Service Management Contract Job Trends in the UK excluding London

Service Management
UK > UK excluding London

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

6 months to
6 Oct 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 64 53 70
Rank change year-on-year -11 +17 -3
Contract jobs citing Service Management 952 630 493
As % of all contract jobs in the UK excluding London 3.38% 4.03% 2.84%
As % of the Processes & Methodologies category 4.17% 4.52% 3.40%
Number of daily rates quoted 640 373 334
10th Percentile £263 £185 £200
25th Percentile £432 £293 £350
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £527 £485 £501
Median % change year-on-year +8.56% -3.10% -1.86%
75th Percentile £625 £556 £600
90th Percentile £725 £618 £650
UK median daily rate £525 £488 £515
% change year-on-year +7.69% -5.34% -1.90%
Number of hourly rates quoted 71 82 14
10th Percentile £14.50 £12.62 £21.99
25th Percentile £16.11 £13.86 £26.25
Median hourly rate £35.53 £21.06 £40.50
Median % change year-on-year +68.75% -48.01% +84.89%
75th Percentile £84.38 £33.75 £48.75
90th Percentile £92.50 £60.00 £52.63
UK median hourly rate £55.00 £21.71 £36.00
% change year-on-year +153.34% -39.69% -19.33%

All Process & Methodology Skills
UK excluding London

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 in the UK excluding London.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for process or methodology skills 22,824 13,927 14,507
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK excluding London 80.94% 89.17% 83.44%
Number of daily rates quoted 12,701 8,372 8,186
10th Percentile £300 £225 £240
25th Percentile £409 £367 £380
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £475 £500
Median % change year-on-year +5.26% -5.00% -
75th Percentile £600 £575 £600
90th Percentile £688 £669 £688
UK median daily rate £525 £500 £525
% change year-on-year +5.00% -4.76% -2.78%
Number of hourly rates quoted 2,856 1,519 1,079
10th Percentile £13.50 £14.13 £14.84
25th Percentile £16.71 £17.14 £18.15
Median hourly rate £38.72 £22.32 £42.50
Median % change year-on-year +73.52% -47.49% -
75th Percentile £66.00 £40.36 £66.00
90th Percentile £77.50 £66.10 £73.75
UK median hourly rate £38.50 £25.15 £41.08
% change year-on-year +53.08% -38.77% -3.91%

Service Management
Job Vacancy Trend in the UK excluding London

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

Service Management job vacancy trend in the UK excluding London

Service Management
Daily Rate Trend in the UK excluding London

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

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

Service Management
Daily Rate Histogram in the UK excluding London

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Service Management in the UK excluding London over the 6 months to 6 October 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Service Management in the UK excluding London

Service Management
Hourly Rate Trend in the UK excluding London

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

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

Service Management
Hourly Rate Histogram in the UK excluding London

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Service Management in the UK excluding London over the 6 months to 6 October 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Service Management in the UK excluding London

Service Management
Contract Job Locations in the UK excluding London

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 excluding London region over the 6 months to 6 October 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
South East +11 304 £575 +28.64% 291
North of England -16 273 £480 +6.67% 231
North West -12 161 £483 +5.92% 127
Midlands -31 126 £525 +3.96% 138
West Midlands -14 119 £525 +1.94% 86
Yorkshire -9 106 £450 +20.00% 85
Scotland +21 98 £581 +25.62% 80
South West -41 94 £550 - 107
East of England +4 65 £550 +1.76% 115
Wales -9 13 £800 +247.83% 17
Northern Ireland +10 8 - - 19
East Midlands -22 7 £206 -34.83% 50
North East -40 6 £600 +207.69% 20
Service Management
UK

