WATCH OUR VIDEOS
|
|
Rise in RDP attacks as hackers target at remote worker Cyber Crime has had an 894% increase in brute force attacks on Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) servers during the pandemic. These attackers have exploited remote login credentials, as many employees have worked from home as a necessity to do their job. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Tony Anscombe at ESET to share the threat landscape and what MSP’s should be encouraging their customers to do to protect their businesses.
|
||
|
|
Unlock Operational Advantages with Liongard Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Liongard at the IT Nation 2022 Conference. Liongard gives MSPs an operational advantage that delivers both higher profits and an exceptional customer experience. The Liongard software has been built by MSP veterans with the focus to eliminate error and reduce manual labor, in order to help MSP’s increase their bottom line. Through visibility management and 70+ integrations, Liongard retrieves data from every environment you manage, and brings you the data to fuel your workforce. Listen as Harry, Joe, and Matt discuss data management, and how to use it to increase your bottom line. |
||
|
|
Harry meets with Axcient’s newly appointed CEO Rod Mathews Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Rod Mathews, who was recently announced as Axcient’s President and Chief Executive Officer. Mathews brings almost 30 years of technology industry experience to Axcient and is a seasoned IT industry veteran with a deep understanding of the data protection space and the Managed Service Provider community. Mathews mentioned he was excited to join the Axcient team and build on their track record of growth. Watch the full interview and learn about Axcient’s plans for the future.
|
||
|
|
Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Marvin Bee of MB Systems of South Florida Inc to discuss the 2022 TechCon Unplugged Conference, which was a dedicated multi-day conference for IT business owners. This in person conference which took place in September 2022 in Chicago catered to IT professionals who wanted to learn from thought leaders on how to improve and maintain their MSP business. |
||
|
|
Data breaches costed US organizations on average 4.35 million in 2022 which is a rise of 2.6% from 2021. With most breaches involving human elements, organizations should be running to provide employees cyber security awareness training. With ransomware on the rise and employees working from many locations’ security awareness should be top of mind. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Josh Weiss of Logic Technology Consulting Group to discuss security awareness and the expanding threat landscape. |
||
|
|
Spiceworks Ziff Davis 2023 State of IT Report In September Spiceworks Ziff Davis published findings in its annual 2023 State of IT report — exploring IT budget plans and tech trends to uncover areas of growth for tech vendors and empower buyers with data to inform strategies for navigating an uncertain market. Although 83% of businesses are concerned about a recession in 2023, B2B tech marketers can look forward to growth — 51% of organizations plan to increase IT budgets in 2023 vs. a narrow 6% that plan to reduce their spend. For an in-depth understanding of how recent events and an uncertain economic outlook would impact organizations listen to Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation as he chats with Peter Tsai of Spiceworks Ziff Davis to get a high overview of the report.
|
||
|
|
The Best Kept Secret: Cove Data Protection Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation chats with Stefan Voss at the N-able Empower conference about Cove Data Protection. Backup is essential, but it’s only the start. True data protection requires a cloud-first solution for today’s cloud-first world. With ransomware threats looming, you need more than cloud tacked onto the same-old image backup . Cove offers a better way to protect servers, workstations, and Microsoft 365 data. Listen as Harry and Stefan chat to learn more about Data Protection.
|
||
|
|
Malware has evolved into a booming business for cybercrime organizations. With the latest evolution of Malware-as-a-Service (MaaS) which is a term used to describe the unlawful leasing of software and hardware for the purpose of conducting cyber -attacks. Although, MaSs typically targets low to medium vulnerabilities, ransomware is estimated to cost the world over $1bn yearly. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Denis Wilson of DWP Information Architects Inc. to discuss the evolution of Malware and the latest developments. |
||
|
|
Updates in the IT Industry with Josh Liberman On this SMB Nation Podcast Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Josh Liberman of Net Sciences Inc to discuss the industry. During the podcast they cover, the National Society of IT service providers, The Physical and Cyber Convergence Forum, Exchange, ChannelCon and much more. |
||
|
|
We never know for sure what lies ahead, however, one thing we know is that many do not plan for the future. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Danny and David Brown of Twins Talk It Up about how leaders, business owners, members of the C suite, all have legacies that they are building for the next generation. During this episode they talk about great legacies, bad legacies, and five simple exercises you could do to help build your legacy when you think about the next generation. |
||
|
|
As we head into fall Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Ben Baker to find out what he is hearing, seeing, and predicting for the close of 2022. Ben and Harry touch on the great resignation, what companies are currently doing with their funds, the recession and the potential opportunities it will bring and much more in this brief podcast.
|
||
|
|
Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation meets up with Michael Cullen and David Weeks at the N-able Empower Conference in Las Vegas to chat about what is coming out of the conference. From Cloud adoption to recession proofing and learning from others, this conference covered the gamut of ways to grow and succeed. Listen as Harry, Mike, and David touch on their key learning from the conference, and what we can expect from N-able in 2023. |
||
|
|
The MSP industry is recession resilient Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with John Pagliuca at N-able’s Empower conference in Las Vegas to discuss the recession. John Pagliuca doesn’t believe that anything is recession proof, however, he does believe the MSP industry is recession resilient. Listen to this podcast and learn what partners can do to recession proof their business and weather an economic downturn that could be on the horizon. |
||
|
|
Constraints in Networking Space Covid-19 restrictions and their lingering after-effects have been creating disruption around the availability of goods for the past few years. These effects have hit most industries across the world including IT. While many industries have normalized significantly, indicators show that the IT industry may be affected long into 2023. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Sachi Thompson of Curvature to discuss the networking space constraints around supply chain and how it may affect your business.
|
||
|
|
With the 2022 Conference schedule in full swing, and 2023 just around the corner Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with John Hill of TechSage Solutions to discuss how the end of the conference season is wrapping up and what conferences you do not want to miss. |
||
|
|
In 2022 we have seen more events returning to in person as more and more people feel comfortable gathering indoors with large groups of individuals. This is great to hear, as events provide the opportunity to network, stay up to date on the latest trends and educations, build your brand and finding new business. With networking being critical to your career and professional development, it is important to identify the kinds of networking events you want to attend. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Stefan Deeran of Vendelux to discuss what events to attend, and why in person events are so powerful. |
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Soft skills to master when selling cyber security Despite global efforts the number of cyber attacks get worse each year. While the statistics seem dreadful, nearly every industry has had to embrace new solutions and prepare for the future. Although many have embraced cyber security, it is still the number one concern for many business owners today. This concern puts MSP’s in a great position to address these apprehensions, and add cybersecurity services to their offerings. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Lisa Shorr to discuss mastering the skills for selling Cyber Security. |
||
|
|
Protect Your Business Against Cyber Risks As a business owner you face many risks from property damages and injuries to loss of product and much more. But did you know your business also faces risk when it comes to using technology. With the rate in security hacks, breaches, and cyber-attacks, the risk of data loss has increase exponentially causing businesses to lose money every day. To protect against those risks many businesses are adding cyber insurance to their portfolio of insurance coverages. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Larry Meador of DataStream Cyber Insurance to discuss the increasing demand for Cyber Security, and the risk for not having the correct policies in place.
|
||
|
|
In today’s ever changing landscape of cloud computing, cybersecurity threats, labor shortages and the emergence of new technologies many MSP’s are examining what they want for their business, and how they are going to obtain being masters of so many diverse technologies. Rather than try to master such a diverse portfolio of offerings in house, many MSPs are looking to mergers and acquisitions to expand their offerings, and join in joint ventures. Luckily global mergers and acquisition activity has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, with no slow down in sight. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Ted Hulsey to discuss the current state of the IT channel and how mergers and acquisitions may affect it. |
||
|
|
At the CompTIA Channelcon 2022 Conference CEO Todd Thibodeaux announced the launch of a new program to foster more careers in technology. With the need for jobs in most sectors of the economy CompTIA is looking to supercharge individuals to be ready to launch full force into the IT industry. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Dave Sobel to discuss this new initiative as well as the CompTIA Channelcon Conference as a whole. |
||
|
|
In the past few years, mergers and acquisition (M&A) activity has continued to increase across many industries.In this video, Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Nicholas Ashford to discuss all things acquisitions. They discuss the 3 stages of MSP Acquisitions, recurring revenue, how investors value MSP Business and get their return on investment, and what to expect during and post-acquisition. |
||
|
|
In 2020, large numbers of workers, restricted from going to the office, began to take a hard look at their lives. From commute times, to cost of living in big cities, and more, many people flocked to “gateway communities” (small communities located close to national parks, ski resorts, and outdoor recreation). Although many people are continuing to work from home, many analyst are wondering if these Zoom towns will continue to succeed. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation brings us to the small Zoom town of Crested Butte to share his findings. |
||
|
|
|
If you are a Cloud Consultant, tech reseller or tech consultant who is looking for inspiration, motivation and education to scale your Cloud Consulting business – you should be listening to The Accelerate Sales Podcast with Paul Higgins. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Paul Higgins of Cloud Consultants Collective to discuss how Paul is helping Cloud Consultants (CC) to scale, and the communities you need to join. |
|
|
|
Windows 11 has arrived, and was designed with you at the center. With a world who is heavily reliant on using PC’s, Microsoft has focused on delivering an OS that makes your life easier, more secure, connected, all while helping you get things done faster. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Lisa Hendrickson of Call That Girl to discuss Windows 11 tips, tricks, and what not to do. |
||
|
|
MSP Marketing after the Pandemic Marketing during the pandemic was a shift for many businesses, as we went from in person handshakes to digital marketing and communication. With these fluctuations it probably comes to no surprise that consumer behavior shifted during the pandemic, with businesses shutting their doors, and face to face interactions becoming nearly nonexistent. Now that the world is opening up many businesses are looking back at the long term implications of the pandemic in terms of how they market themselves. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Alex Fields of IT Pro, as he shares some of his secrets for marketing after the pandemic.
|
||
|
|
Video Conferencing Microsoft Teams at a glance In times when people are still working remotely, the need to stay connected has become more important than ever. With in person meetings limited, video conferencing systems have become the lifeline to organizations everywhere. Microsoft Teams is one of the leading video conferencing platforms on the market today. With its robust, reliable remote meeting solutions for team collaboration and communication, Microsoft has made it easy to communicate and collaborate with others. Through its chat and voice calling features, team sharing, editing files in real time and shared virtual workspace, Teams has made collaborating with others seamless . Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Denis Wilson to discuss the recent updates to Teams.
|
||
|
|
To move or not to move- Windows 11 vs. Windows 10 Windows 11 is the newest version of Microsoft Windows OS, and has some handy new features along with several changes. With the new release you are probably contemplating if Windows 11 is worth the upgrade, and if you should take that leap. If you are wondering if Windows 11 is right for you, you won’t want to miss this podcast where Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Susan Bradley to discuss the pros and cons of Windows 11 and what you should do. |
||
|
|
Customers are the core of your business, so it is vital you keep generating new customers, as well as continue to retain your existing customers. Whether you are a startup or an established business it is essential to identify your customer base, recognize these customers and build a strong relationship with them. After all these are the people who keep your business going. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Nigel Postings to discuss the importance of building your customer base, and how he is helping businesses find their target audience. |
||
|
|
Power of the Pause: Public Speaking Strategies When someone says public speaking, some people love it, and others are terrified of the thought. Although you may have a fear of public speaking, at some point in your career you will be called upon to do some sort of public speaking. It may be to a board room of colleagues, or onstage at a conference, but at some point you will need to speak up. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Danny and David Brown to discuss strategies for public speaking, and how they can help you advance your career. |
||
|
|
2022 has brought on a mix of live events, digital events, and hybrid events across the world, as people are anxious to get back together. With the industry booming, and MSP’s wanting training, education, and networking, events are the place to be. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Bob Coppedge of Simplex-IT to discuss events in the industry. |
||
|
|
Conferences and events are back and in full swing. With new education, new vendors, and many networking opportunities, Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Joshua Liberman of Net Sciences, Inc. to discuss the hot shows and what they have to offer. |
||
|
|
Podcasting is a booming industry with an estimated 2 million active shows, and about 70% of US citizens aware of podcasts. Although, podcasting has been around for awhile the popularity has grown and is predicted to continue to grow. With the growth in podcasts there are many things podcasters need to focus on in order to keep their audience coming back for more. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation and Ben Baker sit down to discuss the three things podcasters need to focus on. |
||
|
|
Cyber Insurance – What you need to know Unfortunately, data breaches, and cybercrimes are becoming more and more common. In fact last year was a record breaking year for cyberattacks with numbers expected to increase this year. As cyber criminals continue to invent new ways to attack, and companies paying more than they ever have for fines, legal fees, recovery fees, cyber insurance is becoming more an more necessary. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Marvin Bee to discuss the importance of cyber security, and how it has changed over the years. |
||
|
|
Must Watch Business Documentaries There are so many places for entrepreneurs to gain inspiration from biographies and podcast, to movies and documentaries. Streaming services like Amazon, Hulu, Netflix and more are starting to offer a huge amount of on- demand shows that are tailored to entrepreneurs and start up businesses. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Jim Beach of The School For Startups to discuss top shows and documentaries for entrepreneurs to watch. |
||
|
|
Small and Medium businesses have been hit hard over the past couple years. From the pandemic, to retaining and recruiting top talent, to most recently dealing with supply chain challenges, inflation, and more. These changes have left businesses to rapidly change their business models to keep up with the ever fluctuating landscape. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Jamison West to chat about the ever shifting landscape in the SMB space, consolidation, merges and acquisitions, and what they see for the future. |
||
|
|
The SMB IT community has morphed and changed over the years from starting as a groovy co-op to seeing incredible growth in the last few years. With the growth in the community we are seeing a rise in mergers and acquisitions. Despite the everchanging world with the pandemic, concerns of high interest rates, inflation, and limited resources, companies are looking to the future by digitizing, merging, and building strong marketing strategies. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Lisa Hendrickson of Call That Girl to discuss recent mergers and acquisitions in the industry and their predictions for the future. |
||
|
|
How to Start and Run a Successful I.T. Company Without Losing Your Shirt Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Tim Taylor author of How to Start and Run a Successful I.T. Company Without Losing Your Shirt to discuss the fundamentals of how to actually start your own IT company. Tim started out from scratch and built a successful business, listen and let Tim help you create a successful business by learning from his mistakes. |
||
|
|
Elevated concerns for cyber security risks worldwide The Russia-Ukraine war is driving elevated concerns for cyber security risks worldwide. While the current climate is unpredictable, cybersecurity experts are warning organizations to prepare for a potential in increased cyber- attacks by updating software, making sure patches are up to date, use multifactor authentication, and strengthen your passwords. As MSP’s you need to help reduce the impact and shorten duration should an incident occur to one of your customers. Harry Brelsford sits down with Anthony Oren, Nero Consulting Inc. to discuss the current cyber security situation and what you can do to prepare. |
||
|
|
Building a Community base on Strong Relationships Building a community starts with a culture that is focused on strong relationships, that help build referrals. Alignable is an online network community that focuses on just that. It helps connect small business owners across North America to drive leads and prospects, generate referrals, land new business, build trusted relationships, and share great advice. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Beatrice Phillips of THE ALPHA GROUP INTERNATIONAL who received the Business Person of the Year award in Orlando, to discuss the best kept secret to grow your business. |
||
|
|
A big part of driving marketing is connecting and creating engagements with your target audience. As MSPs you have a tremendous opportunity to be come more effective at marketing your business to drive growth through building effective connections with your customers. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Dan Albaum of Market Impact to discuss the importance of connections and positive impacts. |
||
|
|
Zebra’s SMB Specialization Program Zebra recognizes the challenges SMB companies face in today’s economy, and have built the SMB Specialization Program to help provide resellers the tools and support they need to build a strong pipeline and close deals in a highly competitive market. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Bill Cate of Zebra to discuss this SMB Specialization Program for North America and how it enables PartnerConnect partners to compete more effectively in the SMB market.
|
||
|
|
During the pandemic PC sales posted their fastest growth in 20 years, as the world prepared for remote work and learning. Although the PC sales spiked in Q1 2021, Q1 2022 global PC shipments is down according to Gartner. announced that “it estimates that PC shipments decreased 7.3% on an annual basis to 77.5 million units.” Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation meets with Denis Wilson of DWP information Architects on what the drop in PC sales means for MSPs. |
||
|
|
Grow your MSP through Marketing Marketing is hard, time consuming, and typically the last thing you work on (if it leaves the to do list). Although, marketing is typically pushed to the wayside, it is your avenue to improve your businesses profit, recurring revenue, work life balance, and driving more customers to ultimately help you grow your MSP. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Paul Green of MSP Marketing to discuss the importance of marketing and strategies you can immediately implement to grow your business. |
||
|
|
Technology moved much faster than Security Technology is moving faster than ever before. From robots responding to customers, AI anticipating orders before they are placed, and the ability to stream music, share cars, and have groceries delivered at the touch of a button is being driven by the latest technology innovations. With technology transforming daily it has opened up opportunities for cybersecurity attackers to use new technology for their advantage meanwhile defenders are trying to keep up. Harry Brelsford sits down with Aaron Warner to discuss security and how the pace of technology is effecting it. |
||
|
|
Recent Spikes in Cyber Terrorism Global Cyber Security has been threatening the world for the last 20 years, however, in the last couple of years we have seen businesses working overtime to gain an edge on these cyber threats. According to a recent report by Check Point Research the number of attacks on corporate networks increased by 50 percent in 2021 compared to 2020. With cyber-attacks on the rise Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Lori Tisinai of Computer Concepts USA to discuss what she is doing to fight cyber security and what recommendations she is giving her clients. |
||
|
|
Inflation is Changing the Dynamics in the Managed Services Space Small and Medium businesses are already balancing the cost of doing business and the margins continue to get thinner. Between the unpredictable supply chain raising costs, labor cost on the rise, and finding talent, small and medium businesses are having to make hard decisions when it comes to pricing. Harry Brelsford sits down with Ted Hulsy to discuss how inflation is changing the dynamics of business for MSPs. |
||
|
|
Cybersecurity Risk Assessments- Why your Business must have one The growing dependency on technology has resulted in a increasing number of cyber security threats. As the cyber security landscape changes, it is becoming more important than ever for business owners to look at and understand cyber security, as well as their business risks, vulnerability and how it can affect their business should they be attacked. Understanding the business risks, will help businesses make informed decisions on data and asset protection, as well as how exposed their business is. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with John Hill writer of Why Your Business Must Have Cybersecurity Risk Assessments: Learn the Reasons WHY From 14 Cybersecurity Experts to discuss the importance of Cybersecurity Risk Assessments. |
||
|
|
Network Monitoring is the practice of identifying components within the network that are in need of help or problem solving. These components can include but are not limited to components, availability, latency and reachability in the network. By monitoring your network using a monitoring software it can provide real time information to the network administrator to help the network run optimally, proactively determine needs, and optimize efficiencies. |
||
|
|
Microsoft New Commerce Experience You may have already heard the general release of Microsoft’s New Commerce Experience (NCE) which expanded to include M365, Dynamics 365, Windows 365, and Power Platform, took place earlier this year. This is the third phase of a multi-stage transformation to offer a unified experience to both partners and customers. In this third phase of the journey Microsoft focused on delivering a new experience in the Partner Center to provide partners with more flexibility and growth. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Dan Foote to discuss the Microsoft’s New Commerce Experience (NCE).
