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Total Economic Impact
Cost Savings And Business Benefits Enabled By TOPdesk
A FORRESTER TOTAL ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY COMMISSIONED BY TOPdesk, November 2025
Total Economic Impact
A FORRESTER TOTAL ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY COMMISSIONED BY TOPdesk, November 2025
According to Forrester, traditional IT service management (ITSM) is built on rigid models and assumptions that no longer align with how organizations operate.1 The direction forward is toward a more adaptive, business-oriented form of service management that spans the enterprise rather than residing solely within IT. The first step in that transition is letting go of an IT-only viewpoint and treating service management as a collaborative, cross-functional discipline. This ensures service delivery is shaped and supported by the broader business, not just technical teams. IT performance is defined not only by how quickly issues are resolved, but by the overall support experience employees receive. Modern cloud-based support approaches can anticipate problems, limit ticket creation, and offer smooth, self-service options. Ultimately, the service experience should feel intuitive, intelligent, and nearly invisible to end users.
TOPdesk is an enterprise service management platform that medium-sized organizations use to coordinate support functions across IT, facilities, and HR. It includes modules for handling incidents, tracking assets, and offering user-facing self-service. The software can be implemented quickly and fitted to an organization’s existing processes without extensive customization.
TOPdesk commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) study and examine the potential return on investment (ROI) enterprises may realize by deploying TOPdesk.2 The purpose of this study is to provide readers with a framework to evaluate the potential financial impact of TOPdesk on their organizations.
To better understand the benefits, costs, and risks associated with this investment, Forrester interviewed four decision-makers with experience using TOPdesk. For the purposes of this study, Forrester aggregated the interviewees’ experiences and combined the results into a single composite organization, which is a global organization headquartered in Western Europe with revenue of €250 million per year.
Interviewees said that prior to using TOPdesk, their organizations used various tools ranging from emails, logging telephone calls to other ITSM solutions. However, prior attempts yielded limited success, leaving them with fragmented solutions across different departments and tedious legacy solutions. These limitations led to siloes across different teams, inconsistent service levels across the teams, tedious maintenance effort, high-cost investment, and lack of reporting capabilities to make data-driven decisions.
The interviewees said TOPdesk gave their organizations a centralized service management solution they could deploy across multiple teams at their own pace with the ability to scale usage with minimal external support when required. They used TOPdesk’s standard features to streamline workflows, gain visibility through task and process management, and make more data-driven decisions through its built-in business intelligence tools. Key results from the investment include measurable cost savings through reduced maintenance overhead, simplified licensing, and more efficient resource allocation. Overall, interviewees said the platform is easy to use, which improved end-user satisfaction and service delivery across teams.
Quantified benefits. Three-year, risk-adjusted present value (PV) quantified benefits for the composite organization include:
Cost savings of €223,000 from TOPdesk functionalities over three years. The composite organization replaces manual phone-based support with TOPdesk’s self-service portal, which allows users to submit requests directly and track progress in a centralized platform. This shift improves transparency, reduces agent workload, and speeds up resolution times. Having structured input from users also helps agents prioritize more effectively. The portal also lowers the composite’s contact costs from €22 per phone call to €10 per portal interaction while boosting efficiency and user satisfaction. As the composite steadily increases its use of the portal each year, training and adoption are made easier by the platform’s straightforward interface and guided resources.
Reallocation of labor to value-added tasks worth €506,000 over three years. TOPdesk helps the composite organization optimize workflows, which reduces the time service desk technicians spend on ticket processing. Automated categorization, templates, and self-service features eliminate manual triage and follow-ups, so the organization’s technicians are able to shift their focus from routine tasks to more strategic activities. In Year 1, they spend 70% of their time on ticket processing, but this decreases to 60% in Year 2 and to 50% in Year 3. This increased efficiency boosts the composite’s productivity and enables broader contributions to organizational goals.
Efficiency gains from reduced volume of tickets worth €188,000 over three years. The composite organization sees a steady reduction in ticket volume as more activity moves through TOPdesk’s self-service portal and integrated knowledge base, allowing users to resolve a portion of issues independently. Routine processes like onboarding and offboarding are automated through workflows, which removes the need for manual ticket creation in these cases. This automation saves the composite’s service desk analysts 2.25 minutes per ticket. Ticket volume decreases from 200,000 in Year 1 to 150,000 in Year 3, with 70% handled by analysts. Over time, these efficiencies lead to faster resolutions and lower operational costs.
Reduced maintenance and management effort by €250,000 over three years. The composite organization significantly reduces platform maintenance and management effort after moving from its legacy solution to TOPdesk. The legacy tool required multiple resources and frequent external support, while TOPdesk’s cloud-based, modular design eliminates the need for complex scripting and keeps configuration straightforward. The number of application managers needed drops from four to two, and their time commitment reduces from 50% to 20%. The organization’s service delivery manager also decreases the amount of time they spend on platform management from 20% to 5%.
Cost savings of €51,000 from retiring legacy tools over three years. The composite organization achieves cost savings by switching from its legacy solution to TOPdesk for facilities and other departments. The cloud-based setup simplifies operations and lowers system overhead, resulting in about €36,000 in yearly savings in maintenance and cloud service expenses. TOPdesk’s modular structure allows the organization to extend service management to additional teams without a corresponding increasing resource requirements.
Unquantified benefits. Benefits that provide value for the composite organization but are not quantified for this study include:
Reduction in aged tickets and more proactiveness. The composite organization manages tickets more efficiently with TOPdesk, with fewer aged tickets and improved responsiveness. Automated workflows and SLA-based reporting help teams track overdue items more reliably. Compared to with its previous system, the number of aged tickets the composite organization sees each year drops from dozens to just a few. This shift helps the organization decrease resolution times and improve user satisfaction. One interviewee said faster resolution times helped their organization improve its user satisfaction score to 4.85 out of 5.
Better decision-making with TOPdesk Asset Management. TOPdesk’s Asset Management module is included in the standard offering and is used by the composite organization to track assets across teams. The composite uses customizable templates, visual dashboards, and relationship mapping within the module to organize asset details and track connections between items. The module integrates with service processes like incidents and changes, allowing asset information to appear alongside related tickets. This improves the organization’s decision-making, reduces redundancies, and enhances its operational efficiency.