Service Management
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the UK excluding London 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 60 (6.30%) SharePoint
2 38 (3.99%) Confluence
3 37 (3.89%) Microsoft Exchange
4 15 (1.58%) Skype for Business
5 4 (0.42%) CMS
5 4 (0.42%) IBM Transformation Extender
6 3 (0.32%) IIS
6 3 (0.32%) OpenStack
7 2 (0.21%) Apache
7 2 (0.21%) Tomcat
8 1 (0.11%) CICS
8 1 (0.11%) Documentum
8 1 (0.11%) Mattermost
Applications
1 62 (6.51%) Microsoft Office
2 21 (2.21%) Microsoft Excel
3 11 (1.16%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 5 (0.53%) Chatbot
4 5 (0.53%) Microsoft Project
5 2 (0.21%) Spreadsheet
6 1 (0.11%) Maple
6 1 (0.11%) MS Visio
Business Applications
1 43 (4.52%) Remedy ITSM
2 8 (0.84%) Dynamics CRM
3 5 (0.53%) ContrOCC
3 5 (0.53%) SAP S/4HANA
4 4 (0.42%) Workday HCM
5 3 (0.32%) NEC Housing
6 2 (0.21%) Oracle EBS
6 2 (0.21%) Primavera
6 2 (0.21%) Remedy AR System
6 2 (0.21%) Salesforce CRM
6 2 (0.21%) SAP CX
6 2 (0.21%) SystmOne
6 2 (0.21%) Teamcenter
7 1 (0.11%) Cloudability
7 1 (0.11%) SAP Oil and Gas
Cloud Services
1 153 (16.07%) Azure
2 111 (11.66%) Microsoft 365
3 77 (8.09%) Entra ID
4 63 (6.62%) AWS
5 48 (5.04%) Power Platform
6 37 (3.89%) SaaS
7 27 (2.84%) Azure DevOps
7 27 (2.84%) GCP
8 22 (2.31%) OneDrive
9 14 (1.47%) Azure Monitor
10 13 (1.37%) Dynamics 365
11 10 (1.05%) GitHub
12 9 (0.95%) IaaS
12 9 (0.95%) Microsoft Copilot
12 9 (0.95%) Power Automate
12 9 (0.95%) Serverless
13 8 (0.84%) Azure Functions
14 7 (0.74%) Google Workspace
15 6 (0.63%) Azure Sentinel
15 6 (0.63%) OCI
Communications & Networking
1 42 (4.41%) DNS
2 39 (4.10%) Firewall
3 37 (3.89%) VPN
4 30 (3.15%) DHCP
5 29 (3.05%) Network Security
6 24 (2.52%) TCP/IP
7 21 (2.21%) LAN
8 16 (1.68%) Skype
8 16 (1.68%) WAN
9 13 (1.37%) Wi-Fi
10 11 (1.16%) VLAN
11 10 (1.05%) SSH
12 8 (0.84%) BGP
12 8 (0.84%) Wireless
13 7 (0.74%) Intrusion Detection
13 7 (0.74%) NetScaler
14 6 (0.63%) OSPF
14 6 (0.63%) Software-Defined Networking
15 5 (0.53%) MPLS
15 5 (0.53%) Wireshark
Database & Business Intelligence
1 29 (3.05%) Power BI
2 24 (2.52%) SQL Server
3 20 (2.10%) Metadata
4 7 (0.74%) Looker
5 6 (0.63%) MySQL
5 6 (0.63%) SQL Server Integration Services
6 5 (0.53%) BigQuery
6 5 (0.53%) MariaDB
7 4 (0.42%) Amazon RDS
7 4 (0.42%) Relational Database
8 3 (0.32%) Amazon Aurora
8 3 (0.32%) Oracle Reports
8 3 (0.32%) SQL Server Reporting Services
9 2 (0.21%) EDRMS
9 2 (0.21%) Oracle Database
9 2 (0.21%) PostgreSQL
9 2 (0.21%) SQL Server Analysis Services
10 1 (0.11%) EDMS
10 1 (0.11%) InfluxDB
10 1 (0.11%) Microsoft Analysis Services
Development Applications
1 70 (7.35%) JIRA
2 22 (2.31%) Git
3 9 (0.95%) Atlassian Bamboo
3 9 (0.95%) Bitbucket
3 9 (0.95%) Jenkins
4 4 (0.42%) Browser DevTools
4 4 (0.42%) webpack
5 3 (0.32%) GitLab
5 3 (0.32%) Gradle
5 3 (0.32%) Maven
5 3 (0.32%) Rational DOORS
6 2 (0.21%) Fiddler
6 2 (0.21%) Firebug
6 2 (0.21%) Sonatype Nexus
7 1 (0.11%) Claude Code
7 1 (0.11%) Gemini Tracker
7 1 (0.11%) IBM UrbanCode
7 1 (0.11%) MLflow
7 1 (0.11%) Snyk
7 1 (0.11%) Visual Studio Code
General
1 392 (41.18%) Social Skills