|
||
|
|
IT Asset Lifecycle Maintenance Maintaining, being efficient with resources, improving security, compliance, and having an insight into your businesses evolving IT asset needs are vital in maintaining your business. Proper practices of IT asset lifecycle management encompasses these key practices, while allowing your company to extend asset lifespans, reduce the cost of maintenance, and make the asset more reliable. IT asset lifecycle management starts with planning and continues all the way through the life of the asset. |
||
|
|
Cyber hygiene is the cybersecurity concept of personal hygiene. It refers to the fundamental best practices an organization takes to maintain their health. Just like personal hygiene there are three basic principles a company should use to protect their health, using products and tools that fit your needs, performing these hygienic tasks correctly, and establishing a routine. |
||
|
|
Building Confidence to Empower Your Team Building a successful company is about more than hiring the right talent. While hiring is important, it is just as, if not more important to help employees grow into valuable contributors to the team. Empowering employees is an important part of boosting the culture, morale, and employees value within the company. There are many ways to empower your team so that they feel permitted to become leaders. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Lisa Shorr to discuss empowering your team and boosting the culture and morale. |
||
|
|
Worrisome trends in Cybersecurity Although cyberattacks have been around for years, in the last year we have seen a new era of cyberattacks. These attacks are more sophisticated and have cost companies billions in recovery expenses, fines and lost revenue. As companies look to protect themselves with technology, employee training, and cyber insurance, they might not be as protected as they think. Unlike traditional insurance cyber insurance does not have a standard template for insurance. Each insurance policy is significantly different, and are currently becoming harder and harder to use. Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with Bob Coppedge of Simplex-IT to discuss cybersecurity and what the future may hold.
|
||
|
|
As attacks surge, Cyber Insurance Premiums hit new highs We are seeing a major shift in cyber insurance as premiums have increased between 30% and 110%. One school district even reported a 334% increase in their cybersecurity policy. As more and more big names are breached or hit with nasty ransomware strains, many are realizing the consequences and financial stresses this can have on their company. Most experts agree its not if your company will get hit its when. As cyber-attacks ramp up threatening data and privacy, cyber insurance companies have had to raise their rates partially due to claim frequency, the severity of claims and the uncertainty of what’s to come. |
||
|
|
Windows 11 is the newest major release of the Microsoft Windows NT Operating system which was released in 2021. Windows 11 follows Windows 10 which was released almost 6 years ago, and as you know a lot has changed in technology in the last 6 years. In the new version Microsoft updated a handful of features, including improvements to the Taskbar, support for android apps, and updates to the Notepad and Medial Player, along with creating a modern version which has a simple user experience. |
||
|
|
Pax8 Names Caroline Goles, Vice President of Digital Sales Strategy After 14 years with Microsoft, Caroline Goles embarks on a new opportunity as Vice President of Digital Sales Strategy with Pax8. With her vast experience in the worldwide channel, she is excited to join the Pax8 team to provide critical insights into the complexities of operating a global operations, as well as share her love and passion for the partner community. |
||
|
|
For many marketers 2020 and beyond has changed almost every part of their job. From moving to an overwhelming amount of digital marketing to engaging customers via virtual meetings, the workflow and engagements of marketing have changed forever. Although, many transformations have been made the array of sophisticated technology solutions available to help marketers has flourished. The technologies have help to create stronger campaigns and relations with customers. |
||
|
|
When to Outsource your own Technology For every business there comes a time when you need to consider outsourcing some of your operations, even if they are things you can do. After running businesses for years, and trying to accomplish all of the tasks in house we would run in to obstacles, lack the time, energy, and would put things off for too long. After some time we found we needed to look for resources to solve these obstacles. The decision to outsource your IT comes with understanding your business and generating the most value with your resources. |
||
|
|
When was the last time you bought a product or received a service where you went wow, this is really cool? In today’s ever changing world it have become harder and harder to wow your customers. Wowing your customers goes beyond just caring for customers, it takes more than doing what you promised. This may seem simple and obvious, but in the hustle and bustle of daily work, it's often overlooked. However, we have found that the simple things or personal touches such as hand written notes, or picking up the phone and calling the customer can create a wow experience. |
||
|
|
Over the past decade the world of technology has changed, morphed, and been turned upside down with many MSP’s learning they need to change their service model to be more of a proactive service model instead of a reactive service model. In order to be more proactive the management of internal tools in your toolbelt becomes one of your most important assets in efficiency in running your businesses. Tools like your RMM, your PSA, your backup and disaster recovery or security stack are key functions to your business, and have become more and more complex over the past decade. With the complexity of these programs the learning curve to make them effectively utilized for your organization is very steep. |
||
|
|
Longtime community member and MVP Susan Bradley joins us to share information on the technology community AskWoody. AskWoody is a combination of a website with an active community of people who answer questions, as well as a weekly newsletter. As a part of that newsletter, AskWoody has a combination or smorgasbord of things, ranging from windows, to Apple, to Microsoft 365, to free downloads that are still available that is vetted (they make sure that that any free software is vetted out because there's lotrs of strange stuff out there). And then last but not least, they have what they call the patch, listings master patch listings, and it's Susan’s kind of thumbs up thumbs down of when is it right to patch. |
||
|
|
What we learned from the Pandemic With the pandemic hitting hard and fast and few businesses having a plan for a global crisis, many businesses learned valuable lessons during the historic moment. With most employees leaving their office with no return day both owners, employees, and clients learned valuable lessons that many things cam be done from remote locations. |
||
|
|
2022 Predictions -The Six Shifting Paradigms Many individuals have written articles on their New Year’s Predictions filled with enthusiasm for the future. Although, many leading experts write New Year’s predictions, many partners have traditionally ignored them. This year, Howard Cohen takes a new spin on the traditional New Years predictions as he chats with us about what he has “seen over the past several years which has been gradual but tremendous change in the way people use technology to improve their work and their lives. The people have transformed. How they approach life has transformed. Much of technology has adapted to accommodate them.” |
||
|
|
Examining data in your business can provide much insight into how your business is running, customer behaviors, financials, and so much more. Through examining large amounts of data you can uncover hidden patterns, correlations, and other insights. With todays technology such as Power BI you can have rapid insight to extract data from multiple sources and bring it into one single pane of glass.
|
||
|
|
Industry Events- What to Expect For the past two years the event industry has been faced with incredible challenges due to the ever changing times. Although they have been through many challenges the event industry has moved forward forging a new future across all aspects of life and business. |
||
|
|
Since most of the world has been living virtually many companies are increasingly using webinars to host virtual events, lectures, presentations and training events. Although, many companies are leveraging virtual meetings and trainings to deliver content they are making the mistake of approaching these events as one-off events. The fact is that the materials from these webinars contain highly educational content that can be used in so many different ways. From tweets, to content articles, and even eBooks the content that comes from these virtual events is highly valuable and we need to maximize it. |
||
|
|
Importance of Training in Today’s World In today’s workforce challenges are never ending. As technology advances, teams work from various locations, and methods and strategies improve there is never a lack for knowledge, skills, leadership, and values. One of the best ways to enhance these skills is through training and development programs. These programs provide individuals with the opportunity to expand their knowledge, brush up on skills, and explore new horizons. |
||
|
|
In the current economic state it is becoming harder and harder for small business to survive. From labor shortages to supply chain restraints small businesses are facing huge challenges in there day to day operations. As an Independent MSP you are bearing the responsibility not only to overcome these challenges, but also provide industry leading technology, hardware and software, support, cloud technologies, while staying on top of operations, financials and managing the bottom line. |
||
|
|
It’s Hard to Find Talent and Harder to Find Sales People In today’s economic climate it is hard to find talent, however, MSPs are reporting that it is even harder to find talented sales people. Although sales positions have been around for hundreds of years, the job has not stayed the same and has become more complex with the fast paced society we live in. |
||
|
|
Importance of Customer Satisfaction To say customer satisfaction is important to your business is an understatement. Imagine if you came into work, and found out that half your customers left for your competitor. If that does not make you start to sweat just thinking about revenue, acquisition costs, payroll and more I am not sure what will. Sustaining a customer can be hard work, as each customers needs are unique. |
||
|
|
Have you ever wondered how much to charge for your services? If you have ever struggled with pricing rest assured you are not alone. With these uncertain times and inflation going up, a lot of MSP’s have said they have increased their rates by 12% over the last year. With many factors that go into deciding how much to charge your clients from range of activity, level of experience, to depth of project it is hard to determine what to do. |
||
|
|
Quarterly briefing with Park Place Technologies Park Place is a global data center networking optimization firm, that has a suite of services and a pool of global resources that they leverage to support data center and network optimization. From discovery service, data center services, IT asset relocations to remote hands, Wireless Transformation, IT Asset Disposition and so much more Park Place empowers IT with their flexible, dependable IT Services. |
||
|
|
Where we're headed with the world of work The way we work has changed drastically over the past 2 years, and we have entered the era of tela-everything. With Covid currently in full swing again, meaning people are restricted to their homes. Many businesses are looking to their MSP’s to keep their business running. |
||
|
|
In a year of what feels like never ending changes, the IAMCP took the motto of KISS in 2021. This many seem simple, however, it does come with challenges to many businesses. As an organization the IAMCP took a step back and looked at their processes, procedures, software, and overall organization. Through the process they focused on streamline and getting rid of the bloat as we're coming up to our 20th anniversary. |
||
|
|
Customer Experience is the Pulse of Every Business Customer experience is not only how a customer perceives your business, but is also a big factor in weather a customer will return to your business again. A positive customer experience is crucial to the success of your business, as a happy customer will likely become a loyal customer. There are many factors that go into the customer experience from employees personal brand, communication with customers (tone of voice, and the words you say), how employees dress, showing customers you care and so much more. |
||
|
|
Stress Management through Mindfulness Stress is the mind and bodies response to change, challenges, and or demands. Stress can have many different effects on people, and can become a chronic condition leading to both mental and physical health problems if not dealt with. One way to respond to stress is through being mindful. From walking to working, being mindful or aware of what you are doing, and the environments around you can make a huge impact on your stress. |
||
|
|
With the changes in the economy, environment, and life many Americans are quitting their jobs in record numbers, which many predict will continue into 2022. As the work environments change, from remote work, to virtual interviews, and more flexibility, many are seeking new employment opportunities, leaving many companies facing labor shortages with increased demand in many industries. |
||
|
|
Solution to Supply Chain Constraints This year we have seen some of the largest supply chain disruptions in modern history. Covid-19, inclement weather, labor shortage, are just the tip of the hat supply chain leaders have had to deal with this year. With many MSP’s struggling to get hardware, and high demands with businesses outfitting entire businesses to work from home we have seen a shift to preowned products.
|
||
|
|
Small Business Predictions 2022 Small business Owners have had quite the ride over the last two years. With the corona virus delivering repeat blows from shut downs, to supply chain backups, and daily changes small businesses have dealt with it all. As we look to 2022 many are optimistically cautious as it approaches. |
||
|
|
STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) has become such an important part of our world. With science, technology and engineering becoming some of the fastest growing and highest paid jobs, it is amazing that only 28% of the workforce is made up of women. Park Place Technologies has teamed up with iWish to empower girls with knowledge, confidence and the tools to develop their skills in the STEM arena. They believe when given the right tools early on they will develop their own STEM identity and bring it with them through higher education and into a career of the future. |
||
|
|
Cyber criminals are becoming more and more crafty every day, with the most recent tactic being to infect mobile devices. Although mobile malware is not currently as prevalent as malware attacks on traditional workstations the threat is growing. Earlier this year researchers discovered a new malware campaign named AbstractEMU which was geared at targeting mobile users through app stores. This malware was developed to obtain permission to silently modify the device, collect data, without any user interactions. |
||
|
|
With the number of cyber attacks in the last couple years, zero trust is rapidly becoming the cybersecurity model of choice for many organizations. Zero Trust is a approach to cybersecurity that eliminates trust and continuously validates every stage in a digital world. This idea is designed to protect modern environments no matter the network (local, cloud, or hybrid) with resources at any location. |
||
|
|
Expand your Cyber Security Knowledge Did you know that every Monday Andrew Morgan, Ryan Weeks, Gary Pica, and West Spencer host a cyber call (https://www.trumethods.com/lp/cybercall) to expose MSPs to industry exports through a collaborative production. Each week these experts will share their knowledge on specific domains to help elevate your cyber capabilities, grow your knowledge, and elevate your skills to help you grow your business. |
||
|
|
Why MSPs think MSS players are going to eat their lunch Typically, if you are an MSP you're a business person, and if you are an MSS you're probably a security person. In turn the way you look at things are slightly different. If you are a business person and you see another person doing services of any nature you may ask yourself if that person is a potential competitor, causing some MSPs to try and avoid contact with the world of MSS. In some cases the MSS have come to the MSP and asked if they would like to bundle my security services, my 24/7 managed sock, they said, I don't know this sounds like a gateway to you stealing my customers. But it's not the case, because the two businesses come from completely different backgrounds, and the last thing the MSS wants to do is manage somebody IT they don't want to do it. They don't want to touch it. |
||
|
|
What’s in store for 2022 in the Industry As the new year starts many businesses look to improve revenue streams, change business models, and improve their business practices. In many ways 2022 will follow these trends with MSP’s looking at the channel and saying how am I going to grow my business, get involved, and or change the way I am doing things. With this there's going to be a lot of acquisitions as normal. Although, this year will look like business as usual in many aspects, there is some hype around metaverses, and how to bring it into MSP businesses as an offering, how to make money with it, and how to sell it. |
||
|
|
What Social Media Platform Should I use Many companies and influencers who have long relied on Facebook to connect with fans, advertisers, clients, and to sell products are rethinking where they post after the companies platform went offline earlier this year. With the outage many small businesses realized how much they rely on social media not only to get their message out, but many saw a direct hit in their sales during the disruption. With these finding some businesses are leaning towards other channels of communications. |
||
|
|
Harry meets up with Arlin Sorensen at IT Nation to chat about Modes. Modes is a Mindset that combines how you define success, manage your service delivery offering, lead your teams, build systems, and develop partnerships. |
||
|
|
Weather you are a big MSP, small MSP, just opened or been in business for many years your business can operate at a high maturity level. The key to operating at a high maturity is less about revenue and more about having a plan for the future, agility, scalability, and growth. With operational maturity or functioning at a higher level of efficiency you can lead your business to operate at 2.6 times the bottom line revenue. |
||
|
|
After a year of changes many business owners are pondering their dreams of deals after a record year for global tech. With the major changes and disruptions that took place in 2020 and 2021 many companies have not only innovated but created opportunities in the market. With so much technology adoption, and companies still embracing technology in all forms there is no turning back, however, a lot of support is needed for businesses to succeed. With the ever changing landscape, and MSPs needing outside help to keep up some are turning to M&A. |
||
|
|
After missing a year due to the pandemic Harry met up with Rico and Steve from Help Desk Cavalary to recap the IT Nation Conference. After a full agenda of educational classes, hallway 101, and an exhibit hall both Rico and Steve said “ It was great to be back after two years getting to see people, shaking hands and talking along side them.” With the chance to connect with good friends and partners both individuals said the conference was phenomenal. |
||
|
|
Introducing Microsoft Defender for Business With security threats on the rise (there has been a 300% increase this year in ransomware attacks), many small and medium businesses are concerned they may be next. To address this concern Microsoft has designed Microsoft Defender for business which is an new endpoint security solution that brings enterprise grade security to small and medium businesses.
|
||
|
|
Outlook for Windows version Requirements Change As of November 1st Microsoft changed its minimum version requirements for connecting Outlook for Windows to Office 365. Outlook 2013 Service Pack 1 and later will be able to connect to Microsoft 365, however, older versions will no longer be able to connect to these services. With these changes Microsoft is hoping to improve security of it services. |
||
|
|
The channel has grown and changed over the years from VARs and Resellers to Solution Providers or MSPs. With the vast shift over the years some wonder if we should even be called “the channel” anymore.
|
||
|
|
Building Relationships as a Small Business Owner Every successful executive and entrepreneur will tell you, their most important asset is their network, and not their social media network but the network of people they actually know and work with. Not only does relationship building pertain to individuals it also plays a huge role in a businesses success. Weather you are a small or big business the customers you have and the relationships you build directly relate to your growth and profit. |
||
|
|
The emotional side of selling a small business Congratulations on building a successful business. Most MSPs spend years of pouring there heart, soul, blood sweat, and tears into building up there business, and although selling it for a handful of cash is amazing, there is also many emotions that may arise with the sale of your business. |
||
|
|
With the Industry’s biggest show taking place Nov 10th to 12th we catch up with Ted Hulsy to see what he is looking forward to. After being away for a year due to the pandemic there are two thing Ted is looking forward to. The first is catching with people and trying to figure out where people are experiencing growth, and having success in sales and marketing. The second is learning how people are capitalizing on the opportunity of securing the home office environment/work from home, that whole mega trend that is here to stay. |
||
|
|
A Sit Down with Acronis’s CEO Patrick Pulvermueller In July of 2022 industry veteran Patrick Pulvermueller joined Acronis as there CEO. With an extensive background in product development, a stint at GoDaddy and many executive positions in his career Pulvermueller is a great fit. Harry gets a moment at the Acronis Cyberfit conference to chat with Patrick about the three things he is focusing on in his new role and what he sees for the future of Acronis.