Personalized approach and support. TOPdesk provides consultancy services tuned to the composite organization’s requirements, delivering guidance and platform demonstrations tailored to different team needs. Ongoing, custom support is included in the subscription, giving the composite access to help as questions or needs arise. These activities form part of the composite organization’s overall support experience.
Ease of implementation, scalability and flexibility. TOPdesk’s straightforward implementation allows the composite organization to deploy TOPdesk in phases, beginning with core teams like IT, HR, facilities, and finance. It uses the platform to centralize service requests and workflows in a single environment. The composite organization makes use of the service catalog and self-service portal to provide a shared location for submitting and managing requests across teams.
Self-reliance with a no-code solution. TOPdesk’s no-code configuration tools allow the composite organization to adjust service workflows, forms, and related processes without writing code. Teams configure workflows, forms, and portal components directly in the interface, and administrators use visual design tools to modify these elements as needed. This approach reduces the composite organization’s reliance on external consultancy and forms parts of its ongoing maintenance model. Interviewees said these capabilities give their organizations’ end users clearer visibility into requests and make it easier for them to move through the process.
Enhanced automation via integrations. TOPdesk integrates with the composite organization’s existing systems and is used to generate tickets automatically from system alerts without manual input. This setup allows incident information to appear in TOPdesk as alerts occur, without requiring constant monitoring by staff. These integration points form part of the composite’s incident-handling process.
Costs. Three-year, risk-adjusted PV costs for the composite organization include:
TOPdesk subscription fees. The composite organization licenses TOPdesk under the Engaged package. Its total fees depends on the number of operators and departments using the platform while end users and assets are not limited under this model. As the composite organization adds operators, licensing costs adjust accordingly. Over three years, the composite pays $175,000 in subscription fees.
Consultancy fees charged by TOPdesk consultants. The composite uses TOPdesk’s consultancy services during implementation. A knowledge-based consultant is engaged at a rate of €1,050 per day, and the organization relies on this support primarily in the earlier phases of deployment. As teams become more familiar with the platform, the reliance on consultancy decreases each year. Over three years, the composite pays $44,000 in consultancy fees.
Internal implementation cost. The composite organization uses a phased TOPdesk rollout, starting with IT and the service desk, followed by facilities in Year 2 and finance and HR in Year 3. Initial implementation takes four months, with later phases completed more quickly as internal familiarity improves. Key resources for each phase include a service delivery manager and a project manager at 50% capacity, team-specific administrative assistants at 30%, and two IT assistants who support all phases. This results in implementation costs of $99,000 over three years.
Internal maintenance and management cost. Because TOPdesk does not require complex coding or scripting for routine upkeep, the composite organization reduces its maintenance and management effort compared with its legacy tool. Two application managers (functional and technical) each dedicate 20% of their time to system upkeep, and one service delivery manager spends 5% of their time optimizing the platform and coordinating internal needs. These resource levels remain consistent as additional modules are added, resulting in a three-year cost of $71,000.
Training costs. The composite organization completes training with limited time requirements. IT and service desk teams participate in about 1.5 hours of training, and nontechnical teams like facilities, finance, and HR need about 2 hours with additional guided support. Over three years, the composite pays $3,000 in training costs.
The representative interviews and financial analysis found that a composite organization experiences benefits of €1.22 million over three years versus costs of €392,000, adding up to a net present value (NPV) of €826,000 and an ROI of 211%.
Three-year PV of reallocation of labor to value-added tasks
Return on investment (ROI)
Benefits PV
Net present value (NPV)
Payback
| Role | Industry | Region (HQ) | Annual revenue | Number of employees | TOPdesk implementation year | Agents using TOPdesk | Assets in asset management |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team leader, internal services | Government (public Sector) | Netherlands | N/A | 15,000 | 2017 | 1,432 |
153,052 assets (1,781 locations and 19,395 rooms within those locations) |
| Service desk coordinator | Professional services | Belgium | €75M | 334 | 2019 | 180 | 18,988 assets (369 rooms within 9 locations) |
| Service delivery manager | Higher education | UK | €11M | 500 | 2023 | 90 | 4,837 assets (15 sites and 3,953 rooms) |
| Director of IT operations | Professional services | US | €750M | 5,000 | 2017 | 82 | 8,099 assets |
Interviewees said that prior to using TOPdesk, their organizations used fragmented solutions for different teams. These included using email and logging telephone calls, as well as relying on ITSM solutions that were overly complex and difficult to scale without extensive external support and significant modification to the core code.
The interviewees noted how their organizations struggled with common challenges, including:
Siloed teams. A Service Desk Coordinator from the professional services industry said: “We are situated in Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Brazil. We used multiple systems and could not transfer tickets and work as one.” Because it became difficult to coordinate support and track performance across the different teams, the organization struggled to operate as a single entity.
Lack of visibility and reporting. The team leader of internal services, working in the government sector mentioned their organization had no visibility into IT performance because the legacy tool did not offer functionality related to reporting and analytics: “Due to the lack of insights from the legacy tool, I had no idea if IT was doing well. … Fundamentally, there was no data to drive decisions.” They said that without actionable data, it was challenging to assess service quality or make informed decisions, which led to gaps in monitoring, accountability, and strategic planning.
High cost. The interviewees said their organizations’ legacy ITSM systems were not user-friendly and that license cost was expensive. The solutions had complex licensing models and required extensive implementation and configuration, resulting in long deployment timelines and significant external support requirements.
Inconsistent service levels. Different processes, fragmented tools, and inconsistent response and resolution times led to different service delivery across teams, which eroded customer trust and resulted in customer dissatisfaction. Internally, employees faced unclear expectations and fragmented processes, contributing to frustration and low satisfaction.
Time-consuming maintenance effort. Interviewees said the legacy solutions had ongoing issues that required a large amount of time for maintenance and explained that their organizations could not be agile or start small and scale over time. Common problems included the need for manual intervention during frequent updates; dependency on specialized consultants or administrators to manage configurations, integrations, and performance tuning; and time-consuming troubleshooting and change management processes.
Excessive modification. Interviewees explained that the legacy systems’ core code was excessively modified, which caused major problems when it would break down. It was also difficult to get support because the systems had been altered so much. In addition, if the people who did most of this coding work left the organizations, it would lead to years of trying to manage and fix the systems.