2 158 (16.60%) Analytical Skills
3 138 (14.50%) Finance
4 103 (10.82%) Public Sector
5 50 (5.25%) Organisational Skills
6 47 (4.94%) Documentation Skills
7 41 (4.31%) Influencing Skills
8 34 (3.57%) Aerospace
9 27 (2.84%) Legal
10 25 (2.63%) Inclusion and Diversity
11 22 (2.31%) Banking
12 19 (2.00%) Military
12 19 (2.00%) Telecoms
13 18 (1.89%) Presentation Skills
14 17 (1.79%) Manufacturing
15 16 (1.68%) Local Government
16 5 (0.53%) Law
16 5 (0.53%) Retail
17 3 (0.32%) Police
18 2 (0.21%) Automotive
Job Titles
1 107 (11.24%) Lead
2 103 (10.82%) Analyst
3 85 (8.93%) Architect
4 67 (7.04%) Senior
5 59 (6.20%) Service Manager
6 51 (5.36%) Delivery Manager
7 42 (4.41%) Service Analyst
7 42 (4.41%) Support Engineer
8 40 (4.20%) Consultant
8 40 (4.20%) Developer
9 35 (3.68%) Service Architect
10 31 (3.26%) IT Manager
11 29 (3.05%) Project Manager
12 26 (2.73%) Administrator
12 26 (2.73%) Desktop Engineer
12 26 (2.73%) Technical Leader
13 24 (2.52%) Change Manager
14 22 (2.31%) 2nd Line Support
14 22 (2.31%) Desktop Support
14 22 (2.31%) Service Delivery Manager
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 39 (4.10%) Terraform
2 31 (3.26%) REST
3 19 (2.00%) Middleware
4 17 (1.79%) XML
5 12 (1.26%) JSON
6 10 (1.05%) Web Services
7 9 (0.95%) SAML
8 8 (0.84%) SOAP
8 8 (0.84%) XSLT
9 6 (0.63%) .NET
9 6 (0.63%) ARM Templates
9 6 (0.63%) LDAP
9 6 (0.63%) OAuth
10 5 (0.53%) SailPoint
11 4 (0.42%) AngularJS
11 4 (0.42%) Node.js
11 4 (0.42%) OpenID
11 4 (0.42%) React
11 4 (0.42%) Redux
11 4 (0.42%) RESTful
Miscellaneous
1 87 (9.14%) Onboarding
2 67 (7.04%) Management Information System
3 57 (5.99%) CMDB
4 38 (3.99%) Enterprise Software
5 37 (3.89%) Data Centre
6 28 (2.94%) PKI
7 25 (2.63%) Data Protection Act
8 23 (2.42%) Product Ownership
9 21 (2.21%) Hybrid Cloud
10 16 (1.68%) Security Operations Centre
11 14 (1.47%) Cyber Threat
12 13 (1.37%) Analytical Mindset
12 13 (1.37%) Operational Technology
12 13 (1.37%) Self-Motivation
12 13 (1.37%) Virtual Team
13 12 (1.26%) Security Posture
14 10 (1.05%) Clustering
15 9 (0.95%) Taxonomies
16 8 (0.84%) Cloud Native
16 8 (0.84%) Cyber Defence
Operating Systems
1 216 (22.69%) Windows
2 58 (6.09%) Linux
2 58 (6.09%) Windows Server
3 47 (4.94%) Windows 10
4 17 (1.79%) Windows 7
5 16 (1.68%) Unix
6 13 (1.37%) Android
6 13 (1.37%) Apple iOS
6 13 (1.37%) Mac OS
7 7 (0.74%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
8 3 (0.32%) AIX
8 3 (0.32%) Solaris
8 3 (0.32%) SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
9 2 (0.21%) Windows Server 2012
9 2 (0.21%) Windows XP
9 2 (0.21%) zOS
10 1 (0.11%) SUSE
10 1 (0.11%) Windows Server 2019
Processes & Methodologies
1 543 (57.04%) ITIL
2 388 (40.76%) ITSM
3 297 (31.20%) Stakeholder Management
4 280 (29.41%) Continuous Improvement
5 213 (22.37%) Service Delivery
6 183 (19.22%) Agile
6 183 (19.22%) Problem-Solving
7 146 (15.34%) Change Management
7 146 (15.34%) Stakeholder Engagement
8 133 (13.97%) Roadmaps
9 127 (13.34%) Cybersecurity
10 116 (12.18%) Incident Management
11 112 (11.76%) Customer Service
12 93 (9.77%) Project Delivery
13 86 (9.03%) DevOps
14 78 (8.19%) Data Protection