|
||
|
|
In today’s ever changing world businesses must capture opportunities in order to stay competitive. Thus it is more important than ever to educate yourself on the ever changing landscape by implementing new opportunities, and growing your knowledge. We meet up with Aaron Garza who shares with us the ever changing landscape as well as what he is recommending to his partners to stay up to date. |
||
|
|
After a long year of changes, Harry had the privilege of meeting with Serguei Beloussov (formerly the CEO) currently the Chief Research Office at Acronis during the recent Acronis Cyberfit Conference. Listen to the interview below to learn about what Acronis has been up to, and what they have in store for the future. |
||
|
|
Onsite Covid-19 Testing for Large Events As in person meetings and events resume all over the United States, many conferences are implementing another layer of health securities. To provide ease and bring confidence to attendees many conferences are introducing pre event, onsite, rapid Covid-19 antigen testing for attendees. Harry Brelsford recently attended the Acronis conference where he experienced onsite conference testing first hand. |
||
|
|
D&H, has made some great investments in the last three months in new manufacturers services and its team. Although D&H has consistently pursued growth over the years, they are currently focused on rapid growth through significant new investments, such as nearly 50 new team members in areas like IT, cloud, XaaS, professional services, security, MSP services, and unified communications. Along with the new team members they are also heavily investing in expanded vendor line card, and enhanced service offerings. |
||
|
|
Tales from the Trenches: Cyberattacks We focus on cyberattacks on government agencies, high tech companies, and other large companies but think, it will never happen to me. What do I have to offer these attackers? However, organizations and individuals around the world are increasingly finding themselves with lost data, stolen money, and or disruption to their computers. Unfortunately cybercrimes have become such a part of our daily lives, that many people personally know someone who has been attacked.
|
||
|
|
Increase in the denial of service attacks (DDOS) in the telecom sector The telecommunication industry keeps the world connected. Through data and voice communication apps such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp to standard VoIP services, telecommunications has come a long way. With data and voice being an integral part of many businesses it makes telecommunications a top target for attacks of DDOS. Many of us have seen in the past month how obvious these attacks have come. |
||
|
|
Podcasts are all the rage with over 50% of all homes being podcast fans according to (https://www.podcastinsights.com/). With more and more people listening to podcasts, many business owners are looking to podcast as a form of brand advertising. If you step back and look at podcasts, typically listeners are loyal, highly interested in the subject matter, and craving information. Doesn’t this sound like the perfect customer? |
||
|
|
Harry here in the zoom town of Crested Butte, Colorado, and I wanted to make a few quick fourth quarter predictions. The year has gone awfully quick, I hope you're feeling the same way. It's already q4 2021. And I'll keep it short and sweet. I'm predicting, we are going to have some real supply chain issues more than we've experienced in the past because of the pandemic. There are an awful lot of ships sitting offshore of the East and West Coast. These ships are carrying the materials needed and the distributors are feeling the pinch. As many of you know it is getting harder and harder to get the hardware components, and supplies you need to do your job as a managed services provider.
|
||
|
|
Most businesses today recognize the importance of continued education not only to keep up to date on product knowledge, but to maximize staff potential and keep your competitive edge in the marketplace. As MSPs keeping current on the latest updates, patches, risks, and saving money techniques can be hard.
|
||
|
|
It actually has to do with everything. First of all, crude oil is a commodity and it tends to go up and down. Right now it's going up with inflationary pressures, but if we dive a little deeper there are renewable energy resource windmills on the same land as the crude oil. That’s where you want to be in this new economy, especially for my career in technology with managed services providers, I'm going to frame it up. That's what we call recurring revenue versus natural resource. Revenue tends to come in spurts and then disappear when the natural resource runs out. So I would offer in this instant entrepreneur minute that you'll want to be the windmill and not be West Texas crude oil for your continued success.
|
||
|
|
MSP Corp Closes on Funding Round MSP Corp raised $35 million in new capital to acquire and or invest in MSPs in late September. MSP Corp is a Canadian based company who acquires and partners with high-performing Managed Service Providers in Canada and the United States to provide resources, technology, and business support to empower exceptional MSP teams. In todays landscape MSPs face huge hurdles in their day to day operation. Not only are they expected to provide industry leading technology, business guidance, and advice to their clients, they still need to manage the daily operations of their own business.
|
||
|
|
Future of Touch Screen Technology Touchscreen technology has revolutionized the way we go about our day to day lives. From smartphones, to touchless applications to manage customer interactions, and even streamlining operations, touch screens are appearing more and more in our lives. With the Covid 19 pandemic accelerating self-checkout it does not appear that touch are going away.
|
||
|
|
As we wrap up Q3 and head into Q4 2021 the SMB space has shown some major changes as well as some uptick. Harry shares with us his Q3 analyst report with some insight to what happened in Q3. |
||
|
|
Data Centers are a critical resource that many businesses depend on. From storing, processing and distributing data applications, these facilities house many organizations critical assets. These assets many times are vital to an organization’s day to day operations. |
||
|
|
Spiceworks Ziff Davis Annual 2022 State of IT Report In late September Spiceworks Ziff Davis (SWZD) published its annual report, 2022 State of IT, providing insight into IT budgets, and tech adoption plans. Spiceworks Ziff Davis has been doing this research for about 10 years, and every year they interview more than 1000 IT professionals to come up with the future trends and data included in the report. |
||
|
|
Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship The University of Texas realized that they had so many wonderful and exciting things that were happening related to innovation, entrepreneurship, including research and workshops, boot camps, classes, and curriculum, however, had nothing tying them together. So in the fall of 2020 they established the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship in order to bring faculty, staff, students and the community together to make sure that they have access to the types of resources and entrepreneurial training they need to explore their ideas and creativity. |
||
|
|
With the oil and gas industry being the largest component of Alaska’s economy, Alaska has had to look at how they will be effected with the transition to renewable energy. As renewable energy becomes more more competitive and fossil fuel becomes less necessary many Alaskans are already making the transition to adapt to technology by using its experience, unique geography, and natural resources. |
||
|
|
Today’s challenges with keeping up with compliance policies, standards, rules and laws can be exhausting. Especially when you are trying to prepare your organization for the CMMC compliance (to do business with the U.S. Department of Defense) and or any other government agency. Preparing yourself for these compliance and checklist can cause some anxiety and apprehensions. |
||
|
|
Preparing for a Ransomware Attack In today’s world of online use for almost everything it is no wonder that ransomware attacks have increased 7 times in the second half of 2020. With ransomware attacks happening on all types of organizations it is not a matter of if it will happen, it is a matter of when it may hit you and or your customers. The fact is ransomware has become much more involved with the average organization being impacted by 21 days of downtime according to Emsisoft. |
||
|
|
What will Conferences Look Like Conferences use to be a place for individuals to come together to exchange ideas, network, and do business in person, however with the Covid-19 pandemic we have seen the conference industry shift. From in person events to online, and back to in person we have seen conference transform to comply with the ever changing world around it. |
||
|
|
Work environment and location has now become a key factor for job seekers Over the years employees desires and benefits have changed. Employees once seeking pensions and great benefits are now seeking flexibility, healthy work habits, and working for a purpose. Having the choice in work environment and flexibility have become key factors for many in their jobs. A study done in June of 2021 shows a majority of companies (80%) want to continue with at least some work at home while 47% want to allow some folks to go full time at home. We meet up with Denis Wilson who shares with us the new work trends and what employees want. |
||
|
|
Three major opportunities for MSP providers With the huge transition to cloud technologies over the past couple years, there are some major opportunities for MSPs. Alex Fields breaks down his three top opportunities MSPs should be looking into. The first opportunity Alex shares with us is modernizing and management. The second is cybersecurity and compliance management, and the third which probably represents the largest opportunity in terms of new revenue is helping businesses to modernize their workflow. Watch and learn as Alex goes into depth on each of these opportunities and what you should be doing. |
||
|
|
Unfortunately, due to the increased rates of COVID in the United States IAITAM has decided to postpone its 2021 conference and Nashville. IAITAMs number one concern is to keep their members and employees safe and in order to do so felt it was best to cancel. Although, they canceled their conference in October they are already gearing up for May in Las Vegas. With the theme Peace, Love & Asset Management they are hoping you dust off your bell bottoms and join them. |
||
|
|
National Society of IT Service Providers Legislation and regulations are consistently changing. With IT being a hot topic, with cybersecurity, many believe that regulation and legislation are coming to the MSP community. Rayanne Buchianico has joined forces with Karl Palachuk and many other IT professionals, to get involved and influence legislators to transform the industry into a profession. Learn more about ITSP and how you can get involved. |
||
|
|
The next generation of Windows, Windows 11 was announced in June. Although, we do not know the exact release (some speculate October of 2021) you can download the first Windows 11 Insider Preview build today. This build has some new features, such as widgets, snap layouts, virtual desktops, getting android app support, a new store and more. |
||
|
|
Largest Ransomware Gang Disappeared In July one of the largest ransomware gangs disappeared without any explanation. The ransomware gang REvil is known for their recent attacks on Kaseya, JBS, and approximately 42% of all recent attacks. It is unclear why the groups online footprint just disappeared, however, there are speculations on weather the US took action, if the Russian government shut it down, or it disappeared for other reasons. |
||
|
|
The Channel Has Changed: Is Your Marketing Caught Up? When we look back over the years there have been many changes to technology and the IT channel. From break/fix to cloud computing, and in between the industry has seen some vast changes. With all of these changes many MSPs have had to evolve all parts of their business from operations, to sales, and even marketing.
|
||
|
|
Security Around Active Directory Active Directory is one of the primary focuses of cyber attackers as it contains the information attackers need to expand their access, establish connection, and more. By taking a deeper look into your Active Directory exposures, organizations can improve their security and data before the attacker tries to gain access to administrator accounts, credentials, records, data and more. |
||
|
|
Are you in the Right Position? Most small business owners say they work at least 50 hours a week. That is a lot of time doing the same things and having the same responsibilities. Have you ever thought am I in the right role? Would I be better in sales, or behind the scenes? Your goal should be to not only love what you do but make sure it fits within your lifestyle. |
||
|
|
One thing that many of us learned during the pandemic is that human beings are social and need interaction with others. Despite the quick pivot of doing business, and life virtually, many people are anxious to get back in the saddle of in-person meetings and conferences. |
||
|
|
Innovation, Mergers, and Acquisitions In the past year, not only have many of our worlds been turned upside down, but the MSP community continues to grow and mature. The last year has brought on many new challenges forcing small businesses to innovate, perhaps more than larger businesses. This is not because they wanted to, but because small business owners have had to pivot more quickly in order to stay in business. With many small businesses having to innovate they heavily relied on their MSP and their knowledge of what to do.
|
||
|
|
Secure Account Access in a Digital World With the increasing reliance on technology, and the raise in cyber threats to your privacy and information we need to be more attuned to safeguarding our computers, phones, tablets, pc’s and more. For many years we have relied on usernames and passwords to protect our digital accounts, but as most of you know that is not adequate. Usernames, passwords, and double authentication simply does not do the job anymore. |
||
 |
To Assist Small Businesses in North America- Lenovo Launches “Evolve Small” Campaign With 30.7 million small businesses in the U.S. accounting for 99.9 percent of all U.S. businesses (SBA, 2019) it is safe to say that small businesses are the heart of North America. If you look around your community small businesses are made up of our neighbors, friends and family, but most important are the pillars of our community. With many small businesses being hit hard by the Covid 19 pandemic Lenovo in partnership with Microsoft, Intel, and the Carolina Panthers has stepped up and built a campaign that focuses on providing relief to small businesses in North America. |
||
|
|
As an MSP many of you are providing your customers cybersecurity, and have a mission of staying ahead of the bad guys (easier said than done). With all of the current threats that have presented themselves over the years, Kaseya (2018), ConnectWise (2019), Webroot (2019), Ninja (2019), and SolarWinds many MSPs are wondering what is next. Although we can’t say what is next there are a couple things you can be doing today to protect yourself and your clients. First you need to start with knowing and understanding your vulnerabilities, and what needs to be done, to maintain and secure them. Next in a security world if you're thinking security first, it is trust but verify and it is constantly reverifying the trust, not an implicit trust that's always there. |
||
|
|
With the recent attacks on Kaseya, it is more apparent than ever that ransomware attacks have become a prolific problem which IT exports can’t keep up with . In 2021 the once quite problem has turned into a major security issue nationwide. With the cybersecurity industry stretched thin, and MSPs doing everything they can to prevent attacks, it’s hard to be certain that this can't happen to us. |
||
|
|
|
Kaseya announced that it had become the victim of a cyberattack on July 2. It appears that the attackers carried out a ransomware attack by leveraging a vulnerability in Kaseya's VSA software. According to Kaseya CEO Fred Voccola, less than 0.1% of the company's customers were included in this incident. The attackers are now asking for $70 million to repair the breach. There appears to be growing trend in attacks and we have to ask ourselves who will be next. |
|
|
|
Importance of Continuing Education Industries are constantly changing, and staying current with the latest developments, skills, and new technologies required can be hard. With our world changing at what feels like light speed it is more important than ever to stay abreast of these changes so you do not lag behind. Continuously improving your skills is the one surefire way to stay ahead of the competition and advance your career. |
||
|
|
Technology plays a roll in every business. No matter the size, or profession, technology is incorporated in business operations today. In the last two decades, technology has changed the way we do business, from how we shop, do research, communicate and operate our businesses. From making processes quicker, more effective and easier to document technology plays a huge role in our lives. Although technology plays a huge role, it is a relatively new industry which is still developing and changing. |
||
|
|
In March of 2021 the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was signed into law to continue the efforts to help with the impacts of Covid-19. The passing of this act expanded the employee retention credit from $5,000 in 2020 to up to $28,000 for 2021 with a combined total of $33,000 for both years. |
||
|
|
In the world of technology there is a constant shift in networking best practices, applications, infrastructure, security, and so much more. With these constant shifts it is understandable that you the MSP are always working to better your clients needs, and shifting to meet their needs to stay as a trusted business advisor. With these shifts it is important to stay ahead of the game and be knowledgeable to stay competitive in the ever changing technology landscape. |
||
|
|
With much of the world opening back up, and people getting back to the new normal, many are asking what is the future of events? Will they be in person, online, or a hybrid model of both in person and online? With many people waiting for in-person events to come back in some form, most people agree the value of face to face events in the past where taken for granted. There is nothing like the spontaneous experience of bumping into someone and having an ad hoc conversation. With that said there are some pro’s to online events, time, travel, cost, and more. |
||
|
|
Labor Shortage in Cyber Security While cybersecurity grows, businesses are facing a severe cybersecurity labor shortage. With a huge growth in the cybersecurity industry the need for qualified security professionals has dramatically increased, leaving many companies vulnerable to attacks. Although experts have been tracking cybersecurity for more than a decade the series of recent attacks on major digital security companies has been a wakeup call for many companies, adding to the shortage even more. |
||
|
|
18 Top Security Controls that every Business Should be Doing In May of 2021 the Center for Internet Security (CIS) released it 8th iteration of the CIS Critical Controls. Previously, these 20 controls aimed at best practices to assist in defense, where reorganized to 18 controls taking into account more of a focus on cloud services. This framework set up by the CIS affects everyone from home users, to organizations and even the government, and has been set up in effort to provide a safe and reliable standard of protection for IT systems from cyber threats. Watch as Alex Fields goes over the importance of Cyber Security and how the CIS free resources can help you. |
||
|
|
There are no shortages of lessons learned coming out of the pandemic. In addition to the economic, health, and working from home we all faced new challenges around every corner during the last year. As many of us found ways to navigate our new lives, many of us also took a look in the mirror and asked ourselves what are we doing, do we love it, are we over stressed, and so many other questions. |
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Competence, Charisma, Four Quadrant Model Building a successful IT team is a hard task, and although many of us look for technical skills relationship building skills are just as important . For success in a career in IT, there are two separate and distinct skill sets are required. First you must have top notch technical skills, but you must also have the ability to work with people. Don Crawley joins us to chat about how we can divide people into one of four quadrants on a four-quadrant model:
Watch as Don takes us through the four-quadrant model. |
||
|
|
Use of Technology in Nonprofit Organizations Nonprofits like many other organizations focus on how to grow their business, gain exposure, and increase productivity. With many businesses turning to simple technologies like social media to help excel their business, some nonprofits are using infrastructure technology to assist in their daily operations. Because technology is always advancing, both for-profit and nonprofit organizations may struggle to stay up to date on their tight budgets, however, effective use of technology can span innovation, improve efficiency and better deliver their mission. |
||
|
|
Microsoft Partner Program: Executive Level Changes What is going on with the executive table at Microsoft. With the recent changes in the executive team (Phil Sorgen, Eric Martorano, David Willis, and now Gavriella Schuster) some have come to wonder what is going on at Microsoft and what is next for these individuals. We chat with Howard Cohen to get his thoughts on the changes. |
||
|
|
There are a lot of conversations in tech going on, on LinkedIn, and Facebook and other areas about diversity of inclusion. With all this talk what really is Diversity and Inclusion and how does it affect your business? According to google “Diversity and inclusion are two interconnected concepts—but they are far from interchangeable. Diversity is about representation or the make-up of an entity. Inclusion is about how well the contributions, presence and perspectives of different groups of people are valued and integrated into an environment.” |
||
|
|
Where to get your Channel News With the increased availability of 24-hour news from a variety of sources and outlets, there is no lack of consuming the news. As MSP’s and business owners it is important to stay up to date on the latest news, technology and events in the industry. Have you checked out Channel Happy Hour? This site is devoted to the latest IT Channel news and, of course, the Channel Happy Hour Podcast. A show devoted to bringing you all the Channel news for the past week. |
||
|
|
Delegation is one of the hardest management tools for a leader to learn. As MSPs we like to be thought of as “Trusted Advisors” to our clients, not only to build a reputation for ourselves, but to also serve our clients the best we can. Larry Doyle joins us to share some situations he has come across in the last year where he is taking over clients, and they are saying they paid for or already have this or that, and come to find out they have none of it. |
||
|
|
Why You Should Consider Joining a Peer Group As a business owner and leader you may hear the term peer group tossed around. But what does it really mean? A peer group is typically a group of likeminded CEOs, entrepreneurs or business leaders that, ideally, have linear roles in similar size businesses. These professionals get together in general working groups to support each other, solve difficult challenges, evaluate opportunities, and develop strategies that help members achieve things that they wouldn't usually achieve on their own. These groups help business leaders be able to scale their business faster and more effectively than they could have ever hoped to do on their own. As they say a business can only go where the business owner and or CEO can go. |
||
|
|
State of the Union in the MSP Community MSPs have spent the last year scrambling to adapt to the ever changing environment around them. While helping clients get set up to work from home, managing their own offices, and trying to keep everyone around them healthy it has been a year to remember. With things looking up and many people currently vaccinated 2021 will be the year of transition. Many companies have become unfroze and many MSPs are signing new deals and winning new clients. With these positive changes brings pent up demand for more social interaction and networking. |
||
|
|
Save the Date for RetailNOW 2021! The retail IT channel’s #1 trade show, education conference, and networking event is back – bigger and better than ever! RetailNOW is taking place in person July 25 to 27th at the Gaylord in Nashville TN. Don’t miss out on this industry wide event gathering VARs, MSPs software developers, hardware vendors, and distributors linked in the retail technology space for a three day conference. Watch and learn more as Jim shares the ins and outs and why you need to be at this event. Read More |
||
|
|
Should MSPs Support Work from Home Employees In March of 2020 millions of Americans hurried and packed their desks to set up at home, thinking they would head back to the office in a few weeks. As the pandemic stretched into month and even a year, we are just starting to see talks about returning to the office. A recent study conducted by Verizon shows that 70% of Americans not only want to work in a hybrid model going forward, but they also expect that they will be working one to two days a week remotely. With 70% of the work force working in two locations MSPs are going to have to decide if they are going to support these work stations, as well as many remote devices such as mobile phones, iPads, and other devices. |
||
|
|
For most of us 2020 was tough, not only personally but professionally as well. With many businesses working from home, and making daily changing decisions about their business, it took a toll on many owners and CEO’s. Although 2020 came with it’s challenges 2021 is looking better. Have you ever thought about joining a peer group? 2021 may be the perfect time to join a peer group and have access to a network of likeminded business owners. Whether it’s the guidance and wisdom of a more experienced business owner, sharing of problems and solutions, or simply having access to a collection of fellow business leaders peer groups can be critical to helping rebuild and growing in 2021. |
||
|
|
SolarWinds MSP is rebranding to N-able At some point in Q2 SolarWinds MSP will be fading into the past, as they will be under going a brand change to update their name to N-Able. Although this rebranding is a new change for SolarWinds they are essentially resurrecting the N-able name as they acquired N-able nearly 8 years ago. |
||
|
|
D&H is reporting Blow out Earnings Even with the pandemic in full swing for most of D&H’s Fiscal year, they are reporting some blowout growth in earnings. With many people working from home, and children learning from home due to the pandemic, D&H saw a huge demand for devices. From headsets, to wireless needs, and new chrome books, D&H saw it all.