The interviewees’ organizations searched for a solution that could:
Use business insights from an ITSM platform to support data-driven decision-making across the organization.
Provide structured service level management to maintain service standards and meet customer expectations.
Ensure a smooth transfer of data to a new system and enable quick deployment.
Deliver a user-friendly portal that simplifies access to services for end users.
Offer out-of-the-box capabilities that support implementation and ongoing management without custom development or complex configurations.
Provide integration options that allow the solution to scale as the IT ecosystem evolves.
Support managing and tracking operational tasks through workflow and task management capabilities.
Have a strong reputation in the market as a comprehensive ITSM or enterprise service management (ESM) solution.
After a request for proposal (RFP) and business case process evaluating multiple vendors, the interviewees’ organizations chose TOPdesk and began deployment.
Three out of four interviewees said their organization took a phased approach to deployment by starting with IT and service desk teams and then providing TOPdesk in an agile fashion to different departments. The fourth interviewee said that because their organization has many IT-related workers, it deployed TOPdesk to the entire company at one time.
Each interviewee said it took less than six months to fully implement TOPdesk and have it up and running.
Each interviewee said their organization deployed TOPdesk while continuing to perform their other daily tasks.
Based on the interviews, Forrester constructed a TEI framework, a composite company, and an ROI analysis that illustrates the areas financially affected. The composite organization is representative of the interviewees’ organizations, and it is used to present the aggregate financial analysis in the next section. The composite organization has the following characteristics:
Description of composite. The composite is a global, multimillion-euro organization headquartered in Western Europe with 2,000 employees across all offices. It operates with 90 agents who handle internal requests across departments including IT, facilities, finance, and HR. It manages 15,000 assets ranging from IT hardware to facilities infrastructure and 120 reservable meeting rooms across all locations.
Deployment characteristics. The composite organization deploys TOPdesk in phases across multiple teams. In Year 1, it deploys TOPdesk to 50 IT and service desk agents over a four-month implementation period. In Year 2, the organization adds 20 facilities agents during a three-month implementation period. In Year 3, the deployment expands to 20 finance and HR agents with a two-month implementation period.
€250 million revenue
Headquartered in Western Europe
2,000 employees
90 agents/operators use TOPdesk over a three-year period
15,000 assets under Asset Management
120 reservable meeting rooms across all office locations
| Ref. | Benefit | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total | Present Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atr | Cost savings from TOPdesk functionalities | €68,400 | €91,200 | €114,000 | €273,600 | €223,204 |
| Btr | Reallocation of labor to value-added tasks | €155,040 | €206,720 | €258,400 | €620,160 | €505,928 |
| Ctr | Efficiency gains from reduced volume of tickets | €82,752 | €75,735 | €67,320 | €225,807 | €188,399 |
| Dtr | Reduced maintenance and management effort | €100,463 | €100,463 | €100,463 | €301,389 | €249,835 |
| Etr | Cost savings from retiring legacy tools | €0 | €32,400 | €32,400 | €64,800 | €51,119 |
| Total benefits (risk-adjusted) | €406,655 | €506,518 | €572,583 | €1,485,756 | €1,218,485 |
Evidence and data. A director of IT operations from the professional services industry said their organization replaced its legacy phone-call approach with the TOPdesk self-service portal and explained that users interact directly with the service desk via the portal and submit requests without waiting in a queue or having to verbally explain their issues. The interviewee said service desk agents received structured, categorized information that is easy to process and prioritize, which reduced their workloads. It also improved transparency by allowing users to log incidents, submit service requests, browse a knowledge base, and monitor the status of tickets on a centralized platform. This led to faster resolution times and reduced operational costs.
The interviewee also noted that with their organization’s previous approach, service desk analysts needed to ask users for their badge numbers and required dual authentication before they could open a ticket, so the cost of each traditional phone call was €22. But the director explained that because TOPdesk automatically recognizes users when they call, the cost per contact is €10. They also said this saves time and improved the organization’s customer satisfaction (CSAT) score.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
In Year 1, the composite organization receives an average of 500 contacts via the portal per month (6,000 contacts per year).
The composite increases use of the portal each year, and the number of contacts in the portal increases by an average of 2,000 in both Years 2 and 3.
The composite pays a flat rate of €22 for phone calls and €10 for portal contacts.
The composite treats phone calls and portal contacts as separate and mutually exclusive, with no hybrid cases.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
The cost per phone call or portal interaction, which may vary depending on the complexity, duration, and resolution time.
Variability in user adoption rate of the portal.
Employee preference for phone-based support.
Cultural resistance or limited awareness of the portal.
Incomplete or inconsistent incident data captured through the portal.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €223,000.
Cost reduction for each contact made with the TOPdesk portal instead of a traditional phone call
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Phone calls or contacts | Composite | 6,000 | 8,000 | 10,000 | |
| A2 | Cost per phone call prior to TOPdesk | Interviews | €22 | €22 | €22 | |
| A3 | Cost per contact via TOPdesk portal | Interviews | €10 | €10 | €10 | |
| At | Cost savings from TOPdesk functionalities | A1*(A2-A3) | €72,000 | €96,000 | €120,000 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓5% | |||||
| Atr | Cost savings from TOPdesk functionalities (risk-adjusted) | €68,400 | €91,200 | €114,000 | ||
| Three-year total: €273,600 | Three-year present value: €223,204 | |||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees mentioned that optimizing workflows in TOPdesk led to a reduction in time service desk technicians spend processing tickets and, as a result, they can shift their focus from routine administrative tasks to more value-adding activities. Interviewees explained that user requests submitted via the TOPdesk portal are automatically categorized and sent to the right team, eliminating manual effort by service desk technicians to redirect tickets to the right place. In addition, they said the system uses templates and standard forms to get all information from users up front, so technicians no longer need to chase users for missing details. Automating common tasks (e.g., password resets, software requests) requires fewer clicks, leading to quicker resolution and decreased manual work for technicians. This not only increased the overall productivity for service desk technicians, but it also enhanced the contribution of the service desk to broader organizational goals.
