Business Speak

Alicia Sandino

Entrepreneurs and small businesses are getting on board with a virtual phone service. Its mobile-friendly capabilities and business-focused features are just a few of the alluring aspects of this business communication service. Not too long ago,if you were an entrepreneur you had to rely on your personal cell phone plan and phone number to stay in touch with prospects and clients, keeping you from establishing a professional image.

Thoma Bravo LLC, a leading private equity investment firm, today announced that it has acquired Continuum, a premier global IT management platform for Managed IT Service Providers (MSPs), from Summit Partners. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. 

Continuum, headquartered in Boston, is an international firm that provides MSPs with the platform, services and processes

Posted on May 19, 2017 by Jeff Shuey

Does the gig economy encourage the rise of the Uber Specialist?

Where Uber Specialist means a person with deep and specific skills.

Note: This has NOTHING to do with the car service.

Effectively this is the market and model for independent consultants since the dawn of time. Where someone has a unique skill that people are willing to pay for.

As I write this sequestered on Bainbridge Island, I’ve just returned from DattoCon 2017 in Denver. This was the fifth installment of this partner conference and, to cut to the chase, I will repeat. Ironically this was my first DattoCon conference; I’ve tracked the firm for ten years all the way back to the basement. In those days, I could call and Austin McChord, founder and CEO, answered the phone directly.

This past week I received an announcement that Bainbridge Technology Solutions was closing its doors on Winslow Way (“Main Street”) on Bainbridge Island. It’s been a storefront institution for over a dozen years; a welcome man cave to pick up parts, order a new system and most importantly, receive expert repair services. It joins other recent closures such as an office supply store (“Paper Products) just down the street.

At the recently completed Sage Summit in Atlanta, I enjoyed a 1:1 meeting with George Foreman, boxing legend, following his keynote address to several thousand attendees. My question was simple – it was about advice for my 18 year old son who is an Eagle Scout and will start at CalPoly this fall studying information systems.

Starting a business for the first time can be tricky, but it’s not impossible. Follow these sage advice tips to keep your head above water in the beginning stages.

By: Matt Knee Founder and President of MyNewCompany.com

Over the past few months, I’ve teased you with forthcoming changes in the world of Jamison West. He essentially divested

Small business owners have a lot of responsibility. Between daily operations and managing employees, it’s hard to imagine having time to worry about your network connect.

Hear ye! Hear ye! We have a limited beta opportunity for SMB Nation peeps with Pivot, a Marketing as a Service (MaaS) offering. Essentially, we’re providing a way for you to outsource sales and marketing to experts so you can FOCUS on what you do best: GEEK OUT!

Today’s global economy and advanced technologies allow us to include remote employees into our teams. With the use of various collaboration tools, cloud sharing apps, and video conferences, managers can effectively set goals, assign tasks, and get the desired results in real time.

Highly efficient and productive teams have become more important than ever before at pushing best-in-class products and services to the market ahead of competitors.