|
||
|
|
With Microsoft 365, you can collaborate with anyone, anywhere. Alex Fields shares with us his whole kit and caboodle which is a comprehensive publication on migrations from a traditional Windows Server Active Directory environment to Microsoft 365, configuration guides, and other things including a comprehensive checklist. Learn more about implementing the materials to better configure your Microsoft 365 tenant, to give it some governance, a little bit better security, and compliance. Read More |
||
|
|
As your MSP practice develops, you will handle everything from recruiting to terminating, advertising, seller relations, and developing your product offerings. Juggling all of these things and making customers happy is not just about fast, friendly service, because everybody says they can do that, but it's more about efficacy, and about inculcating a corporate culture or company culture in your own MSP of trying to execute on the first pass. It's all about practices and processes. Everyone can offer fast service and caring service, but what can set your company apart is the ability to deliver capable and effective service. I would argue that no matter how fast you fix an issue, if it continues to recur, the perception of your service will suffer. |
||
|
|
Earlier this year Microsoft released a number of patches affecting on-premise instillations of Exchange servers, which was actively being exploited by Hafnium. Hafnium is a newly identified group that is believed to be responsible for not only this attack, but also other attacks on internet facing servers. Even though the use of the vulnerability was described as limited it is believed that we will see a quick rise in numbers of attacks. |
||
|
|
Being a good listener can help you in every aspect of your life from family and friends, to colleagues at work. Although, many people feel communication through the phone is a thing of the past with all of electronic communication we use, it is actually one of the most important skills you can have. How well you listen has a major impact on your job effectiveness, and on the quality of your relationships with others. There are nine areas or nine tips that you can use to be a better listener. |
||
|
|
IATIAM is an association of IT asset managers that was started back in 2002. This association started off with a focus on compliance issues, to help educate small businesses on what they needed to remain compliant with their software. Since then IATIAM has grown their curriculum and best practices to include seven certification courses, which lead to a master's program at the university level. Currently IATIAM is in 126 countries and has almost 90,000 individuals. |
||
|
|
For more than a decade, the IAITAM Annual Conference & Exhibition (ACE) has served as the premier event in IT Asset Management. This year’s IAITAM event will be held May 19th and 20th online and is focused on taking your IT Asset to the next level. Through this strictly educational conference, you will not only walk away with nuggets of information you can use right away, but you will also meet and network with so many individuals. |
||
|
|
Ghost Policy stopping Windows Updates Josh Weiss joins us to share his experiences with Ghost Policy. About two months ago Josh installed some Intune files that set up a bunch of baseline policies, that included it’s app locker policy (a Software Restriction Policy). After realizing this was to much for his company he deleted it from his tenant. He then spent two months trying to figure out why he couldn't install any software once he signed in Intune. Recently he spoke with a Microsoft engineer who explained something called a ghost policy. In Intune policies are Device Configuration profiles. If you delete a device configuration profile, before assigning it, it will remain locked to any users who had had it. In order to remove this lock there is a process for going through the Microsoft Graph, confirming the existence of that and then deleting it. |
||
|
|
With tax revenue down and states hurting, many states are looking for every dime they can. With the goal to bring in more funds, MSPs and other small businesses are seeing an increase in tax audits with a focus on use tax. Use tax is a sales tax on the use of goods or certain services when sales tax has not been paid. Harry meets with Rayanne who is currently undergoing three separate sales tax audits from different states, to share her thoughts and what you need to do to protect yourself. |
||
|
|
Hybrid, WFH, or Back to the Office The days of reporting to the office may be a thing of the past, even after the pandemic is over. With many workers currently juggling working from home, and or a hybrid of split time, many workers will not be returning to the office full time. With this new model comes new expectations, and potentially new contracts for some employees reducing salaries and or pay based on the cost of living. Imagine you were living in the Bay Area working for a high power tech company, and then are able to work from home and move to a small town which has substantial lower cost of living. If you no longer have that high cost Bay area living, you may no longer have the compensation that goes along with it. Watch as Phelim and Harry discuss the future of work. |
||
|
|
Looking to Grow, and Looking to Grow Fast Businesses are always looking for ways to improve, whether it is implementing new technology’s, offering new products, or streamlining procedures. In the current economic state a lot of MSPs and a lot of tech companies and shops, are looking to grow, and looking to grow fast. However, growing a small business isn’t easy, and typically is one of the toughest challenges many businesses face. No Marketing Marv joins us to try to figure out the right way to grow. Read More |
||
|
|
With the large number of on premise exchange (exchange being the server that runs email for corporations), there was a significant vulnerability discovered earlier this year regarding security. With further investigation it was found that in a lot of Exchange Servers have in fact been hacked, or breacedh in some manner. With this news many are talking about how you should be in the cloud, and on Office 365, because everything is safe. However, with all this talk it was interesting to learn in the last 12 months, Google, Amazon, Azure, Microsoft, and more have all had downtime’s. |
||
|
|
On February 4, 2021, House and Senate Democrats introduced the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act of 2021. This is followed by an earlier version of the PRO Act that passed in February of 2020. If this act passed it would be the most significant labor law reform in the United States since the World War II-era. If passed this act would drastically change the landscape of employer/union relations as well as gig income or gig workers. Jim Beach joins us to share his knowledge on the PRO Act and what you should pay attention to. |
||
|
|
In a crisis, many businesses are left in a lurch, wondering how to move forward, and how to efficiently communicate with customers. With the Covid 19 pandemic many organizations no matter the size felt these struggles. Although most leaders know that communication is crucial, many where left wondering what is next. CJ Arlotta from The Crisis Averted podcast joins us to share his wisdom. |
||
|
|
Consistently finding the right person to hire has continued to perplex and frustrate hiring managers and employees. With many people looking for jobs, many ask why is it so hard to hire? According to research done by social media giant LinkedIn, 50% of job candidates applying for entry-level positions aren’t even showing up for their interviews! Not to mention, many companies receive hundreds of resumes for one job listing, and the majority of resumes are not applicable to the job. We meet up with Mike Menefee as he share some of his insights into hiring. Mike shares with us after glazing over hundreds of resumes that some qualified candidates haven't been trained or haven't taken the time or care to look over the resume. There's a ton of spelling issues, grammatical errors and not updated resumes. Watch and learn more. |
||
|
|
One of the first questions in building a marketing campaign and or connections within business is where does my audience congregate? How do I connect with individuals in my industry. Unfortunately, there is no clear platform that answers this questions. We meet with Tim Kubiak as he chats with us about his experiences on two of the hottest marketing platforms LinkedIn and Facebook. Tim has actually been running for about 60 days now an experiment on using Facebook, watch as he shares his experiences and what he has found out.
|
||
|
|
Remote Work, Hybrid, or Back to the Office? The past year has been a whirlwind of changes not only for organizations and businesses, but for life in general. With all of the changes that have gone on we have seen organizations mature, build amazing resilience, and come to grips with this new reality that people can actually be more productive from home. With the last year as a testing ground many companies have announced plans for post pandemic work life. The consensus is that many companies will offer a flexible hybrid models, allowing options for people to work remotely, in the office or a combination of the two. With this hybrid model still rolling out MSPs have a large opportunity to make sure that telecommunication, software, security and other technologies are up to date and in place to allow workers to continue to be flexible. Watch as Jeff and Harry chat about the new normal. |
||
|
|
Are You Asking the Right Questions In today’s fast paced world much of our workday is spent asking others for information, from status updates on jobs, to questions regarding solving tech problems. Although, most of us would not think of questions as a skill that can be honed or how you ask a question could make a conversation more productive, the reality is a simple question can change the outcome of many situations. Harry sits down with Laura Steward as they chat about questions and how both of them have said that they didn't take advantage of something because they didn't ask the right question, or they didn't even ask a question. Watch and learn how you can unlock the uniquely powerful tool of questions and how it can spur learning and the exchange of ideas. |
||
|
|
With the merger of Synnex and Tech Data validating the value distribution plays in the channel many are asking what is next. SMB Nation had the opportunity to speak with Jason Bystrak of D&H who shared his excitement about the opportunity this creates for everyone. With the ever changing market D&H “continues to make investments in our cloud services business, as well as investing more into pro AV into eSports, gaming, remote work technology, and especially vertical markets like education.” Watch as we speak with Jason about the ever changing market and what D&H is doing to serve its clients. |
||
|
|
Permanent Work from Home Technology Opportunities Although the transition to remote work was fast and furious for many people, many companies are looking to a permanent hybrid future, where the office is no longer the office of just housing workers, but is going to be more about culture and collaboration. With the mobile workforce turning into a permanent state of affairs MSPs need to really tackle the opportunity as it is looking to be the future of work. With this change MSPs need to reevaluate their current situations and look into weaving service offerings, building new vendor relations, and building some new muscle mass.
|
||
|
|
We almost hear daily about data breaches that expose sensitive information about businesses and people. These breaches and attacks are costing companies not only a lot of money, but time and their reputations. In attempt to win against these cyber attacks many companies are using layers of security and remote management to access their information. Many companies have RMM monitoring tools, disk encryption management, antivirus, anti-spam, privilege elevation control, and boatloads of agents to maintain these updates. With everything having to be deployed out to machines, it’s getting to be a bit to much. Join Larry and Harry as they suggest moving away from the point products, and moving to multi-functional Swiss Army Knife type tools. |
||
|
|
The Evolving MSP- What Will We Look Like Tomorrow Wasn’t it nice when you could operate your MSP solely on technology, and talk to clients about this router versus that router, or this server versus that server. Unfortunately times have changed and with the growing cloud technologies you are not just selling servers but a multitude of different technologies (many of which your clients do not understand the difference of). In today’s world of business not only do you have to speak the language of technology but more importantly the language of business. Customers want to know less about the actual technology and more about how is it going to benefit them or bring them more value. Watch as Howard and Harry chat about the future of the MSP. |
||
|
|
Digital transformation is one of those industry buzzwords that has gotten tossed around like crazy. Throughout the industry, vendors all talk about digital transformation as a piece of hardware, a change of the way that you do your bandwidth, or a piece of software, when in actuality digital transformation is so much more. Josh Weis describes digital transformation as leveraging technology to actually change the way that you do business, it is taking full advantage of technology to give your client a measurable increase back on your technology investment. Watch as Josh and Harry chat about digital transformation and how it can help you and your clients become more productive in your jobs. |
||
|
|
Although ransomware has been around for a while it keeps evolving and changing to fit our ever changing landscape. Currently ransomware is one of the biggest security problems in the internet and one of the biggest cybercrimes that organizations face today. With the ever changing landscape cybercriminals have been targeting IT professionals and more so MSPs. With MSPs serving many clients and required to report breaches or ransomware attacks they are a prime target. As an MSP you need to make sure you have a plan of attack (incident response plan) in case of a breech so everything is figured out prior to an incident. Watch as Michael and Ken chat about what is new with ransomware, needs for incident response plans, and how to keep yourself and clients safe. |
||
|
|
Let’s talk about the well-publicized security breaches that have been widespread the past couple months. This story in particular, has been moving so fast. The difference between what we knew in December versus what we know now is a big difference. It's important to watch the information that is coming out on this story and others to understand the entire story and the context. If we track the story, when we initially found out about the Solar Winds act, everyone was looking and saying they got in through Orion? Well, no, come to find out that they actually got in through four steps in their breach. As the story has continued to unravel, we have found more vectors, that they also compromised two FA products separately, and 30% of the breaches that are now being investigated as part of this Solar Winds wasn't even installed. This story continues to evolve, and we have to remember to not jump to conclusions immediately , but continue to research and learn about what is being found. We are all getting smarter about technology and security so make sure you are getting the whole story as it is always more complicated than we think. Learn more as Dave Sobel and Harry chat about the current breach. |
||
|
|
Running a business is hard, as every decision rests on your shoulders, and can either make or break your business. With many business leaders looking for places to bounce ideas off, business coaching has become a common and important practice. A business coach is an experienced mentor who will assist and guide the business owner in running a business by helping them clarify the vision of their business. This process of guiding business owners will help not only to advance them but also their company from where it is now to where they want it to be. Watch as Beatrice and Harry chat about business coaching and how it may help your business. |
||
|
|
During the pandemic many things have changed from working, to engaging with people and even events. With so many changes it is inevitable that events evolve as well. From in person to virtual events, conference leaders have developed a hybrid event model which is a tradeshow, conference, unconference, seminar, workshop or other meeting that combines a "live" in-person with a "virtual" online component. Join Phelim as he shares with us the first in person event he has attended in almost a year.