The service delivery manager in the higher education industry stated: “With less time spent on the processing of tickets, our service desk technicians started working in rotations with technicians spending 50% of their time in the front and 50% of their time at the back. The technicians at the back could do the extra work and get involved in other projects like student inductions and enrollment.” They also said the organization’s legacy IT service management solution required service desk technicians to spend 100% of their time processing and managing tickets.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The composite has 17 service desk technicians.
The proportion of time service desk technicians spend processing tickets decreases each year.
User adoption of the self-service portal increases each year, resulting in a decreasing share of tickets that require manual triage or follow-up.
Service desk technician time allocation for ticket processing is 70% in Year 1, 60% in Year 2, and 50% in Year 3.
The fully burdened annual salary for a service desk technician is €40,000.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
The fully burdened salaries of each service desk technician, which varies by experience, seniority, and geographical location.
The percentage of time service desk technicians save, which depends on the proportion of users who adopt TOPdesk.
Whether users who adopt TOPdesk continue to use phone calls or email.
The proportion of routine tickets submitted versus complex ones.
Variation in service desk technician proficiency with TOPdesk based on the level of training and use of automation features.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €506,000.
Percentage of time service desk technicians save processing tickets in Year 3
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B1 | Service desk technicians | Composite | 17 | 17 | 17 | |
| B2 | Percentage of time service desk technicians spent processing tickets prior to TOPdesk | Interviews | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
| B3 | Percentage of time service desk technicians spend processing tickets with TOPdesk | Interviews | 70% | 60% | 50% | |
| B4 | Fully burdened salary for a service desk technician | Composite | €40,000 | €40,000 | €40,000 | |
| B5 | Total cost of service desk technicians prior to TOPdesk | B1*(B2*B4) | €680,000 | €680,000 | €680,000 | |
| B6 | Total cost of service desk technicians with TOPdesk | B1*(B3*B4) | €476,000 | €408,000 | €340,000 | |
| B7 | Productivity capture rate | TEI methodology | 80% | 80% | 80% | |
| Bt | Reallocation of labor to value-added tasks | B7*(B5-B6) | €163,200 | €217,600 | €272,000 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓5% | |||||
| Btr | Reallocation of labor to value-added tasks (risk-adjusted) | €155,040 | €206,720 | €258,400 | ||
| Three-year total: €620,160 | Three-year present value: : €505,928 | |||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees expressed that TOPdesk reduced the volume of tickets received over time and said that using the self-service portal and integrated knowledge base allows users to access guides, FAQs, and troubleshooting steps that often eliminate the need to submit a ticket. One interviewee also said TOPdesk automates routine service desk tasks, particularly around employee lifecycle events (e.g., onboarding, offboarding, internal changes), and that these processes can be automated through workflows and templates to allow service desk teams to initiate multiple changes with a single action.
A director of IT operations from the professional services industry stated: “The switch to TOPdesk allowed us to improve our onboarding and offboarding and offboarding [like] adds, moves, and changes. With our legacy solution, we had to create manual tickets on a Friday for all employee changes. Now, with TOPdesk, it is automatic, so one button push is all that is needed.” They said that due to TOPdesk automation, service desk analysts saved 2.25 minutes per ticket.
A service delivery manager from the higher education industry noted a reduction in the volume of tickets the service desk received as use of the portal expanded and said the number reduced from 24,000 tickets in Year 1, to 20,000 tickets in Year 2, and 18,000 tickets in Year 3.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The composite organization processes 200,000 tickets in Year 1, 180,000 in Year 2, and 150,000 in Year 3.
Service desk analysts process 70% of the total volume of tickets while the remaining 30% is redirected to service desk technicians, application support specialists, IT coordinators, etc.
The fully burdened annual salary for a service desk analyst is €45,000 (€22 per hour).
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
The salaries of service desk analysts, which may depend on experience, seniority, and geographical region.
Differences in hourly rates depending on the total hours of analysts in a year.
Fluctuations in ticket volume influenced by knowledge-base quality, user adoption, or seasonal demand.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 15%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €188,000.
Time service desk analysts save per ticket with TOPdesk
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 | IT tickets received | Composite | 200,000 | 180,000 | 160,000 | |
| C2 | Percentage of tickets handled by service desk analysts | Composite | 60% | 60% | 60% | |
| C3 | Tickets handled by service desk analysts | C1*C2 | 120,000 | 108,000 | 96,000 | |
| C4 | Time service desk analysts save per ticket with TOPdesk (minutes) | Interviews | 2.25 | 2.25 | 2.25 | |
| C5 | Total time saved on tickets with TOPdesk (hours) | (C3*C4)/60 | 4,500 | 4,050 | 3,600 | |
| C6 | Hourly rate for a service desk analyst | Composite | €22 | €22 | €22 | |
| Ct | Efficiency gains from reduced volume of tickets | C5*C6 | €99,000 | €89,100 | €79,200 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓15% | |||||
| Ctr | Efficiency gains from reduced volume of tickets (risk-adjusted) | €82,752 | €75,735 | €67,320 | ||
| Three-year total: €2275,807 | Three-year present value: €188,399 | |||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees noted that TOPdesk requires less maintenance and management effort than their organizations’ legacy solutions with core code extensively modified. Making alterations to the systems involved external support and effort from internal resources to manage and fix. Interviewees described TOPdesk as a modern, cloud-based platform with intuitive configuration and built-in automation, so they said there is no longer a need for complex scripting and noted that modular design and integration capabilities lead to fewer custom patches and less troubleshooting across disconnected systems. They also said legacy tools had technical issues that resulted in complaints.
Interviewees said TOPdesk requires fewer resources to manage and maintain than their legacy systems and that those resources spend less of their time managing TOPdesk. They also mentioned that onboarding new teams and departments to TOPdesk does not impact the resources required to manage and maintain the platform.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
Previously, four application managers (two functional application managers and two technical application managers) dedicated 50% of their time to maintenance of its legacy enterprise service management tool.
Two application managers (one functional application manager and one technical application manager) dedicate 20% of their time to maintenance of TOPdesk.
The fully burdened annual salary for an application manager is €60,000.
Previously, one service delivery manager dedicated 20% of their time to managing its legacy tool.
One service delivery manager dedicates 5% of their time to management of TOPdesk.
The fully burdened annual salary for a service delivery manager is €65,000.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
The fully burdened salaries of application managers and service delivery manager, which varies according to experience, seniority, and geographical location.