14 78 (8.19%) Decision-Making
15 75 (7.88%) Risk Management
16 72 (7.56%) Service Design
16 72 (7.56%) Technical Leadership
Programming Languages
1 99 (10.40%) PowerShell
2 63 (6.62%) Python
3 35 (3.68%) Bash
4 34 (3.57%) SQL
5 29 (3.05%) JavaScript
6 19 (2.00%) VBScript
7 15 (1.58%) VB
8 12 (1.26%) Java
9 11 (1.16%) C#
10 7 (0.74%) Shell Script
11 6 (0.63%) Bicep
12 4 (0.42%) TypeScript
13 3 (0.32%) C
13 3 (0.32%) Google Apps Script
13 3 (0.32%) Groovy
13 3 (0.32%) Lua
13 3 (0.32%) Perl
14 2 (0.21%) Go
14 2 (0.21%) Search Processing Language
14 2 (0.21%) T-SQL
Qualifications
1 447 (46.95%) Security Cleared
2 288 (30.25%) SC Cleared
3 135 (14.18%) DV Cleared
4 100 (10.50%) Degree
5 37 (3.89%) BPSS Clearance
6 31 (3.26%) PMP
7 30 (3.15%) PMI Certification
8 27 (2.84%) ITIL Certification
8 27 (2.84%) Microsoft Certification
9 23 (2.42%) DBS Check
10 16 (1.68%) Computer Science Degree
11 15 (1.58%) CISSP
12 14 (1.47%) Azure Certification
12 14 (1.47%) Cisco Certification
13 13 (1.37%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
14 12 (1.26%) CISM
15 11 (1.16%) A+ Certification
16 8 (0.84%) AWS Certification
16 8 (0.84%) BC Cleared
17 7 (0.74%) PRINCE2 Certification
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 80 (8.40%) SLA
2 39 (4.10%) Data Quality
3 32 (3.36%) QA
4 31 (3.26%) ISO/IEC 20000
5 28 (2.94%) ISO/IEC 27001
6 24 (2.52%) GRC
7 22 (2.31%) GDPR
8 20 (2.10%) NCSC
9 19 (2.00%) NIST
10 18 (1.89%) PMO
11 17 (1.79%) ISO 9001
12 10 (1.05%) Accessibility
13 8 (0.84%) Disclosure Scotland
13 8 (0.84%) WCAG
14 6 (0.63%) COBIT
14 6 (0.63%) Cyber Essentials
14 6 (0.63%) ISO 22301
15 5 (0.53%) JSP 440
15 5 (0.53%) PCI DSS
16 4 (0.42%) ISO/IEC 27005
System Software
1 111 (11.66%) Active Directory
2 62 (6.51%) VMware Infrastructure
3 23 (2.42%) Hyper-V
3 23 (2.42%) VMware ESXi
4 17 (1.79%) BitLocker
4 17 (1.79%) VMware NSX
5 16 (1.68%) Docker
6 15 (1.58%) Virtual Desktop
7 14 (1.47%) vSphere
8 13 (1.37%) vCloud
9 9 (0.95%) Firmware
10 7 (0.74%) Citrix Hypervisor
10 7 (0.74%) XenApp
10 7 (0.74%) XenDesktop
11 3 (0.32%) KVM
11 3 (0.32%) Microsoft Virtual Server
11 3 (0.32%) NFS
11 3 (0.32%) Virtual Machines
11 3 (0.32%) Virtual Servers
12 2 (0.21%) GPFS
Systems Management
1 61 (6.41%) SCCM
2 53 (5.57%) Microsoft Intune
3 34 (3.57%) Ansible
4 20 (2.10%) SCOM
5 17 (1.79%) vCenter Server
6 15 (1.58%) Kubernetes
7 13 (1.37%) Single Sign-On
8 7 (0.74%) Jamf Pro
8 7 (0.74%) Progress Chef
9 5 (0.53%) NetBackup
10 4 (0.42%) PowerCLI
10 4 (0.42%) Tivoli
10 4 (0.42%) Tivoli Monitoring
10 4 (0.42%) vMotion
10 4 (0.42%) WSUS
11 3 (0.32%) Dell DRAC
11 3 (0.32%) OPNET
11 3 (0.32%) vRealize
12 2 (0.21%) Grafana
12 2 (0.21%) Perfmon
Vendors
1 239 (25.11%) Microsoft
2 226 (23.74%) ServiceNow
3 81 (8.51%) VMware
4 47 (4.94%) Remedy
5 29 (3.05%) BMC
6 27 (2.84%) Cisco
7 19 (2.00%) IBM
7 19 (2.00%) Oracle
8 18 (1.89%) Atlassian
9 17 (1.79%) SAP
10 16 (1.68%) CyberArk
11 15 (1.58%) Dynatrace
12 14 (1.47%) Apple
12 14 (1.47%) Citrix
13 13 (1.37%) Google
13 13 (1.37%) SolarWinds
14 10 (1.05%) Palo Alto
14 10 (1.05%) Qualys
15 9 (0.95%) Red Hat
16 8 (0.84%) Splunk