|
||
|
|
How to Bring Humanity into the World of Technology There are five principles of customer service success, and when we follow those five principles we bring humanity into the world of technology. These five principles start with competence. Competence consist of sufficient technical competence in order to meet the requirements of the job description. Principle number two, is where we get in to the human skills of compassion which we define as having an awareness of another's suffering, combined with a desire to alleviate it. Next is empathy. Empathy is the ability to imagine what the other person is going through to try to put yourself in their position. The forth pillar is listening, and listening to understand and remember what is being said and in so doing, we dignify the other person, and give them a sense of respect. The last pillar is the principle of respect. In regards to respect there are two aspects. One aspect is how you feel about a person, the other aspect is the behavior choices we make toward another person. Those are the five principles competence, compassion, empathy, being a good listener, and treating people with dignity and respect. And when you do that, then you bring humanity into the world of technology. Join Harry and Don as they discuss the five pillars of customer success. |
||
|
|
To Be or Not To Be an MSSP in 2021 As more and more of our daily lives shifts to online work the need for cyber security is becoming more and more critical for the success and stability of many companies. Although attacks on large organizations and government entities are typically the ones in the news small businesses are usually more vulnerable to attacks. With the cost of these attacks costing small businesses hundreds of thousands of dollars, many small businesses can’t weather an attack. With so many businesses seeking out security solutions many MSPs (Managed Service Provider) are turning to or becoming MSSP (Managed Security Service Provider) and offering true security as a service. Watch as Harry and Josh discuss MSPs and MSSPs in today’s landscape. |
||
|
|
Managed Detection and Response (MDR) Cyber threats are increasing in both sophistication and volume every day. As the threats and attacks grow so does the need for protection against these threats. With many organizations lacking the resources to protect themselves, technology companies have come up with Managed Detection and Response (MDR). MDR is an outsource service that provides companies and organizations ways to detect threats, respond to incidents and monitor their assets. Watch as Frank and Harry discuss MDR and how if can help your clients. |
||
|
|
Alex Fields joins us to share how things have changed during the pandemic. As many of you know Alex has been a longtime community member who has shared so much about cloud services, and how to manage services in the cloud with other MSPs. With the pandemic in full swing Alex started to receive so many request that he has decided to jump into full time consulting. Join Harry and Alex as they discuss what Alex is up to, and how he is sharing his knowledge. |
||
|
|
Stop the Spread of Covid in the Work Place As many US cities are lifting lockdown restrictions, and people are starting to return back to the office, companies should look at implementing new safety precautions before allowing employees back. Have you thought about safety regulations for your workplace? What will the new normal be? In order to reduce the spread of Covid many companies have implemented new procedures before entering the office space. Carl Katz shares with us what one company he services has done. Join SMB Nation and Carl as he shares one company's new norm. |
||
|
|
With 2020 and all of the zoom meetings, we are getting burnt out with all the virtual information we are consuming. With the pandemic fueling the digital transformation (already underway in most businesses), and people being removed from physical interactions, we really need to take a look in the mirror in 2021 and focus on being more proactive to engage with one another. Bob Coppedge shares with SMB Nation his 30 by 30 campaign he is doing in 2021. Watch and learn what Bob is doing to engage with his customers, clients, and staff. |
||
|
|
2020 is a year that will never be forgotten, from the pandemic to the U.S. elections, and much more. With the pandemic sweeping through many businesses in the beginning of the year, and many businesses having to strategize throughout the year it will be hard to understand the full extent of the pandemic impact. With many MSP businesses reaching maturity, and some looking to sell there are many things business owners should take into account. Watch as Harry and Jack talk about M&A and what you should be thinking about today. |
||
 |
Close Partnerships with Vendors Tim Loney has learned that close relationships with vendors reap great rewards, trust, excellent service, and pricing. As a 15 plus year StorageCraft partner Tim has been granted an award through StorageCraft for being the best performing reginal partner in South Central US. Tim has enjoyed his partnership with StorageCraft and over the years have seen many changes, however, has enjoyed the journey. Watch as Tim and Harry catch up. |
||
|
|
EOS is an operating system that is designed to help run your Entrepreneurial business. The system is comprised of a system of tools that once implemented will help drive and run your whole business. The tools help your company build on three things, vision,traction and health of the business. Once EOS is implemented it will help strengthen your company by making it possible for every team member to understand their role in working toward the goal of the company. Watch as Mark and Harry chat about the EOS system and how it can help you grow your business. |
||
|
|
Criminals are specifically targeting the healthcare sector during the pandemic because they believe this industry will be more willing to pay the ransom. With the rise in patience due to Covid-19 the healthcare sector can’t be prevented from delivering healthcare orreceiving patient data. With attacks on healthcare organizations rising by 45% since November according to Check Point cybersecurity has become more important than ever. Watch as Denis and Harry discuss cyber-attacks and how you can prepare to prevent them. |
||
|
|
We welcome Mark to SMB Nation as a contributor. As a former MSP Mark has worn many hats from small business owner, tech, and business growth strategist. Currently Mark has discovered that he loves to help visionaries get out of their own way, and has started a podcast. Listen as Mark shares his story with SMB Nation. |
||
|
|
Modern Deployment with Microsoft Surface From Modern Deployment to C3 initiatives with Microsoft Joe Markert has been working to educate on the surface product family, not just the device. After exploring many of the products within the surface family Joe says there is a use case for everyone. Watch as Harry and Joe explore the surface, and what it can offer your office. |
||
|
|
Michael Fraser with Refactr shares with us what 2020 brought him and what is coming in 2021. Join Michael and Harry as they chat about 2020 and what to watch for in 2021. |
||
|
|
You’ll find Penetration Testing, often called Pen Testing explained many different ways, however, essentially, it's an ethical hack to help expose environmental vulnerabilities. A Pen test is a great tool to add to your MSP tool belt as it exposes weaknesses in systems, networks, and devices, before real attackers find them. With so many people working outside the office Pen Testing has become more important than ever to discover security holes that attackers can take advantage of prior to data breaches. Watch as Harry and Josh chat about Pen Testing and how you can add it to your offerings. |
||
|
|
Larry Doyle joins us to share what Leaf is doing during the Pandemic. Leaf is a result driven IT services company for the modern business who focuses their IT work on the cloud. With their team of dedicated technology specialist, they harness cloud computing to help achieve amazing success for clients across Ireland and the UK. Be sure to watch as Larry shares some of his secrets to success. |
||
|
|
All around the world, organizations are scrambling to rapidly set up employees to work from home successfully. This includes updating procedures and technology, setting up video conferencing, and moving all important documents to employee's home offices as a start. With work continuing to move forward, this can be frustrating and time consuming. Thomas Koll joins us to chat about solutions that easily transfer everything you select to your new PC or upgraded operating system. |
||
|
|
What You Need to Know about PPP Since March many businesses have received forgivable loans through the Payroll Protection Program to help with basic expenses and payroll. For many businesses this money has helped them survive during these unprecedented times. Since the beginning there have been changes to the PPP such as, an extension to spend the funds to filling rules and more. With the new year and a new roll out of funds becoming available many businesses are looking to see if they qualify. Join Claude and Harry to get the insight on the PPP and how to move forward. |
||
 |
2nd Round of PPP Reopening January 2021 With a new year comes a new round of funding through the Paycheck Protection Program. Weather you received the first round for the PPP loans or you are applying for the first time you may be eligible to receive funds if you can show substantial revenue decline and meet other requirements. Like the first round these funds will be fully forgivable if you follow the forgiveness guidelines and will be open for submission in January 2021. Watch as Rayanne shares with us some of the guidelines for applying and what you should know. |
||
|
|
Cyber Insurance: Is it Worth it? Every company faces cyber risks, no matter their size. With the 2020 pandemic and entire workforces moving from a controlled office space, to working from home, cyber criminals have taken full advantage of new security vulnerabilities. With cyber-attacks on full alert we meet with Ken and Michael to look at cyber insurance. Even before the pandemic cyber insurance companies were tightening up not only their underwriting guidelines but also their investigation into cyber attacks. Watch as we chat with Ken and Michael about what to look out for when purchasing cyber insurance, and what to do if you or a client are attacked. |
||
|
|
Marketing is fundamentally so important to your business. Many businesses do not realize how important it really is. Imagine having a business with the best customer service rating, however, no one knows about it. Establishing an amazing business or product is critical to a business’s success, however, attracting customers is essential. Roger Lewis of CMIT Solutions chats with SMB Nation about the importance of marketing and what he has brought to CMIT Solutions to accelerate their marketing. |
||
|
|
How to use Technology as an Advantage James Kernan joins SMB Nation to chat about his new book Tech Up or Lose Out. Tech Up Or Lose Out is co-written by 11 of the top tech experts in North America. This team have come together to provide entrepreneurs an outline of how they can use technology as a competitive advantage in their business. From Cloud Computing to Business Intelligence, this book has the tech basics you need to succeed. |
||
 |
Many small businesses know IT is critical for keeping their business running, especially in 2020. With more businesses moving to cloud base solutions, MSPs have become more important than ever to keep businesses up and running. From reliable, secure and well planned infrastructure to technology designed for growth companies have realized they can’t reach their full potential without reliable IT. As we look into the future of MSPs we have found that there are not as many MSPs joining the industry (refer to Harrys Blog 30 under 30). Join Marvin Bee and Harry as they discuss the future of MSPs. |
||
|
|
Tim Kubiak joins SMB Nation to share his passion project Bowties and Business. Bowties and Business is a podcast that that brings together thought leaders and experts who share their decades of first hand, real-world experience from the ground floor to the executive suite and every corner of the business world to its listeners. Tim feels this is a great way to give back to everyone whether they are just starting their career, to long time career driven listeners. Be sure to catch up and listen to Bowties and Business. |
||
|
|
Danny Brown gives us a firsthand look at AppGallop. AppGallop is a Cloud Commerce and MarketPlace platform enabling service providers to automate Billing, Provisioning & Subscription management. They partner with global brands and emerging cloud service providers to automate all important tasks for a subscription based business such as Billing, Provisioning, Scheduling, Reconciliations, Subscription Management, etc. along with a Marketplace integrated with Payment Gateway, Taxation, Multi-Currency and all meaningful integrations, required for a true digital experience. Watch and learn more about AppGallop. |
||
|
|
Nation Christina Foundation rebranded to Digitunity Your used computer and or device can be a powerful way to help an individual in need. It can help someone access education, learn a new skill, help get a new job, or be active in the community. The National Christina Foundation now Digitunity is helping bridge the digital divide by giving individuals with disabilities, at-risk students, and people with economic disadvantages the opportunity to have access to and training on computer technology through the reuse of donated systems. Learn how you can get involved and clear out mini storage, or that spare room and help individuals in your community. |
||
|
|
MSPs have evolved beyond the traditional role of break fix and transactional service providers to a broad range of computing services. Through the years many MSPs have had to adapt to the ever changing computing industry. In the early days of computing MSPs were hired to fix things when they were broken. Over time these businesses expanded their focus to be proactive and preventative, opening up the opportunity for MSPs to added contacts, reselling and more. With so many changes with the world, technology, and life MSPs are looking at what’s next. Howard Cohen has joined us to share is new column The Evolving MSP which explores what’s next in technology for MSPs. |
||
|
|
Predictions for 2021 with Phelim Rowe Phelim Rowe joins SMB Nation to share his thoughts and predictions for 2021. He touches base on the skills shortage in the industry, security, and events. Join Phelim and SMB Nation as they look at Phelim’s predictions on jobs and skills and much much more in 2021. |
||
|
|
Technology is everywhere in our lives these days. From smartphones, tablets and computers, to cloud, analytics, AI, and more, we can’t seem to function without these in our daily lives. From business products to personal use, technology has exploded leaving us lost when things don’t work. In the past information technology was all about the technology and working to automate things, but now technology has matured to being driven by information. Bob joins SMB Nation to walk us through the evolution of technology starting with humans as computers. |
||
|
|
There are a lot of factors to consider when making hiring decisions for your business. As a business owner do you feel like you are rushed when it comes to making a hire? Do you want to have your new hire hit the ground running? Like most small businesses when it is time to hire you need someone in the position ready to go. As a small business we get asked a lot, is it better to hire someone with technical skills or people skills? This is a hard question to answer as both are so important in any business. We team up with Don Crawley as he talks with us about hiring processes and how to get the right fit for your team. |
||
|
|
With 2020 coming to an end we catch up with Jim Beach and his community. Jim does not predict huge changes in the rules for entrepreneurs in 2021. With the hopes of vaccines, and the light at the end of the tunnel he feels that many entrepreneurs are enthusiastic for a great year to rebuild. Catch up with Harry and Jim as they explore what 2021 has to bring to the entrepreneur community. |
||
|
|
With the COVID-19 pandemic causing a huge shift to work at home, it has opened the doors to higher volumes of cyber-attacks. With 2020 coming to a close and companies continuing to work from home, MSPs should take a look into the future of security. Ted Hulsy shares with us his 2021 predictions and how certain security stacks will be come mandatory. |
||
|
|
With 2020 bringing lots of changes and the need for more positive vibes a group of IT vendors got together to host a mult icity covid safe events. The goal of these events, was not only to keep people safe but also to get out and give a positive opportunity to meet during these uncertain times. These regional events proved to be a great way to get together safely, as well as learn what people are needing in their IT stack. Watch as Marc chats about the events. |
||
|
|
2021 Predictions with Dave Sobel We all know how hard 2020 has been and many of us are looking forward to ringing in the new year. Although, we all wish we could snap our fingers and have 2020 and its problems behind us, the reality is that the first half of 2021 may look similar to 2020. Even with the optimistic scheduled of vaccine roll outs, it may take some time to get businesses to the now normal. Join us as Dave shares his predictions and disruptions for 2021 and what you should do. |
||
|
|
Although many of us are wanting 2020 to end as soon as possible, there is still time to make tax planning moves. With the year coming to a close and preparations and goal planning already going into 2021, now is as good of time as any to start getting your tax documents ready. A couple things you can do in the near future are, a quick tax prediction plan so you can see no only what you will owe but also make those last minute changes that will affect 2020, gather the information to prepare 1099s, and start planning for 2021. Watch as Rayanne walks us through how to close out 2020 and prepare for 2021. |
||
|
|
How the Pandemic is Changing Retail The coronavirus pandemic has caused many retailers to scramble to adapt to the daily changes the pandemic has presented. With many retailers managing demand fluctuation, keeping employees safe, and keeping their businesses afloat many predict long term effects on brick and mortar retail businesses. Before the pandemic, a big part of shopping was the hands-on experience. The idea of being able to have face to face contact, and be able to touch, feel, try on or sample products is a thought of the past. With online orders blowing up small retailers are trying to stand out in any way they can from making it easier for consumers to avoid shared surfaces and limit interactions with employees or other customers, to having a seamless online shopping experience. Join Harry and Jim as they explore the pandemic and how it has rewritten retail shopping. |
||
|
|
Online Conferences filling up Industry Calendars The world of events and trades shows has drastically changed with the 2020 pandemic. Although, in person events have come to a screeching halt, most events have reinvented themselves as online events. With online events becoming the new phenomenon, we have seen the industry calendar filling up with more and more events, and many times events are overlapping. Although, these online events are not the same as in person, they do have some benefits such as no travel, typically they are free, replay links may be available, and more. With the end of 2020 nearing we are hoping to see a good mix of online and in person events in 2021. Join Josh and Harry as they chat about the new norm for events. |
||
|
|
After a long career in law Jack Isaacs has decided to pursue his passion in private equity. Jack has opened up a private equity firm that targets technology firms as they tend to be the ones that grow quickly time and time again. With the concerns around Covid Jack predicts some big economic shifts, however with these shifts significant opportunities tend to arrive. Join Jack and Harry as they chat about future growth and what to expect. |
||
|
|
In today’s ever changing world, cybercrimes are innovating new ways to access your companies data and exploit weaknesses to penetrate your web platforms. With these current threats ever changing it is hard to stay ahead of the threats your business faces every day. Frank Ohlhorst joins us to share a security platform that will help protect your business. The Sectigo Web Security Platform combines our industry-leading SSL / TLS certificates with eight layers of comprehensive "set it and forget it" web security, all managed from a single cloud-based portal. |
||
|
|
With so many remote workers connecting via unmanaged devices to business applications over the internet, there’s become a growing need for zero trust. Zero trust security has become a hot topic for many MSPs. Simply put zero trust is assuming nothing can be trusted. This sounds pretty simple however, it is much more complex than meets the eye. The zero trust security model requires strict identity verification for every person and device trying to access the network, regardless of whether they are sitting within or outside of the network perimeter. As the pressure to protect systems and data grows significantly, and as attacks become more sophisticated the need for zero trust has become necessary. Watch Larry Doyle as he explains Zero Trust in more depth. |
||
|
|
Financial Tricking and Scan Checks Phony check scams have been tricking consumers for years. The opportunity for online banking and remote deposit or scanning of checks has opened a huge opportunity for scammers. Although, the most common way of stealing account holders’ personal or account information is tricking them into providing it, scammers are also using common tactics of hacking into computers and monitoring them from behind the scenes. This monitoring is allowing them to collect not only business information, but also personal banking, tax information, and much much more. With this information hackers hold all the keys or data to your business typically crippling companies. Watch as Michael Jenkin and Ken Dwight chat about how to protect you and your clients from hacking and ransomware. |
||
|
|
While the majority of organizations have already enabled remote work in 2020 to assist with the pandemic, many are still working on the transformation. With many organizations still needing to implement remote work organizations are anticipating their IT budget will either stay the same and or increase in 2021. Spiceworks Ziff Davis has put out a 2021 State of the IT report which touches on the future of tech budgets and adoption trends in the Covid era. |
||
|
|
With many companies juggling so many pieces within their business from back office to front office activities, PSA tools help to establish a constant process for planning, managing, and measuring the performance of each project throughout its lifecycle. Imagine being able to manage projects, track time, invoice, resource plan, collaborate with your team, all in one program or product. With many companies offering PSA tools how do you know if you are using the program to maximize profitability. Join Chris Timm as he walks us through his book PSA Profitability. |
||
|
|
Becoming a Trusted Business Advisor In today’s complex IT environments, it is more important than ever to make sure your clients devices, programs, and infrastructure is up to date, and prepared for what will come in the future. In order to make sure clients stay operational many MSPs are preforming regular audit to look at the life cycle of devices, as well as the back of house to make sure the protection is matched up with the operational life cycle of the equipment. These audits help not only to build MSPs to be trusted business advisors to their clients, but also make sure their clients are operating to the fullest capability. With being a trusted advisor and assisting clients with not only technology needs but also budgets, and operations the matter of TPM is garnering a great deal of attention in discovering creative ways to extend technology budgets. TPM or third-party maintenance is a support solution offered by vendors and independent OEMs. Watch to learn more about TPM and how to save your clients money while adding to your profit. |
||
|
|
The Small Biz Quickstart Workbook Karl Palachuk joins us to share his latest book Small Biz Quickstart Workbook. This book is designed to help entrepreneurs quit their job and start their own business, through removing the scary parts of the decisions. In this book Karl guides you through task to help you plan and move quickly into a profitable first year of business. Join Harry and Karl as they chat about the ins and outs of starting a business. |
||
|
|
As businesses rely on technology more heavily than ever to help them grow in the ever changing world, the need for managed service providers is growing and will continue to grow over the next several years. With all of the changes in today’s world MSPs are facing a number of challenges and opportunities. Luckily for small businesses the MSP market is also maturing with about half of all MSPs being in the market for more than 5 years. With the mature market comes experience, confidence and quality of service which is greatly needed in today’s everchanging landscape. Watch as Carl and Harry chat about the changing landscape of MSPs. |