Differences in prior management and maintenance effort for the legacy tool.
Added maintenance requirements from increased system integrations.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €250,000.
Reduction in internal effort required to manage and maintain TOPdesk
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D1 | Application managers previously required for maintenance of legacy solution | Composite | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
| D2 | Percentage of time each application manager previously spent providing maintenance of legacy solution | Interviews | 50% | 50% | 50% | |
| D3 | Application managers required for maintenance of TOPdesk | Composite | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| D4 | Percentage of time each application manager spends on maintenance of TOPdesk | Interviews | 20% | 20% | 20% | |
| D5 | Fully burdened salary for an application manager | Composite | €60,000 | €60,000 | €60,000 | |
| D6 | Total cost of application managers prior to TOPdesk | D1*(D2*D5) | €120,000 | €120,000 | €120,000 | |
| D7 | Total cost of application managers with TOPdesk | D3*(D4*D5) | €24,000 | €24,000 | €24,000 | |
| D8 | Subtotal: Reduced internal maintenance cost | D6-D7 | €96,000 | €96,000 | €96,000 | |
| D9 | Service delivery managers involved in managing TOPdesk (FTEs) | Composite | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| D10 | Percentage of time service delivery managers spent managing legacy solution | Interviews | 20% | 20% | 20% | |
| D11 | Percentage of time service delivery managers spend managing TOPdesk | Interviews | 5% | 5% | 5% | |
| D12 | Fully burdened salary for a service delivery manager | Composite | €65,000 | €65,000 | €65,000 | |
| D13 | Cost of service delivery managers with legacy solution | D9*(D10*D12) | €13,000 | €13,000 | €13,000 | |
| D14 | Cost of service delivery managers with TOPdesk | D9*(D11*D12) | €3,250 | €3,250 | €3,250 | |
| D15 | Subtotal: Reduced management cost | D13-D14 | €9,750 | €9,750 | €9,750 | |
| Dt | Reduced maintenance and management effort | D8+D15 | €105,750 | €105,750 | €105,750 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓5% | |||||
| Dtr | Reduced maintenance and management effort (risk-adjusted) | €100,463 | €100,463 | €100,463 | ||
| Three-year total: €301,389 | Three-year present value: €249,836 | |||||
Evidence and data. A service desk coordinator in the professional services industry said their organization experienced cost savings by retiring its legacy tool for facilities and other departments and noted that the cloud-based setup of TOPdesk simplified operations and lowered system overhead costs for both IT and facilities. They said their organization saves €36,000 per year on the previous costs of maintenance and cloud services for the legacy solution.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The composite begins implementing TOPdesk for facilities in Year 2.
Twenty facilities agents use TOPdesk.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
The legacy tool used for facilities.
The size of the facilities, which may require extra configuration.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 10%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €51,000.
Annual savings by retiring legacy facilities tool
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E1 | Cost of maintenance of and cloud services for legacy tool | Interviews | €0 | €36,000 | €36,000 | |
| Et | Cost savings from retiring legacy tools | E1 | €0 | €36,000 | €36,000 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓10% | |||||
| Etr | Cost savings from retiring legacy tools (risk-adjusted) | €0 | €32,400 | €32,400 | ||
| Three-year total: €64,800 | Three-year present value: €51,119 | |||||
Interviewees mentioned the following additional benefits that their organizations experienced but were not able to quantify:
Reduction in aged tickets and more proactiveness. A service delivery manager in the higher education industry said TOPdesk helps reduce the number of aged tickets by automating task routing and making ticket progress visible through workflows. They said the platform’s built-in SLAs and reporting tools lets their organization highlight overdue items, which prompts timely resolution and accountability. The interviewee said the legacy solution collected 42 aged tickets over two years while TOPdesk averages around five aged tickets per year, which helped raise the organization’s average feedback rating for tickets logged in TOPdesk to 4.85 out of 5.
Better decision-making with TOPdesk Asset Management. Interviewees said the Asset Management module included within the standard offering provides their organizations with the flexibility to create unlimited asset templates and define what fields show up. They noted that graphical overviews, relationship mapping, and built-in dashboards give their organizations better visibility into assets and dependencies within the service environment. Interviewees said that using the module alongside tickets, incidents, and change management helps keep asset information aligned with service delivery.
Personalized approach and support. Interviewees described TOPdesk’s consultancy approach as personalized and accessible, noting that their organizations receive tailored demonstrations and guidance to address specific team needs. They said ongoing support is included as part of their organizations’ subscription fees, allowing them to consult experts when needed during implementation and later use.
Scalability and flexibility. Interviewees said TOPdesk was easy to implement and allowed their organizations to deploy the platform in phases, starting with core functions such as IT and service desk. As teams became more familiar with the tool, its use expanded to departments like facilities, HR, and finance. Interviewees noted that having a unified service catalog and self-service portal helped them manage requests and coordinate work across different teams.
Self-reliance with a no-code solution. Interviewees said TOPdesk’s no-code tools allowed their organizations to manage and adjust the platform without relying on technical support. They described the self-service portal as easy to use with drag-and-drop options that let users organize task lists, calendars, and ticket overviews according to their preferences. Service desk agents were able to categorize tasks and incidents, while administrators designed forms and workflows visually to match internal processes. Interviewees noted that this setup reduces maintenance costs and the need for consultancy services over time.
Enhanced automation via integrations. A director of IT operations from the professional services industry said TOPdesk integrated with their organization’s cloud-based contact center platform and HR management system, allowing alerts to automatically generate tickets without manual input. The director noted that this setup enabled faster notification of support staff and reduced the need for continuous monitoring through a dedicated operations center.
Average feedback rating for tickets logged in TOPdesk
The value of flexibility is unique to each customer. There are multiple scenarios in which a customer might implement TOPdesk and later realize additional uses and business opportunities, including:
Integration with third-party applications. Interviewees said TOPdesk offers flexibility for integration with a wide range of systems, including more than 100 standard integrations and options for custom connections through third-party applications. They noted that open REST APIs allowed them to link TOPdesk with HR platforms, monitoring tools, CRM systems, and identity providers for functions such as automatic ticket creation and centralized user access via single sign-on and real-time data exchange across platforms. Interviewees also mentioned using webhooks and custom connectors to extend automation across their environments and keep information synchronized between systems.
