ Certification
15 17 (1.09%) Azure Certification
16 16 (1.03%) DBS Check
17 14 (0.90%) CCNA
18 12 (0.77%) Master's Degree
19 10 (0.64%) AWS Certification
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 128 (8.24%) SLA
2 54 (3.47%) QA
3 51 (3.28%) Data Quality
4 47 (3.02%) ISO/IEC 27001
5 32 (2.06%) GDPR
6 31 (1.99%) PMO
7 30 (1.93%) GRC
8 29 (1.87%) ISO/IEC 20000
8 29 (1.87%) NCSC
9 20 (1.29%) NIST
10 16 (1.03%) COBIT
10 16 (1.03%) ISO 9001
11 14 (0.90%) Cyber Essentials
12 11 (0.71%) Accessibility
13 9 (0.58%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
13 9 (0.58%) Disclosure Scotland
14 7 (0.45%) PCI DSS
15 6 (0.39%) ISO 31000
15 6 (0.39%) ISO/IEC 27005
16 5 (0.32%) ISO 22301
System Software
1 175 (11.26%) Active Directory
2 82 (5.28%) VMware Infrastructure
3 33 (2.12%) Hyper-V
4 25 (1.61%) VMware ESXi
5 21 (1.35%) Docker
6 18 (1.16%) VMware NSX
7 17 (1.09%) Virtual Desktop
8 16 (1.03%) BitLocker
8 16 (1.03%) vSphere
9 13 (0.84%) vCloud
10 6 (0.39%) IAG
10 6 (0.39%) Virtual Machines
10 6 (0.39%) Virtual Servers
11 5 (0.32%) Citrix Hypervisor
11 5 (0.32%) Oracle RAC
11 5 (0.32%) XenApp
11 5 (0.32%) XenDesktop
12 4 (0.26%) Firmware
12 4 (0.26%) NFS
13 3 (0.19%) Microsoft Virtual Server
Systems Management
1 88 (5.66%) Microsoft Intune
2 75 (4.83%) SCCM
3 48 (3.09%) Ansible
4 24 (1.54%) Kubernetes
5 23 (1.48%) SCOM
6 20 (1.29%) Single Sign-On
7 16 (1.03%) vCenter Server
8 12 (0.77%) Jamf Pro
8 12 (0.77%) WSUS
9 8 (0.51%) Data Guard
9 8 (0.51%) Oracle RMAN
10 7 (0.45%) Grafana
11 5 (0.32%) NetBackup
12 4 (0.26%) PowerCLI
12 4 (0.26%) Progress Chef
12 4 (0.26%) Prometheus
12 4 (0.26%) Puppet
12 4 (0.26%) vMotion
13 3 (0.19%) Dell DRAC
13 3 (0.19%) Istio
Vendors
1 445 (28.64%) ServiceNow
2 369 (23.75%) Microsoft
3 113 (7.27%) VMware
4 62 (3.99%) Remedy
5 52 (3.35%) Cisco
6 51 (3.28%) BMC
7 47 (3.02%) Oracle
8 35 (2.25%) Atlassian
9 33 (2.12%) SAP
10 28 (1.80%) Dynatrace
11 26 (1.67%) Splunk
12 21 (1.35%) Apple
12 21 (1.35%) Citrix
12 21 (1.35%) Salesforce
13 20 (1.29%) CyberArk
14 19 (1.22%) IBM
15 18 (1.16%) Google
15 18 (1.16%) SolarWinds
16 17 (1.09%) IFS
17 14 (0.90%) Zscaler