||
|
|
In a new era of social responsibility, people are becoming more and more knowledgeable about the companies they purchase from. With customer research skyrocketing, knowledge becoming readily available, and accessibility at the tips of everyone’s fingers, cause related marketing has become a big deal amongst many companies. Not only are customers looking for a great product, but they also want a company who is doing good for society as well as ethical. Research shows that over 80% of consumers would switch bands if one supported a good cause given similar price and quality. Lucky for MSPs, research shows that most small businesses are already participating in cause marketing and giving back to their community. Watch as Harry and Danny chat about some great cause marketing campaigns. |
||
|
|
Which Social Media Platform Do I Use? All social media platforms should not be treated equally, and thus when building your social media approach you should take into account what materials you want to share. If we take a closer look at the different platforms you see that each holds its own purpose, audience and exposure levels. Lets look at Facebook for example. Facebook reveals itself best for emotional driven content. So if you are looking to make strong business connections, something like LinkedIn may be a better fit. Although, each platform does hold its own place, the most important thing for you to do is know the goals you want to achieve through your campaign. Doing this will allow you to properly choose a platform that will allow you to gain exposure online and connect with people who are not only next door, but around the world. Watch as Phelim and Harry chat about the different social media platforms and cross promotion between them. |
||
|
|
Over the last 6 months many things have changed in the world from social distancing, working from home, telemedicine and so much more. With so many things rapidly changing especially in the compliance world it has been hard to keep up and stay compliant. Over the last few months HIPAA has become a huge spotlight in the news with more enforcement and penalties issued due to noncompliance and risk analysis not being performed correctly. Although, things are changing every day in our world it is more important than ever for MSPs to step back and look at their clients’ needs especially as many of their businesses have changed. Watch as Mike and Harry share tales from the trench’s in this new world and what you should be paying attention to. |
||
|
|
Where in the World is Jeff Connally Jeff Connally formally of CMIT Solutions (Jeff sold CMIT Solutions about 2 years ago) has been busier than ever since leaving the company. After leaving CMIT Solutions Jeff started exploring his bucket list or as he says his multiple bucket lists. With many MSPs looking at retiring or consolidation, many are asking what do I do next? Unfortunately, there is not one clear cut answer on what to do next. The one thing we all know is that you earned your retirement, so make the most of it. Watch as Harry and Jeff chat about what is next. |
||
|
|
Building the Business of your Dreams When you think about your career, and or building businesses the idea that our technology skills are enough goes through many people’s minds. The idea that if we are good at technology our career and or businesses should flourish off of our technical skills alone. Unfortunately, this is not how it works, there is a whole other suite of skills you need such as financial skills, how business works, building relationships and so much more in order to grow and advance your career. Many people have a hard time getting over this hump, however, Drew Saur joins Harry to discuss how to grow your skills and business. |
||
|
|
PPP Forgiveness simplified for loans less than $50,000 The SBA has decided that all PPP loans $50,000.00 or less will be able to apply for forgiveness using a simplified application (3508S). This action will help ease some of the burden on the PPP lenders allowing, lenders to process forgiveness applications more swiftly, as well as, take some of the stress off of small businesses who borrowed the money. The forgiveness is set to begin early October, however, check with your lender as some institutions are not ready to start accepting forgiveness documents. |
||
|
|
Bob Coppedge has worn many hats over his 40 years in the IT Industry from Developer, Network Engineer, IT Director, Chief Information officer and Consultant. With the industry continually changing Bob has had to reinvent, continue his education, and try to do things faster, cheaper, and with excellent customer service. With the many changes over the years Bob feels it is important to share his IT knowledge and experience. Bob shares with the SMB Nation community his knowledge through his three books. “ A CEO's Survival Guide to Information Technology", “I Don’t Want Your Job: Is Co-Managed IT services The Right Fit For You?", and “I Don’t Want Your Job: Is Co-Managed IT services the Right Fit for You?". Watch and learn more about Bobs books and his industry knowledge. |
||
|
|
Compentation Changes for Remote Workers? Would you be willing to take a pay cut to continue to work from home after the pandemic? With many people working from during the pandemic the question has arisen on weather companies will allow workers to continue to work from home, and will companies reduce employee’s compensation if they choose to work from home? With the seismic shift taking place in our world many employees are contemplating working remotely permanently. Although, many employees are contemplating working from home, many are asking if it will be worth it. With working from home employees can dramatically cut their cost, from reduce transportation cost, reduced day to day expenditures, potential tax breaks from working from home, and reduced costs of on wardrobes. Even with all the reduced cost to employees, the question is will it be worth it if the company reduces my compensation. Employees also have to take into account, employee interaction, and collaboration, along with job visibility, and showing your initiative and will this effect job promotions. Watch as Thomas and Harry chat about the future of work. |
||
|
|
GYST (Getting Your Shift Together) The pandemic has changed or shifted many organizations to reinvent their digital roadmaps to accommodate many people working, and learning from remote locations. With so many changes digital transformation has become imperative for all businesses from small to enterprise to stay competitive. Although, digital transformation is the concept of using digital technologies to make a process more efficient, it looks very different for every company. Watch as Harry and Josh chat about digital transformation and how it applies to you and your clients. |
||
|
|
With many companies connecting their crucial data and sensitive company information to the cloud, cybercrimes against large corporations, government agencies, and individuals are on the rise, with losses of finances, data, and time. Despite the increase of awareness of the need to have proactive security measures many organizations as well as individuals put off implementing sound security initiatives until they have suffered a loss. With staff already stretched thin, many organizations are outsourcing their security needs to a Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP). These MSSPs help organizations with solutions for network security, cloud security, endpoint security, threat intelligence, mobile security, email security, along with just about any other security operations that will help make their security procedures and processes faster, more efficient and cost-effective. Watch as Phelim and Harry chat about the top players in the Managed Security Service space. |
||
|
|
In today’s busy world, email has become the most common source of communication not only in business but also in personal lives. With most people spending a fair chunk of their day on email, whether it be for organizing their day in the calendar, emailing a colleague, or tracking tasks, you want to make sure you are picking a service which fits your needs. Some things to think about when evaluating services are: dependability, compatibility with other email services, storage, user-friendliness platform, spam filters, and mobile access. Watch as Carl and Harry evaluate a range of leading email services to see which would be best for a variety of different use cases. |
||
|
|
Podnutz is a podcast network devoted to techs ranging from Windows residential and business support to Android games! This podcast has been on for 5+ years and explores a wide range of topics from Managed Service Agreements with attorneys, to Linux, mini computers and so much more. Typically, each podcast ranges from 30 to 60 minutes and are a great resources for MSP’s. Be sure to check out Podnutz Pro and let us know what you think. |
||
|
|
Hello World: School for Startups School for Startups believes that entrepreneurship is not about creativity, risk, or passion but instead built to make your life better with an end goal of an exit strategy within 5 to 7 years. Join other business owners and entrepreneurs daily at 2:00 pm EST to School for Startups Radio which hosts rich content including editorials, interviews and advertising to help you grow your business and or start one. |
||
|
|
In today’s security landscape, cyber security threats to businesses are becoming more sophisticated than ever. Hackers are developing tools that allow them to easily gain basic access to your data and files, through phishing attacks, malware infections, and ransomware. Through scanning thousands of computers at a time hackers are able to target their victims using software and tools to gain higher privileges and access not only to the infected computer but between devices within the network. This technique is called “Lateral movement” which is a technique used by hackers to systematically move through a network in search of accessing the crown jewels. Sometimes these hackers will take months to work their way through the network to gain access to extract the information they need. Watch as Ken and Michael go over how you can protect yourself and your clients from lateral movement. |
||
|
|
Build A Winning Business Through Marketing Services Every businesses goal is to have a thriving business, that not only makes money but serves its clients through a vision set forth by the company. These goals not only define the company today but will help guide the growth and future of the company. Have you thought about your business development road map and or goals recently? Have you set measurable milestones to help you obtain your goals? Ted Hulsey, long time community member is helping MSPs Grow their business, through marketing by focusing on how to generate new growth, continue to have a positive customer experience, and using marketing to drive success. Watch as Harry and Ted explore Marketing as a Service, and how you can grow your business. |
||
|
|
The Power of Story Telling- How to Become a Better Public Speaker Public speaking is key in most businesses, whether we're talking in a team meeting or presenting in front of an audience, talking on the phone to potential customers or clients, or meeting with the management team, we all have to speak in public from time to time. For most people speaking in front of an audience is described as their biggest fear (que the sweaty palms). Although, public speaking may be terrifying for most, there are things you can do to help take some of the anxiety away, and leave your audience with the knowledge from your presentation. Join Danny Brown (Twins Talk It Up Podcast) and Harry as talk they about how speakers aren’t born, and how they are made. In short, learn how to boost your self-confidence, enhance your reputation, and open up opportunities through enhancing your public speaking abilities. |
||
|
|
Moving from the Cloud - The Cost of Azure With many companies allowing employees to work from home, companies are taking a hard look at infrastructure, accessibility to data, and security. Amongst those items cloud computing is top on many companies list. With the current cost of cloud base products like Azure, some companies are asking is it worth the cost? Cloud migration is a complex process and determining the cost and benefits requires understanding and accounting for many factors. Some items you want to look at when calculating the cost are, current IT infrastructure cost, estimate the cloud cost and the cost to migrate and execute the move, bandwidth and storage capabilities and much much more. When calculating the cost it is best to evaluate cost over 5 years for cloud usage to see if it is the best solution. Watch and learn more about the cost of moving to the cloud. |
||
|
|
Traditional marketing is becoming less and less effective by the minute. With so many people living busy lives, and managing a million things it makes it more important than even to grab your audience’s attention and leave them wanting more. You may be asking yourself how do I do that? Instead of pitching your products or services, try content marketing. Content marketing is marketing focused on creating, publishing, and distributing content for a targeted audience online. These materials include things like educational articles, e-books, videos, entertainment, that answer specific questions people have. Sometimes these materials do not even have anything to do with your product. By becoming a credible resource on topics that matter to potential customers, your business is more likely to get discovered by the right audience and earn their loyalty and trust – which, in turn, enables your brand to strengthen its customer relationships, grow an active and engaged subscriber base, and even increase your profits. Watch and learn how Bob Coppedge has put content marketing into his business and his tips and tricks. |
||
|
|
Time to Start Preparing Your PPP Forgiveness It’s time to start preparing your documents for the PPP Forgiveness. With more than 96,000 requests for Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiveness already being submitted to the Small Business Administration. THE SBA has announced they will begin approving request in early October. Small business owners who have been waiting to have their Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan forgiven can breathe a sigh of relief, as forgiveness for smaller PPP loans is expected to be processed quickly, and easily. Start collecting your payroll reports, your rent invoices, your health insurance bills, your 941 and your unemployment tax returns. Here is are great resources to calculate your forgiveness as well as other great forms to help you prepare. Watch and learn how to prepare your PPP Loan forgiveness. |
||
|
|
What is the Future of Office Space? The pandemic has forced the adoption of new ways of working. From working at home, to social distancing at the office, organizations are having to reimagine not only their office space, but also how to create safe, productive, and enjoyable jobs and lives for employees. Before the pandemic, the conventional wisdom had been that offices were critical to productivity, culture, and winning the war for talent, however productivity with remote work has proven to work. Although, many have enjoyed working from home, with little to no commuting, and being home more people are ready to go back to the office. A recent employee surveys indicate most Americans do not want to work from home full-time. But they do enjoy the flexibility of being able to do so as they choose. Watch as Bill and Harry predict what the future of office space will be. |
||
|
|
Working from home, social distancing, and online meetings, are new territories for most of us. Whether you’re doing a video chat from a home office or a meeting from the park everyone has access to a live TV studio from their laptop or phone anywhere anytime as long as they have internet access. With your life being essentially on display it is important you look your best, after all you only get one first impression. A few of the ways you can make a great not only first impression but lasting impression is through, proper infrastructure (ditch your wireless connection), make sure you have good audio, lighting is super important (make sure that it allows you to be warm and clear), make sure you have a camera. Watch as Carl and Harry discuss how to build out a professional home studio. |
||
|
|
During these uncertain times we need to make sure we are staying competitive, by innovating, adapting, and continuing to learn. There are so many learning opportunities at your finger tips from Microsoft Learn and Bigger Brains (an online learning platform) to local colleges and universities. Learning new knowledge or skills will help employees see things in a new light and help take organizations to the next level. Companies and or organizations need to be onboard and help create learning culture. Another way other than learning programs to integrate learning into your company is to bring in an intern who can not only help but bring in new skills and talent to your workforce. Watch as Harry and Andrew Bettany chat about continued learning in reference to IF – By Rudyard Kipling. |
||
 |
You may have heard that the president’s executive order for a payroll tax deferral went into effect on Sept. 1, 2020. This order states that from September 1st to the end of the year employees can defer payment on their Social Security Tax that is taken out of your paycheck. To start, it’s not mandatory, and employees still owe the deferred money. During the first part of next year, employees will have to repay the amount deferred to the IRS no later than April 30, 2021. Get the ins and outs of how the tax deferral will work, and how it may effect you and your clients. |
||
|
|
Where in the World is Dave Sobel Dave Sobel has worn many hats over the years from owning his own MSP to working at Level Platforms and SolarWinds, and his latest endeavor of MSP Radio (hosting the Business of Tech) podcast. The Business of Tech podcast focuses on the news you need to know. Covering both the story and why it matters... Watch as Harry and Dave chat about his latest work, and some of the topics he covers. |
||
|
|
With remote working and learning, Saas solutions have become an imperative part of many people’s lives during the pandemic. With so many changes to both work, school, and life, MSP360 has stepped up to help MSPs. At the beginning of the year they gave away all of their desktop backup at no charge to allow for a smooth transition to work and learn from home. With many people still maneuvering working from home, being a teacher and so much more they have enabled all of their managed remote desktop for free till November. Not only has MSP360 provided free remote and cloud solutions, they have also developed MSP University which is a full service educational platform to help MSPs get their business off the ground. This platform is completely free and has some great content. Be sure to check out MSP360™ (formerly CloudBerry Lab) who provides cutting-edge SaaS solutions that are simple, cloud-based, and profitable for Managed Service Providers. |
||
|
|
Cybersecurity has become more and more relevant in todays world. With many cybercriminals having access to a broad range of tools with the goal of accessing your data to make the biggest profit with the least amount of efforts. Cybercriminals have become better at infiltrating and interacting with businesses to access and apply Ransomware and other threats allowing them to attack your systems. With things rapidly changing and cybercriminals in full force, training and awareness is more important than ever. Stridepoint provides awareness programs, training, and cybersecurity solutions so you can defend against cybersecurity attacks. Watch Harry and Todd as they chat about todays world of Cybersecurity and how you can protect your clients. |
||
 |
Our virus duo (Michael Jenkin and Ken Dwight) take over SMB Nation to chat about the new developments in the malware and security field. These two explore a virus that has been around since 2016 and has been reappearing with new versions regularly during recent years. Dharma is a new variant of Crysis - a high-risk ransomware-type virus. Following successful infiltration of your system, Dharma encrypts stored files using asymmetric cryptography. Small businesses and bigger organizations should also be cautious as the Dharma ransomware virus keeps presenting new file extensions and have recently infected two large companies forcing them to pay the ransomware. Be sure to have and verify your backups on a regular bases to make sure they are running and protecting your data to prevent loss of data. Watch as Ken and Michael give some great tip and information on the Dharma virus and how you can protect your clients. |
||
 |
Axcient has announced their enhanced partner program. With Axcient being 100% channel, the Partner Journey is their number one priority. The Axcient Partner Journey represents your experience with Axcient. From how you first meet Axcient, to trialing their technology, on-boarding as a new Partner, training you, technical support, and importantly, how they help you grow. With the channel being Axcient’s number one priority they have reset their partner program to better define tiers (Registered, Silver, Gold, and Platinum), as well as enhance the program. Watch Harry as he explores Axcient updated partner program, tiers, benefits, and updated materials and resources to help you make money. |
||
|
|
From the newest technologies to the explosion of communication and remote working, technological innovation has enhanced our ability to work more effectively and efficiently. Although, technology is ever changing, sometimes it is hard to get your physical product in the hand of the consumer. With that said, marketplace platforms allow a more effective and efficient process for purchasing technology-related goods and services. Watch as Harry and Danny Brown chat about Technology Marketplaces and the ways they enable service providers to automate billing, provisioning & subscription management. |
||
 |
Data loss is becoming more and more prevalent in today’s business world. With many companies transitioning employees to work from home, and ransomware in full swing it is more important than ever to protect your backups from corruption. Without consistent, reliable backups, valuable company data can be lost forever, so choosing a backup method that will work effectively is important for your clients business’s survival. Weather you choose to store your data onsite or offsite there are some easy steps you can take to safeguard your clients backup. Watch as Larry and Harry chat about simple steps you can take to help preserve your clients backup. Remember your disaster recovery plan depends on backups, so it’s important to make sure your backup process works. |
||
 |
During any disaster or pandemic, such as COVID-19, MSPs must prepare for disruption in their business as well as prepare to protect their customers and clients vital IT services. As many of you know MSPs are one of the most important players for many businesses not only during the pandemic, but also keeping their business operational after. With such a large responsibility many MSPs are asking themselves were they ready for the pandemic and how to plan for long-term business operations in the new normal. Join Phelim Rowe and Harry Brelsford as they chat about the new norms and how to prepare for the future. |
||
 |
After some time away from the community Gavin Garbutt is back with a new venture. Derik Belair joins Gavin at Augmentt a SaaS application management company. Augmentt was developed to help MSPs understand SaaS usage, optimize spend, enforce security polies and improve productivity. With over 35 years of combined Channel experience, the founders of Augmentt have seen it all and built their technology for MSPs to manage their SaaS applications flawlessly. Be sure to watch the video and learn more about Augmentt. |
||
|
|
Thomas Koll joins us to chat about Laplink and what is new. For over 37 years, Laplink Software has been a global leader in PC connectivity. As many of you probably know Laplink began offering a simple, efficient method of transferring data from one computer to another across the signature Laplink cable in 1983 and has evolved over the years to include Internet-based, wireless, and peer-to-peer solutions for an increasingly mobile workforce. Today they are best known for their migration solution which takes the complexity out of the process. This migration system is used by MSPs, government, universities and more to assist in automating data transfer. Watch and learn more about Laplink and how it can help to reduce your migration time. |
||
|
|
TIDWIT is a Cloud Ecosystems Network that joins many organizations dependent ecosystem into one network. This helps organizations easily interconnect with preferred partners to automate many functions and measure results. These workloads applications connect seamlessly to each organization’s backend systems (such as ECMs, LMSs, CRM and Marketing automation tools) through a host of TIDWIT APIs. TIDWIT is also uniquely positioned to deliver on security and privacy through SSO. This empowers employees and or organizations to connect and come together to reach one goal along the partner journey. Watch Harry and Will as they explore the benefits of TIDWIT and how it can help streamline your practice. |