Expanded use of more modules. Interviewees discussed plans to expand their use of TOPdesk by adding additional modules to centralize service management across their organizations. For example, a service delivery manager in the higher education industry said their team wants to implement the reservation module to manage loan devices and other shared resources. The estates team and other departments are also interested in adopting the platform to replace legacy systems, including adding digital signing for loans to simplify the process.
AI and automation. The service delivery manager in the higher education industry said their organization is exploring potential AI features available with TOPdesk. They noted interest in integrating a virtual agent or conversational AI with the platform to support user interaction and request handling.
Flexibility would also be quantified when evaluated as part of a specific project (described in more detail in Appendix A).
| Ref. | Cost | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total | Present Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ftr | TOPdesk subscription fees | €0 | €54,390 | €71,516 | €88,641 | €214,547 | €175,146 |
| Gtr | Consultancy fees for TOPdesk consultants | €26,460 | €13,230 | €6,615 | €0 | €46,305 | €43,954 |
| Htr | Internal implementation cost | €55,000 | €22,963 | €27,738 | €0 | €105,701 | €98,799 |
| Itr | Internal maintenance and management cost | €0 | €28,613 | €28,613 | €28,613 | €85,839 | €71,155 |
| Jtr | Training cost | €1,785 | €740 | €1,037 | €0 | €3,562 | €3,315 |
| Total costs (risk-adjusted) | €83,245 | €119,935 | €135,518 | €117,254 | €455,952 | €392,369 |
Evidence and data. Interviewees said their organizations pay TOPdesk subscription fees that vary according to the number of agents who use the solution and the modules used.
As the organizations added more agents to TOPdesk over time, the subscription fee per agent decreased.
They also noted the subscription fees are not impacted by the number of end users.
The interviewees reported that subscription fees in the first year include the personalized support their organizations received during implementation.
Pricing may vary. Contact TOPdesk for additional details.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The subscription cost is based on the standard modules in the Engaged package, which covers incident management, the self-service portal, the knowledge base, and reporting.
In Year 1, 50 IT and service desk agents use TOPdesk.
In Year 2, 20 agents from facilities are added.
In Year 3, 20 HR and finance agents are added.
The service desk team is centralized across the organization, including all offices.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
The package the organization uses (e.g., the modules chosen).
The number of agents who use TOPdesk.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this cost upward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €175,000.
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F1 | Operators who use TOPdesk | Composite | 0 | 50 | 70 | 90 | |
| F2 | TOPdesk subscription fees per operator | Interviews | €1,036 | €973 | €938 | ||
| Ft | TOPdesk subscription fees | F1*F2 | €0 | €51,800 | €68,110 | €84,420 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↑5% | ||||||
| Ftr | TOPdesk subscription fees (risk-adjusted) | €0 | €54,390 | €71,516 | €88,641 | ||
| Three-year total: €214,547 | Three-year present value: €175,146 | ||||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees reported using TOPdesk consultancy services to support their implementations and ongoing use of the service management platform. TOPdesk consultants worked with the organizations on the technical setup during the implementation process and also assisted in aligning the platform with business goals, processes, and people. Consultants reviewed the organizations’ current workflows and collaborated with them to adjust or redesign workflows using using Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) best practices.
Interviewees said TOPdesk offers knowledge-focused consultants and technical consultants.
They reported consultancy fees are €150 per hour for regular consultancy and €185 per hour for technical consultancy or project management.
The organizations used consultancy services for diverse use cases, including conducting hands-on sessions to train teams, defining or refining service catalogs, building custom forms or workflows, supporting change management efforts, and helping teams adapt to new ways of working through communication strategies and adoption plans.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The composite uses one regular consultant each year to support the implementation of any new modules.
This consultant provides 7 hours of effort per day.
As the organization expands its use of TOPdesk, it becomes more self-reliant, resulting in fewer consultancy days required for subsequent module implementations. The consultant is involved 24 days in Year 1, 12 days in Year 2 and six days in Year 3.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
Expanding project goals midstream.
Unclear objectives or workflow.
Data migration issues.
Level of involvement from key stakeholders or teams.
Connecting TOPdesk to legacy or third-party systems.
The amount of customization required for forms or dashboards.
Organizational resistance to change.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this cost upward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €44,000.
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G1 | TOPdesk consultants required | Composite | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| G2 | Daily cost of a TOPdesk consultant | Interviews | €1,050 | €1,050 | €1,050 | ||
| G3 | Time TOPdesk consultants are involved (days) | Interviews | 24 | 12 | 6 | 0 | |
| Gt | Consultancy fees for TOPdesk consultants | G1*G2*G3 | €25,200 | €12,600 | €6,300 | €0 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↑5% | ||||||
| Gtr | Consultancy fees for TOPdesk consultants (risk-adjusted) | €26,460 | €13,230 | €6,615 | €0 | ||
| Three-year total: €46,305 | Three-year present value: €43,954 | ||||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees said their organizations implemented TOPdesk while continuing with their daily tasks. The implementation period lasted several months, with most of the organizations choosing a phased approach in which modules and sprints were deployed one after another. The internal implementation effort included defining and mapping the scope and objectives with TOPdesk and stakeholders required for its management and maintenance. The organizations also worked with TOPdesk consultants to review existing workflows, design updated processes using ITIL practices, and importing data from legacy systems into TOPdesk.
A service delivery manager from the higher education industry noted their organization’s primary project team during the implementation included a service desk analyst and a business-side project manager. They said, “We went live with the TOPdesk ticketing system in April 2023 and the self-service portal in September 2023, taking a phased approach to implementation.”
The same interviewee also mentioned the project team managed the implementation alongside performing their regular jobs and estimated the process took around 600 to 700 hours over four months.
A service desk coordinator in the professional services industry also explained the degree of autonomy their organization had when expanding use of TOPdesk to other departments. The interviewee said: “I did the migration between my [organization’s] legacy tool for facilities to TOPdesk between other tasks. Once the setup for one country is done, you can replicate it for all other countries and merge everything. This will require a maximum of one month of effort from me, including aftercare.”
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
Implementation begins with the IT and service desk teams.
The facilities team is onboarded in Year 1 for deployment in Year 2.
Finance and HR teams are onboarded in Year 2 for deployment in Year 3.