||
 |
With the increasing reliance on technology, it is becoming more and more essential to secure your companies and clients data. As the remote work becomes more prevalent and computer networks become bigger, data protection has become one of the most important aspects for many organizations. With security threats increasingly becoming more advanced Alex Fields has developed a course to help you put security first for your clients in their security journey. While there is no system that is immune to attacks there are several key things you can do to protect yourself and your clients. Learn more about security and Alex’s course in the interview below. |
||
 |
Business relationships with vendors and colleagues helps to give you a support network to further your small business. Vendors are a great resource not only to help support your current clients but to assist you in the growth of your business. There service and support allows your business to focus on building customer relations and services that add value to your customers. Successful vendor relationships require quite a bit of planning and hard work. Although, they require some work the benefits out weigh the work 10 fold. Watch as Ken Dwight and Harry chat about how Ken has built great relationships to add value to his business. |
||
 |
Moving and or Office Relocation Moving and or relocation to a new office space is an involved process with many things to think about. You’ve got office furniture, difficult to pack electronics, and multiple rooms worth of supplies and inventory to get packed up and make sure they get to the correct persons work space upon arrival at the new office. You also can’t forget to transfer utilities, internet, and other location specific items. Not to mention usually, you are on a time restraint to do this (you can’t exactly shut down operations for a week to sort things out). An office relocation is a lot of work, regardless of the size of your company. With typical companies spending an excess of $10,000 per employee during a relocation this can be a great opportunity for MSP’s. Not only is it a great opportunity for a fresh start, but moving offices can kick-start a company into assessing the way it operates; maybe you want to work to more remote workers; or reevaluate technology, products and office supplies; and open up ways in which you can cut back on costs. Bill Dillon is back to chat with SMB Nation about the opportunities associated with a relocation. |
||
 |
Whether you're just starting or an experienced professional wanting to discover new skills, find certifications, and advance your career in minutes with interactive, hands-on learning we have just the place for you. Bonus it’s completely free. Microsoft Learn offers a comprehensive collection of training options that empower technical professionals to learn in a style that fits best, allowing you to advance your technical skills while earning achievements and/or preparing for Microsoft Certifications. The hands on approach helps you arrive at your goals faster, with more confidence and at your own pace. With hundreds of lessons on different topics this is a great resource for you to enhance your skills within moments. Watch Harry and Andrew as they walk you through the Microsoft Learn platform. |
||
 |
Josh Liberman has been busy this year not only with the pandemic, and running a business, but Josh has been writing and contributing to many community sites. Last year Josh set a goal to write more and boy has he done so. Check out some of his articles here. |
||
 |
Ransomware has become the scourge of many businesses and is likely not to disappear as a threat anytime soon. If anything, ransomware is on the rise, as evidenced by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), which has observed an increase in ransomware attacks across the world so far this year. That proves to be troubling news to organizations that have recently adopted work-from-home policies to address the concerns around the COVID-19 pandemic. Watch Harry and Frank discuss how to protect your client from Ransomware. |
||
 |
Does your company need a facelift or rebrand? Are you looking to gain more clients? With the current times social media and marketing is more important than ever to get your message and branding out. Some simple items you can focus on not only for your personal brand, but also your company brand are:
Watch Michael and Harry and learn some marketing tips to grow your business. |
||
 |
We met with IAMCP chapter president Danny Brown, to chat about Microsoft Inspire. Inspire is Microsoft’s worldwide partner conference. Typically, companies involved in Microsoft’s Partner Network travel from around the world to spend a week meeting with other partners, attending various sessions and keynotes led by Microsoft executives, and learning about Microsoft’s strategic priorities for the year ahead. Although this year looked very different than years past, Microsoft rolled out the red carpet for attendees through live virtual sessions with Q&A and free passes to educational sessions featuring industry experts. Microsoft was also able to capture the networking aspect of the conference by hosting virtual networking events. Watch the full recap of Inspire here. |
||
 |
Coming Soon! The Walk-On Method To Career & Business Success Jim Roddy joins us to share his new book “The Walk-On Method To Career & Business Success” which features 31 underdog athletes who parlayed their college experience into habits that led to career success. Roddy’s book is set to publish fall of 2020 with hopes to share a life-changing lesson he learned the hard way – and to clarify a misunderstanding. Join Harry and Jim as they chat about the book. |
||
 |
Back in the early days when viruses started appearing they were focused on vandalizing (just to cause trouble). The goal of these viruses were to delete files, reformat the hard drive and or just cause headaches to the end user. However, in recent years (2013) viruses have been used to collect money via ransom demands. With Ransomware still being in full swing, we are also seeing a new set of viruses attacking businesses and governments. These attacks however are not requesting and or leaving a ransom notes. Instead of money these new attacks have one main goal in mind, to collect and or erasing data (rendering the data useless). These viruses are accessing the system through remote desktops and are replacing the files with null characters meaning there is no unencrypting and or recovering the files. Unfortunately, leaving the business and or country to start from scratch. With so many people working from home, it is now more important than ever to back data up, have solid antivirus software and reevaluate your computer. Watch Michael Jenkins, Ken Dwight and Harry Brelsford, as they discuss these new attacks. |
||
 |
MSPs typically focus on technology related to IT or cybersecurity, with back up to the cloud, however, with emerging technologies playing an important role in applications for physical security, vendors are enlisting MSPs to deliver their offerings to customers. MSPs have made their mark by implementing and managing all types of technologies which help companies protect themselves, run more efficient, and increase productivity and revenue. With AI and machine learning algorithms playing a huge role in the physical security systems, cybersecurity has become a top concern and priority for organizations not only wanting to protect their physical security assets but also their internal assets, making it a great opportunity for MSPs to step in and help. The managed physical security services market is breathing new life into traditional products and services. This may be a great tool to add to your toolbelt. Watch as Phelim Rowe and Harry Brelsford explore and discuss these new opportunities. |
||
 |
Affects Covid Is Having On The Economy Marc Haskelson joins SMB Nation to chat about the affects Covid is having on the economy. After speaking with many clients and or prospects Marc learned many people are asking where they should invest time and effort with the recession we are currently seeing and/or the future recession we are going to see with the impact to the economy. If we think of the universal trues the things that never go away are death an taxes, in turn healthcare represents 26% of the US economy and is growing and will continue to grow (telemedicine). There are other industries that are also continuing to grow. Watch and hear what industries are currently growing and where you should invest your time to grow your business. |
||
 |
Josh Weiss joins SMB Nation to chat about summer 2020 and what is new. Josh feels privileged to be able to provide services to clients, jobs to his employees, and some personal journey through meditation and exercise. At a time when the world sucks, Josh is taking active steps to be present, and choose to live a positive life. Watch and let Josh uplift you and relight your spark in life. |
||
 |
Josh Weiss joins SMB Nation to chat about the recent patch Microsoft issued causing Outlook to fail to start for some users, automatically displaying an error message prompting users to repair some inbox files. Josh goes onto to chat about how it affected his clients, and the specifics around the patch issued. At this time there is a work around allowing users to be able to access and use Outlook, however there is not an official fix available for customers. Microsoft is investigating this issue with the Outlook and the Windows Team. Watch the interview to get more insight into the problem. |
||
 |
Dog Days of Summer with Larry Doyle Larry Doyle joins SMB Nation from the road to share his summer updates from vacations to economic predictions. Join Harry and Larry as they chat about the Dog Days of Summer. |
||
 |
Larry Doyle chats with SMB Nation about Microsoft Virtual Desktops and what he is learning and deploying. Over the last few months Larry has done quite a bit of research and training on Microsoft Virtual Desktops and how you manage the user experience (user profile and applications). Watch and get some great tips from Larry. |
||
 |
Alex Fields with Success Computer Consulting chats with SMB Nation about his quarterly technical user group featuring Microsoft Teams. Alex not only holds a technical user group for MSPs but he also hosts an end user group as well to help educate both audiances. These quarterly meetings are a great way to reach out to his clients and keep them informed as well as help onboard new clients. Check out Alex’s events and see how you can implement them into your Business. |
||
 |
Changing Times Means Changing Business Models Michael Fraser joins us to chat about the current economic state and new needs for businesses long term. The current state of MSP IT is going from rack and stack infrastructure to API infrastructure or IT as code. MSPs need to start learning and implementing this new infrastructure into their clients and stop relying on techs alone. With the limitation and a declining tech work force, Michael is helping vendors produce and create content in an automation state to help impower MSPs adapt and come into this IT as Code model or they are going to be cut out and larger companies are going to take their clients. |
||
 |
Harry is joined by Michael Jenkins from down under who has been hit with a double whammy( from the great fires to the Corvid pandemic). Michael opens up and shares the economic effects of the pandemic and recent activities. At first they saw huge revenue increases with the support of people working from home. Over the months this has started to settle down, with hardware, web cams, and other items being sold out and or hard to get, as well as people settling into working from home. Michael mentions hearing of some stimulus money that will be distributed to help keep businesses afloat. Watch and learn Michael’s plan to weather the storm. |
||
 |
Win as a Team with Alex Fields Alex Fields joins Harry Brelsford to chat about a book he was featured in “Winning as a Team”. Alex talks about driving Teams adoption in your organization, helping get the most out of the Teams tools, and how best to use the tools with in Teams. He goes onto share his stance on Teams and how he believes in allowing users to create their own Teams. Check out Alex’s book HERE. |
||
 |
Ransomware is something that has been talked about for quite awhile and has been one of the biggest issues in terms of IT security in the last two years. Although, many people think that Ransomware is a one shot deal, in reality it is a much more detailed process to remove and or get rid of the Ransomware. Watch as Ken Dwight goes through the process of Ransomware, targeting of the machine, how the malware gets on your computer, what hackers harvest, how to secure a machine, and much much more. |
||
 |
Data and Analytics in Today’s Pandemic Frank Ohlhorst and Harry Brelsford revisit the analytics conversation. They tie the conversation to the current economic status and pandemic taking place. When you couple data and analytics you can come to the conclusion on where to drive your business helping to build big profits. Watch Harry and Frank and learn how to use your data to grow your business. |
||
 |
Harry is joined by Josh Liberman to discuss life in a virtual world. Anyone who runs a MSP knows that you are busiest when it is slowest. Between virtual learning through virtual conferences, webinar, podcast, drumming up new business, and staying on top of current clients MSPs are busy. Harry and Josh go onto to talk about getting back together in person hopefully in the near future to get back to human networking, and shaking hands. Watch Harry and Josh and learn about life in a virtual world. |
||
 |
Phelim Rowe joins Harry Brelsford to explore privacy with Data. Phelim explores GDPR and the California privacy act and how it affects your data. He then goes onto to talk about why companies collect certain information and what they do with the information. Join Harry and Phelim to learn what is being done with your data. |
||
 |
Harry is joined by Michael Fraser to discuss higher education and its benefits. Its been one year since Michael graduated with his masters degree, and he explains the pros and cons of higher education and how it has helped him win contracts through the government. Watch and learn how Harry and Michael have grown through education, certificates and continued education. With the current economic state is it time to go (back) to school? |
||
 |
Join Harry Brelsford and Phelim Rowe for a morning cup of coffee and discussion on the current state of the event industry. Phelim noticed that people are currently thirsting for education, and are willing to attend virtual events as long as the content is current, and the speakers are well prepared. With all the events Phelim has held during this pandemic he has noticed that people are engaged and like the online format as long as content is educational and well thought out. Once the pandemic is over he says that events and trade shows will go back to business as usual. Come and learn what is new with events. |
||
 |
RSPA Announces: Academy Education Symposium August 26-27 Harry Brelsford is joined by Jim Roddy as he announces the first RSPA Academy Education Symposium on August 26-27. This conference was built on exploring new ideas and opportunities focused on the retail, restaurant, and grocery verticals. If you are looking to move your business forward in these uncertain times be sure to invest forward and attend this conference. You will walk away with a plan on how to adjust and reemerge from Covid. |
||
 |
Tech Tuesday: Your You Tube Journey Harry is joined by Kevin Hunter, Carey Holzman, and Tom Benkert to discuss how to start a profitable YouTube channel. They explore the steps to starting your channel as well as some great tips and tricks to building your audience (you must know your audience before producing content). They also share the power of You Tube and the search within google for years to come. Watch and learn how to grow an profitable You Tube Channel. |
||
 |
Alex Fields is at it again, working on an educational piece on How to be an MSSP. Alex has found that most MSPs are not up to date on information security and keeping their clients protected. In these times you can’t rely on your antivirus software but instead need to do a better job of understanding the information security. Stay tuned for more information to come in the fall. Watch this interview and learn more about the importance of information security. |
||
 |
Wilson: Easy as Pie – MFA in Office 365 I’ve just completed an interview with our contributor Denis Wilson who shared with us reports on a 600% increase (January 2020 – May 2020) in “cloud hacking” by bad actors targeting Office 365, G-suite and such. I was scared straight! So in-part, we used the interview HERE to get me off |
||
 |
We go down under with Michael Jenkins to explore the resurgence of Ransomware. With many businesses ramping up and sending employees home to work we are seeing an uptick in ransomware. Many businesses were not prepared to have employees work from home, and in turn are rapidly deploying remote work stations, leaving holes in their security allowing for hackers to access their machines. Watch as Michael and Harry discuss how to protect yourself and your clients. |
||
 |
7 Habits of Highly Effective Resellers or Partners The RSPA has done research by speaking with their solution provider members regarding the pandemic and how it is effecting their business. After extensive exploration they found that successful businesses who are weathering this storm have the following 7 attributes:
Watch this video and learn how you can prepare yourself and business for the next recession and or pandemic. |
||
 |
Harry Brelsford and Frank Ohlhorst review the current economic status and how it is effecting MSP’s and their clients. Although, some MSP’s are being impacted by the reduction in services needed by their clients, others are weathering the storm by using remote help, and online services and ordering. With businesses being forced to implement social distancing, supply changes, human resources updates, and more to adapt to this ever changing circumstances he is seeing opportunities for MSPs to implement remote work stations, VPN management, upgraded technology for both store fronts and distance working, and much much more. Watch and learn. |
||
 |
Dan Foote joins us from Alaska to share about Backup and Disaster Recovery, with a local business. Most small businesses and some medium businesses do not have backup set up for their business, and or if they do it has not been tested in years. Dan provided a local small business with a complete back up service and was able to show the business owner through email the backup reports. Dan asks when is the last time you tested your back up service? | ||
 |
Alex Stanier joins Harry Brelsford as they explore an IT and Telecoms Overview diagram. They review Telecom, Mobility, Network Support, and other applications. Join them and explore the ins and outs of mobility and telecom. |
||
 |
The Virus Doctor: Different Families of Malware Ken Dwight joins Harry Brelsford to discuss the different families of malware. They start off the conversation in 2003 with Crypto locker (the first widespread Ransomware) and go onto explore the last 7 years where thousands of Ransomware or Families of Ransomware have been developed and or transformed. They go on to discuss the 8 major families that are prevalent today. Listen to the Interview HERE to learn more about the different families of Ransomware and how they are ever evolving. |
||
 |
You now you grew up with SBS if… Harry and Larry reminisce on the SBS days and a new group they joined “you know you grew up with SBS”. They share stories from the SBS days as well as memorabilia they have kept. Join Harry and Larry on the Facebook group “you know you grew up with SBS if”. Watch HERE |
||
 |
MSPs: Taking Care of Your Clients Dan Foote joins us from Alaska to share how he is taking care of his clients in the pandemic. With Alaska being a resource driven state (oil, tourism, and fishing) many of his clients are at risk, however, he is reassuring them he will still be there for them as best he can. Watch the interview to see all that Dan is doing to protect his clients. |
||
 |
We are joined by Phelim Rowe from across the pond to explore what’s next. Many MSP’s have had a surge in business with the pandemic and are wondering what’s next? Phelim explores new opportunities within the education realm and training. Watch the interview here and get the inside scoop. He goes on to suggest a great opportunity for education and training at https://albq.mssconference.com/. |
||
 |
We are back with The Virus Doctor Ken Dwight to discuss what’s going on with the new normal and his break fix business. He goes on to tell us that things are back to usual, people are starting to venture out, and now needing to set up some remote work stations to go on vacation. Hear the ins and outs from the trenches HERE. |
||
 |
Denis Wilson joins us as we get the good, the bad, and the ugly on VPNs and working from home. He has been quickly training his team on Microsoft VPN as well as other major VPN manufactures. He stressed that MSP’s need to be ahead of this and grow their knowledge or they are going to be behind. Watch our interview HERE. |
||
 |
How to Run your Small Business From Home We welcome back Marc Haskelson from The Compliancy Group to chat about how to run your small business. We explore topics from being a mobile workforce, cutting cost and technology needs. Watch and learn ways to continue to serve your clients and run your business during these uncertain times. |
||
 |
We go across the pond to check-in with Andrew Bettany about how people are learning today. Bettany shares the sunny side with the notion of investing yourself with any and all “downtime” you might be experiencing in the pandemic. Education is consistently recognized as one of the best investments you can make! Learn more about Bettany’s courseware HERE and watch our interview HERE. And catch the communication about the FREEEEEE courseware from Microsoft to better yourself! |
||
|
|
Dets on the PPP for Small Businesses Tampa-based Vince Gabel is back in the technology saddle after a brief pause. Days before the pandemic hit head-on, Gabel joined a financial services firm in the technology area. Almost from day one he has been busy getting employees to work from home (securely). In his spare time, he’s been very involved in the financial relief program(s) for small businesses. Listen intently to the interview HERE about how insurance companies are in a better position to disburse funds than banks (Gable even wrote to his senators and congressional delegation to share this idea). |
||
 |
Pandemic Updates from RSPA – Retail Channel We’re back with Jim Roddy from the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA) as he talk about his membership demographic (he defines the retail channel as specialty, restaurants, and retail) and the impact of the pandemic on store closures, etc. Watch HERE. |
||
 |
Community Service: Give Your Computer Stuff Away to the Underserved We’re back with the National Christina Foundation as it continues to ramp and scale to acquire used/old computer stuff (that be equipment) to repair and then return to underserved communities such as students and elderly community. It all starts with a baseline of basic infrastructure (we talk about that) and it ends with ACTION! Watch intently HERE as Harry starts the journey to donate around ten phone, a half-dozen laptops, etc. It’s all good and you can also participate HERE. |
||
 |
Ohlhorst: Bandwidth made this a Podcast – not a Broadcast Say what you must but Frank Ohlhorst and the SMB Nation staff have worked remotely for years, so that’s something we’re familiar with (but we’re both bored for some reason). The interesting thing about this podcast was that because of global demand for online conferencing (GotToMeeting, Zoom, etc.) – we couldn’t’ get stable with video (ergo – it’s audio only mates for this one). Ohlhorst takes it to a whole ‘nother level talking about what his hearing about platforms crashing, VPNs being unreliable, etc. Watch HERE. |
||
 |
Dwight: COVID-19 Pandemic Observations We’re back with Ken Dwight – the virus doctor – is hearing a lot from this anti-virus technology community (who would have know his trademark “The Virus Doctor” would have a double-meaning during this era). Dwight expresses that he’s getting pounded by vendors trying to sell into the pandemic and he’s frustrated than that. It’s a valid point that you can watch HERE.
|
||
 |
Liberman: Revisiting Goals and Objectives Analyst Joshua Liberman updates us on his long-term plan to do more writing. As a senior professional, he is elevating his game to be more strategic about his personal branding. It’s a big step to look up from the day-to-day of running a business in the trenches. Watch HERE to here about his latest articles on securing small business and securing your own MSP. Another reason he writes is he wants to enjoy doing what he does. Imagine that! |
||
 |
Seattle-based Michael Fraser is keeping it safe in his home office and he shared with us BIG WIN concerning a Department of Defense (DOD) contract. The win is significant as it’s a door opener to further opportunities. This is phase one of a multi-phase contractor and comes with a matching fund in a later phase (the DOD will do a dollar for dollar match with Fraser’s investors). The devil is in the details and watch HERE.