The first implementation takes four months. After that, implementation time decreases by one month per implementation as the composite organization becomes more self-reliant and efficient with onboarding additional teams to use TOPdesk.
Each implementation requires a service delivery manager who spends 50% of their time.
Each implementation requires two administrative assistants from the team being onboarded, and each contributes 30% of their time.
Two administrative assistants from IT support all implementations across all teams at 30% capacity.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
Differences in project scope when more modules or additional departments are included.
How clear or well-defined the workflows are, which can impact the speed of implementation.
The ease of difficulty of integrating with external systems.
Data-migration complexities, including large volumes of data or messy datasets.
The level of stakeholder activity and engagement during the implementation.
The organization’s legacy solutions and whether stakeholders previously used an enterprise service management tool or primarily relied on manual processes before using TOPdesk.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this cost upward by 10%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €99,000.
Reduction in implementation time from each of the first two implementations
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H1 | Teams that deploy TOPdesk | Composite | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| H2 | Time spent on implementation per location (months) | Composite | 4 | 3 | 2 | ||
| H3 | Service delivery managers involved in implementation | Interviews | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0 | |
| H4 | Fully burdened annual salary for a service delivery Manager | D12 | €65,000 | €65,000 | €65,000 | ||
| H5 | Business-side project managers involved in implementation | Interviews | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0 | |
| H6 | Fully burdened annual salary for a business-side project manager | Composite | €67,000 | €67,000 | €67,000 | ||
| H7 | Administrative assistants per department involved | Interviews | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0 | |
| H8 | Fully burdened salary for an IT FTE | Composite | €50,000 | €50,000 | €50,000 | ||
| H9 | Fully burdened salary for a service desk FTE | B4 | €40,000 | €40,000 | €40,000 | ||
| H10 | Fully burdened salary for a facilities FTE | Composite | €35,000 | €35,000 | €35,000 | ||
| H11 | Fully burdened salary for an HR FTE | Composite | €48,000 | €48,000 | €48,000 | ||
| H12 | Fully burdened annual salary for a finance FTE | Composite | €50,000 | €50,000 | €50,000 | ||
| H13 | Cost of total monthly internal effort by service delivery managers and business-side project managers | H3*(H4/12)+H5*(H6/12) | €5,500 | €2,708 | €2,708 | €0 | |
| H14 | Cost of total monthly internal effort by administrative assistants |
Initial:(H1* H7* H8/12)+(H7* H9/12) Y1:(H1* H7* H8/12)+(H7* H10/12) Y2:( H1* H7* H8/12)+(H7* H11/12)+ (H7*H12/12) |
€7,000 | €4,250 | €9,900 | €0 | |
| Ht | Internal implementation cost | H2*(H13+H14) | €50,000 | €20,875 | €25,217 | ||
| Risk adjustment | ↑10% | ||||||
| Htr | Internal implementation cost (risk-adjusted) | €55,000 | €22,963 | €27,738 | €0 | ||
| Three-year total: €105,701 | Three-year present value: €98,799 | ||||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees reported that TOPdesk required low maintenance and management effort because their use of the solution did not require complex scripting or coding. The key stakeholders involved in the maintenance of the solution are application managers who oversee system performance, apply software updates, and maintain integrations with other tools. Interviewees said these resources also create reports, provide user support, and promote best practices to keep the platform aligned with the organization’s needs.
On the management side, interviewees described putting one resource in charge of optimizing the solution by identifying potential customizations or developments. This resource also acts as the bridge between internal teams and the service management platform.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
One functional application manager dedicates 20% of their time to TOPdesk.
One technical application manager dedicates 20% of their time to TOPdesk.
The fully burdened annual salary for an application manager is €60,000.
One service delivery manager spends 5% of their time managing TOPdesk, focusing on identifying potential developments and customizations.
The fully burdened annual salary for a service delivery manager is €65,000.
Adding modules does not change the maintenance and management effort the composite requires for TOPdesk.
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
The fully burdened annual salaries for application managers and service delivery managers, which may vary according to experience, seniority, and geographical location.
Additional complexity (e.g., more integrations), which could increase the maintenance and management effort required.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this cost upward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €71,000.
Percentage of time an application manager spends managing and maintaining TOPdesk
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I1 | Application managers required internally for maintenance | D3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| I2 | Percentage of time spent each application manager spends on maintenance of TOPdesk | D4 | 20% | 20% | 20% | ||
| I3 | Fully burdened salary for an application manager | D5 | €60,000 | €60,000 | €60,000 | ||
| I4 | Subtotal: Total cost of application managers with TOPdesk across all offices | I1*I2*I3 | €0 | €24,000 | €24,000 | €24,000 | |
| I5 | Service delivery managers involved in managing TOPdesk (FTEs) | D9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| I6 | Percentage of time service delivery managers spend managing TOPdesk | D11 | 5% | 5% | 5% | ||
| I7 | Fully burdened salary for a service delivery manager | D12 | €65,000 | €65,000 | €65,000 | ||
| I8 | Subtotal: Total cost of a service delivery manager who manages TOPdesk | H5*H6*H7 | €0 | €3,250 | €3,250 | €3,250 | |
| It | Internal maintenance and management cost | H4+H8 | €27,250 | €27,250 | €27,250 | ||
| Risk adjustment | ↑5% | ||||||
| Itr | Internal maintenance and management cost (risk-adjusted) | €0 | €28,613 | €28,613 | €28,613 | ||
| Three-year total: €85,838 | Three-year present value: €71,155 | ||||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees described TOPdesk as intuitive, which they said contributed to time efficiency when training agents to use the platform. They described using workshops, online resources (e.g., videos with screen-recorded demos), and sharing documents to support training. IT and service desk teams typically required less time to be trained due to their familiarity with service management tools, while nontechnical teams benefitted from more guided support. The service delivery manager at the higher education organization said: “To train our IT agents, we distributed videos and documents to the staff for two weeks using screen recordings. It took us three to four days to put these videos together.”
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
Fifty IT and service desk agents are trained during the initial implementation.
Twenty facilities agents are trained at the end of Year 1 for deployment in Year 2.
Twenty finance and HR agents are trained in Year 2 for deployment in Year 3.
IT and service desk agents each receive 1.5 hours of training.
Workers from other teams each receive 2 hours of training. Because IT and service desk teams are already used to working with service management tools, they tend to pick up TOPdesk faster than non-technical teams, who often need a bit more guidance during onboarding
Risks. Organizations may realize results that differ from those presented in the financial model due to:
Variation in familiarity with service management tools.
Differences in prior experience with service management tools across teams.
The number of teams that use TOPdesk.
The number of agents who use TOPdesk.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this cost upward by 10%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of €3,000.
Training time for IT and service desk agents in the initial period
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J1 | Agents who require training | Composite | 50 | 20 | 20 | 0 | |
| J2 | Time agents spend on training (hours) | Interviews | 1.5 | 2.0 | 2.0 | ||
| J3 | Fully burdened salary for an agent | Composite | €45,000 | €35,000 | €49,000 | ||
| Jt | Training cost | J1*(J2*(J3/2,080 )) | €1,623 | €673 | €942 | €0 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↑10% | ||||||
| Jtr | Training cost (risk-adjusted) | €1,785 | €740 | €1,037 | €0 | ||
| Three-year total: €3,562 | Three-year present value: €3,315 | ||||||
| Initial | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total | Present Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total costs | (€83,245) | (€119,935) | (€135,518) | (€117,254) | (€455,952) | (€392,369) |
| Total benefits | €0 | €406,655 | €506,518 | €572,583 | €1,485,756 | €1,218,485 |
| Net benefits | (€83,245) | €286,720 | €371,000 | €455,329 | €1,029,804 | €826,116 |
| ROI | 211% | |||||
| Payback | <6 months |
The financial results calculated in the Benefits and Costs sections can be used to determine the ROI, NPV, and payback period for the composite organization’s investment. Forrester assumes a yearly discount rate of 10% for this analysis.
These risk-adjusted ROI, NPV, and payback period values are determined by applying risk-adjustment factors to the unadjusted results in each Benefit and Cost section.
The initial investment column contains costs incurred at “time 0” or at the beginning of Year 1 that are not discounted. All other cash flows are discounted using the discount rate at the end of the year. PV calculations are calculated for each total cost and benefit estimate. NPV calculations in the summary tables are the sum of the initial investment and the discounted cash flows in each year. Sums and present value calculations of the Total Benefits, Total Costs, and Cash Flow tables may not exactly add up, as some rounding may occur.
From the information provided in the interviews, Forrester constructed a Total Economic Impact™ framework for those organizations considering an investment in TOPdesk.
The objective of the framework is to identify the cost, benefit, flexibility, and risk factors that affect the investment decision. Forrester took a multistep approach to evaluate the impact that TOPdesk can have on an organization.
Interviewed TOPdesk stakeholders and Forrester analysts to gather data relative to TOPdesk.
Interviewed four decision-makers at organizations using TOPdesk to obtain data about costs, benefits, and risks.
Designed a composite organization based on characteristics of the interviewees’ organizations.
Constructed a financial model representative of the interviews using the TEI methodology and risk-adjusted the financial model based on issues and concerns of the interviewees.
Employed four fundamental elements of TEI in modeling the investment impact: benefits, costs, flexibility, and risks. Given the increasing sophistication of ROI analyses related to IT investments, Forrester’s TEI methodology provides a complete picture of the total economic impact of purchase decisions. Please see Appendix A for additional information on the TEI methodology.
Benefits represent the value the solution delivers to the business. The TEI methodology places equal weight on the measure of benefits and costs, allowing for a full examination of the solution’s effect on the entire organization.
Costs comprise all expenses necessary to deliver the proposed value, or benefits, of the solution. The methodology captures implementation and ongoing costs associated with the solution.
Flexibility represents the strategic value that can be obtained for some future additional investment building on top of the initial investment already made. The ability to capture that benefit has a PV that can be estimated.
Risks measure the uncertainty of benefit and cost estimates given: 1) the likelihood that estimates will meet original projections and 2) the likelihood that estimates will be tracked over time. TEI risk factors are based on “triangular distribution.”
The present or current value of (discounted) cost and benefit estimates given at an interest rate (the discount rate). The PV of costs and benefits feed into the total NPV of cash flows.
The present or current value of (discounted) future net cash flows given an interest rate (the discount rate). A positive project NPV normally indicates that the investment should be made unless other projects have higher NPVs.
A project’s expected return in percentage terms. ROI is calculated by dividing net benefits (benefits less costs) by costs.
The interest rate used in cash flow analysis to take into account the time value of money. Organizations typically use discount rates between 8% and 16%.
The breakeven point for an investment. This is the point in time at which net benefits (benefits minus costs) equal initial investment or cost.
Total Economic Impact is a methodology developed by Forrester Research that enhances a company’s technology decision-making processes and assists solution providers in communicating their value proposition to clients. The TEI methodology helps companies demonstrate, justify, and realize the tangible value of business and technology initiatives to both senior management and other key stakeholders.
1 Source: Julie Mohr, Charles Betz, “From Legacy ITSM To Proactive Service Management: Why 2025 Is The Year To Rethink Your Strategy,”Forrester Blogs.
2 Total Economic Impact is a methodology developed by Forrester Research that enhances a company’s technology decision-making processes and assists solution providers in communicating their value proposition to clients. The TEI methodology helps companies demonstrate, justify, and realize the tangible value of business and technology initiatives to both senior management and other key stakeholders.
Readers should be aware of the following:
This study is commissioned by TOPdesk and delivered by Forrester Consulting. It is not meant to be used as a competitive analysis.
Forrester makes no assumptions as to the potential ROI that other organizations will receive. Forrester strongly advises that readers use their own estimates within the framework provided in the study to determine the appropriateness of an investment in TOPdesk.
TOPdesk reviewed and provided feedback to Forrester, but Forrester maintains editorial control over the study and its findings and does not accept changes to the study that contradict Forrester’s findings or obscure the meaning of the study.
TOPdesk provided the customer names for the interviews but did not participate in the interviews.
Duncan Watkins
Tanvi Dahiya
November 2025
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© Forrester Research, Inc. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited. Information is based on best available resources. Opinions reflect judgment at the time and are subject to change. Forrester®, Technographics®, Forrester Wave, and Total Economic Impact are trademarks of Forrester Research, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies.
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