You can learn more about the award in the press release HERE. |
||
|
|
Today we’re in Dublin, Ireland with analyst Larry Doyle. He shares how the COVID-19 outbreak is impacting his business as well as personal life. What’s cool about this interview is that we stopped his motorcycle in a public park to ring into us and the sound and video quality is amazing. Like our other analysts spanning the globe, Doyle is engaged in assisting clients in setting up remote offices at home. Watch the video HERE. |
||
 |
Rowe: Webinars vs. Online Conferences Phelim Rowe – our analyst from the UK, joins us from across the pond! We get insights into his daily life as an existing virtual organization during the COVID-19 (no major changes internally). Rowe optimistically talks about a connected global community that has come together very quickly. We talk about the difference between a webinar and an online event. We talk about how offering your services for free is a MISTAKE. Watch HERE. |
||
 |
Kohl: Fraud Warning About MSP Customer Orders A leading distributor, Ingram Micro, has sounded the alarm about fraudsters capitalizing on the COVID-19 pandemic and how bad acting customers are ordering laptops et al under the air cover of remote workers. In the interview with Eric Kohl, Vice President, Advanced Solutions at Ingram Mirco, he walks us through the fraud workflow from bad actors, possibly resulting in the Managed Services Provider (MSP) being stuff with the bill for 50-laptops that were delivered and never paid for. The finer points of Kohl’s letter to resellers is here: |
||
 |
EXTRA EDITON: Cisco’s Unique Remote Worker Solutions/Support We’re back on short notice with DD Dasgupta, Vice President, Marketing, SMB Products at Cisco to double-click into how Cisco has a unique end-to-end secure solution for remote workers. Take Cisco security expertise and then add WebEx and you get the picture. Watch the interview HERE! Here are additional Cisco resources to review. • “Working Smarter Anywhere”, a blog offering practical advice on working from home HERE
|
||
 |
Updated: Cisco Small Business Push DD Dasgupta, Vice President, Marketing, SMB Products joins us for a quarterly check-in. In early March, Cisco made several announcements concerning the small business sales motion (catch our conversation about the new “button”) and product stack enhancements. Learn more about the Cisco small business expanded portfolio HERE. Watch the interview HERE.
|
||
 |
This Guy – Right Place, Right Time! Long-time SMB Nation member Wayne Turmel is always one step ahead. You’ll recall Turmel worked extensively with us about a decade ago helping up improve the quality of our weekly webinar and coaching our guests to be better presenters (at his old company GreatWebMeetings.com). Then he leaped frogged to roll up into The Remote Leadership institute. In our video interview HERE Turmel speak about the sheer and utter pandemonium that has hit The Remote Leadership Institute this past month. With EVERYONE working remote, Fortune 500 and SMB clients are seeking out Turmel to assist with the rapid transition. He is thriving for all the right reasons!
|
||
 |
Hunter and Brelsford: McBain’s 2020 Channel Forecast – Part 2 Harry Brelsford joins Kevin Hunter on Northwest Digital News for a TechTuesday segment for part two of a two-part series to review Forrester principal analyst Jay McBain’s “What I See Coming For the Channel In 2020” report. Insights include watching channel account managers turn into community managers and much more . Watch HERE!
|
||
 |
Hunter and Brelsford: McBain’s 2020 Channel Forecast – Part 1 Harry Brelsford joins Kevin Hunter on Northwest Digital News for a TechTuesday segment to review Forrester principal analyst Jay McBain’s “What I See Coming For the Channel In 2020” report. This is part one (ow two) where we review the role of indirect sales and other highlights. Watch HERE!
|
||
 |
Concentration of Power in SMB MSP Community The facts are undeniable – there has been a merger and acquisition wave that has resulted in a handful of big players starting to dominate the product/services solution stack available to Managed Services Providers (MSPs). That’s good and bad. Listen to this recent Northwest Digital News TechTuesday segment with Kevin Hunter where this important topic is discussed with references to Forrester analyst Jay McBain’s recent 2020 channel/community report. Watch HERE.
|
||
 |
Using Analytics To Measure Online community Growth Newly appointed analyst Scott Sanders talk about his rapidly growing community called IT Business Owners Group (ITBOG) are the focus in our March 2020 meetup. Sanders shares some secrets about building a thriving community in a world filled with social media nonsense and noise. “I’m a numbers guy so I monitor the analytics of my ITBOG Facebook group.” Sanders stated. Sander’s favorite key performance indicator (KPI)? It’s the growth rate of new members. Watch the interview HERE.
|
||
 |
Wrapping 1Q2020 and Pointing Towards 2Q2020 Esteemed long-time SMB Nation contributor Joshua Liberman safely joins us from Alberque New Mexico after we had a meetup at the ChanelPro SMB Dallas event. We discuss a few lost shows such as Channel Partners and the CompTIA membership meetings. Liberman speculates that there will be a cascade of cancelled shows (he is correct as the ASCII Group recently postponed it Houston, TX show for late March 2020. Watch HERE.
|
||
 |
We catch-up with a friend of the SMB Nation family, Jim Roddy, former president of Business Solutions Magazine and now Vice President of Sales and Marketing at the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA). Listen up to this podcast format as Roddy links the SMB Nation crowd, primarily Managed Services Providers (MSPs) with the Point-of-Sale (POS) crowd in his world. We’re more interconnected than you might imagine! Listen HERE.
|
||
 |
Help Needed: Nationwide Technology Stuff Supply Chain (National Cristina Foundation) Time to get back to what we do best at SMB Nation – helping others. With our 49,500 community members who are truly feet on the street, we are working with the National Christina Foundation to rapidly scale the distribution of low-cost and no cost technology assets to solve the digital divide with coronavirus-related matters such as schools closing on short notice and students needing to learn online NOW. The National Christina Foundation’s mission is to assist those who need to help the most such as lower-income students trying to participate via digital inclusion during this health crisis. Watch the interview with Scott Henley and Sue Krautbauer and please volunteer (donations, services) HERE .
|
||
 |
Working Remotely But Still Going To Small Meetings Off to Southern California we went to interview MSP Denis Wilson about his business model. Like other MSPs, Wilson benefits from automation and remote management tools. He has one client that’s not in the best position to be completely remote so that’s an exception as Wilson responds to the coronavirus pandemic. Catch where Wilson comments he still goes to small business meeting gatherings such as the Rotary Lunch. Watch the interview HERE. |
||
 |
Jenkin: Down Under – Aussie MSP Response to COVID-19 Long-time contributor Michael Jenkin weighs in from Adelaide, Australia with how, following the recent big fires, the coronavirus pandemic is impacting his business and that of his customers. Pay special attention to the interview HERE where we talk about the economic multiplier effect in the technology supply chain. And be sure to go over the check out his amazing YouTube channel with geek stuff! |
||
 |
Dohn: Early Decisions Made and Clear Communications Long-time SMB Nation member LC Dohn sent out the first customer-facing coronavirus communication we witnessed about how her MSP practice, NetWeb Computer Consulting, is handling its internal operations to safely serve its customers in the Alpharetta, Georgia-area. Fortunately, Dohn’s workflow was 70%+ remote work already with tools like remote management and monitoring. Her client email placed an emphasis on tracking the COVID-19 matter via sites from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO). Bonus – Dohn is an adjunct instructor at a local college and is teaching her Microsoft technical curriculum online too! Watch HERE. |
||
 |
Dwight: Why I Joined the IAMCP Great minds think alike. Contributor Ken Dwight recently joined that Houston chapter of the International Association of Microsoft Channel Partners (IAMCP) and it was the same week Harry joined the Austin chapter! We talk about our reasons for join this trade association plus what we hope to “get” out of our participation. Its all about gives and gets when you join a trade association. Watch HERE.
|
||
 |
Revised Microsoft 365 Book OUT! Contributor Alex Fields went heads down for the first part of 2020 to revise his popular book, now called “The Microsoft 365 Business Migration and Configuration Guide: Deploying, Securing and Managing Microsoft 365 Business” that you can discover more about HERE. The main addition was migration content in this updated edition. Watch the amazing Alex in this chat HERE. And as a bonus, he shares a dashboard that is tracking the coronavirus outbreak HERE.
|
||
 |
Extinction Events and the MSPs Contributor Phelm Rowe joins us from the UK to talk about “what’s next” for the MSP. He frames it up as a term he coined called “extinction events.” The conversation meanders into whether an MSP should be a specialist or generalist. Through in some consolidation chatter and other such nonsense. Watch HERE.
|
||
 |
Weiss: Financial Markets and MSPs Long-time contributor Josh Weiss from LA Creative Tech in Southern California shares some insights on the stock market volatility and whether is does/does not impact the local Managed Services Provider (MSP). It’s a multi-faceted conversation. Weiss shares that his large real estate client could well be impacted. The conversation shifts to counter-cyclical opportunities.. |
||
 |
Community leader Scott Sanders from the IT Business Owners Group has a great (and as he says “crazy”) idea: an at-sea technology conference. We double-click down into the “411” on his late Summer 2020 conference cruise. He’ll have both lecture/content and of course fun. Give his cruise your consideration. The details are HERE. . |
||
 |
Ohlhorst: Where in the World is Frank? Esteemed analyst Frank Ohlhorst updates us on recent conferences that he’s covered including NetApp over in London. Listen intently as Ohlhorst educates us on NetApp, an ISV that isn’t commonly thought of in the SMB Nation Managed Services Provider (MSP) membership. Well 900+ people can be wrong. Catch the conversation at mid-point where Ohlhorst gives insights into Brexit being a topic of discussion. As promised in the interview, here is the URL for NetApp’s partner program HERE. . |
||
 |
Fraser: Startup Success Secrets Contributor Michael Fraser has nailed the startup success motion. He is participating in startup incubator/contests with Google, Facebook and Microsoft. There are programs from these big three ISVs to assist startups like Fraser’s Refactr (that focuses on Infrastructure as a Service aka IaaS). Watch HERE. . |
||
 |
Weiss: Outsourcing Admin Stuff as an MSP Southern California-based Josh Weiss (LA Creative Technologies) brings us into the roaring 20s by revisiting outsourcing some tasks and services as a smaller Managed Services Provider (MSP). Weiss love the front-end help desk services offered by his use of Continuum. He also sees value in using outside expertise such as SeaLevel to help him be strategic. Spoiler alert – Weiss is most excited in this interview about using a virtual assistant (from the Philippines). Watch HERE. . |
||
 |
Rowe: Clearing up the Confusion: MSP v MSS Analyst and contributor Phelim Rowe clears up the confusion on labels surrounding cybersecurity solutions. Rowe’s analysis starts with analyzing the Service Level Agreement (SLA) with the client. Does the client need (or well they pay for) military grade security. Rowe defines Managed Security Service (MSS). Rowe also discusses his event model that combines MSPs, MSS and Customers. Watch HERE. . |
||
 |
Dwight: I’m Rebranding in 2020! Esteemed analyst Ken Dwight, known as The Virus Doctor, has evolved his long-time cybersecurity community with a refresh. It starts with his messaging to emphasize the Malware Incident Response workshop. This is updated from his messaging emphasis on virus remediation (in addition to virus stuff). Watch HERE.
|
||
 |
Wilson: Introducing the LA Cyber Lab Denis Wilson, long-time contributor and analyst, talks about a City of Los Angeles cybersecurity alert service call LA Cyber Lab. Then we talk about content-based MSP marketing – work it hard and it works! We review an article curated from, you guessed it, the LA Cyber Lab. Specially the topic concerns the “locked screen trick” that dupes a lot of folks out there. . |
||
 |
Liberman: Looking Forward to the Roaring 20s Analyst and contributor Josh Liberman peeks at upcoming events *and* provides a recap on the recent Auvik event in mid-January. He speaks towards Auvik’s efforts as a “first time show” including strong attendance, an engaged audience and Auvik staff accessibility. Shout out to the human networking time/peer-2-peer time. To be honest, that is one of the underlying (and often unappreciated) aspects of an event (what we call Networking 101). Watch HERE. . |
||
 |
Ohlhorst: Is 2020 the Year of Azure in SMB? Long-time contributor Frank Ohlhorst out of New York City is a busy man but we caught a few minutes with him to kick of 2020. The question is simple: Is 2020 finally the year that Azure fits into SMB? The answer is longer. Listen up pardners! . |
||
 |
Jenkin: Australian Fires and IT Updates Australian Michael Jenkin (checks in with us on the massive fires. Jenkin is right in the middle of it. After a general update, Jenkin talks about how its impacting technology infrastructure (including ordering supplies and allowing extra shipping days). The conversation then focuses on the importance of business continuity planning and disaster recovery. Please watch this important community update and support Australian fire relief as you are able. . |
||
 |
Fields: I’m am UPDATING my BOOK! Contributor Alex Fields (Success Computer Consulting, Minneapolis, MN) has started 2020 off with a bang! He is updating his well respected “Microsoft 365 Business Admin Guide: Securing and Managing Microsoft 365 Business” to version it with more migration content. The focus is file migrations, not the well known and understood email migration scenarios. In his own words, Field talks about using the guide to “finesse” your way to a successful system migration. . |
||
 |
A self admitted working man, Scott Snaders, has earned success as a MSP and IT business owner out in the Carolinas! But what we talk about in addition to his life journey is how he built a successful IT Business Owners (ITBOG) Facebook group over five years with over 3,000 members engaging in spirited conversations. It’s harder than it looks with Sanders personally directing the group, admitting “good fits” and monitoring behaviors. Communities come and go. But the fact Sanders has stuck with it makes this an encouraging interview to watch. Catch the bit at the end about Sanders holding his first event on a cruise ship in late Summer 2020. After watching, go to his main site HERE for more details. . |
||
 |
Schwank: From Break Fix Tech to Growing MSP Contributor Blake Schwank has successfully grown Colorado Computer Support (a Colorado Springs MSP) from a husband/wife team to a mid-sized MSP. One of his secrets shared in this video concerns the profitability he attributes to Unified Communications (UC) offerings. Closely related is this secret. Don’t call it UC in front of your small business clients (they don’t care). Watch! . |
||
 |
Fox: Importance of Project Management for MSPs Sure it’s an evergreen topic but revisiting the role of project management is always welcome! Canadian Matt Fox shares insights into the field of project management and solutions. Fox works for an ISV that provides purpose built project management functionality for ConnectWise and other PSAs (doing business as CW KanBan). A must watch for Managed Services Providers (MSPs). |
||
 |
Brelsford: My Annual Small Business Saturday shopping Adventure Harry Brelsford treat the last Saturday in November every year (Small Business Saturday) as a national holiday that directly impacts the SMB Nation. From Austin, Brelsford buys his son a bike racing outfit (kit) to show he can spend his hard earned dollars in a true small business. Mark it on your calendar next year to suit up, show up and shop local! |
||
 |
Cooke and Rodriguez: Small Business Saturday 2019 and IAMCP On the recent Small Business Saturday (November 30, 2019), we had a meetup with Davin Cooke and Rudy Rodriguez at the world famous Mellow Johnny’s Bike Shop in Austin, Texas. This interview is a double feature inside this bona fide small business. First – there is a brief conversation about the Austin chapter of the International Association of Microsoft Channel Partners. Then we discuss Small Business Saturday itself. |
||
 |
Understanding Jay McBain’s 2020 Forecast Report I took 30-mins to carefully read Jay McBain’s 2020 forecast titled “What I See Coming for the Channel in 2020” and I still didn’t completely understand. McBain, a principal analyst at Forrester, is truly a gifted expert and the report is well written. But at some level it’s above my pay grade so I reached out to Will Yafi (TIDWIT) to have him walk me through it in the interview HERE. A few takeaways include the breakdown of the traditional partner program, the importance of non-transacting partners and what’s old is new (referring to my technology consulting days back at a large Pacific Northwest accounting firm). |
||
 |
Contributor Michael Jenkins speaks towards the current state of IT in Australia and how some recent national government initiatives are now bearing fruit. For example, the increased availability of broadband has jum started cloud computing in Australia. Jenkins predicts you’ll see the transition on-premises-based IT to cloud with an emphasis on edge servers. Jenkins also speaks towards the cost saving (some SMBs were paying $10K/month AUD for broadband in the past). Other topics include MSPs being targeted by cyber criminals in 2020, etc. | ||
 |
Contributor Josh Liberman updates the Nation community on his recent adventure in Paris for DattaCon Europe. He speaks towards the difference between US-based shows and vendors and the overseas makeup. There are differences indeed. He then looks towards 2020 with his own business model and events he plans to engage in. | ||
 |
Merrill Keating – TEDx Youth Bainbridge IslandMSP Passion Project – Cancer Can Rock! Hometown hero and three-time author Merrill Keating is at it again. She’s become certified in the TEDx movement and directs the youth group on Bainbridge Island just outside Seattle. This group is all about intellectual and civic engagement that typically results in events. Speaking of events, Keating and her team are holding a TEDx Youth Event on Bainbridge Island on Saturday, February 1 2020 at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art. Discover the dets HERE. |
||
 |
MSP Passion Project – Cancer Can Rock! Well-known community member Rich Forsen has elevated his Washington DC-area Managed Services Provider (MSP) practice to the point where he’s acting as an owner and not the pie maker (ala “The E-myth Revisited” book). He has focused his unused work capacity on a passion project called Cancer Can Rock that allows him to serve a community of cancer afflicted musicians on a couple of levels: playing healing music and creating a musical legacy. Harry shares how every family has been impacted by cancer including his own. Cancer Can rock has been selected as SMB Nation’s cause marketing entity for 2020 so join us for this “Hello World” chat with Forsen here. |
||
 |
Phelim Rowe directs UK-based CTG Intelligence, an integrated events and education concerns for both channel partners and customers in the security technology space. After we do a “Hello World” we move on to talk about the use of acronyms and labels in our community: MSP, MSSP and MSS. Lean in, listen intently and discover the finer points between these earned and unearned (marketing) titles. And we end with a shout out to Forrester analyst Jay McBain who recently spoke at Rowe’s Miami security workshop. | ||
 |
This born in the cloud undistributor based in Denver, Colorado has grown into a really big deal in the SMB Managed Services Provider (MSP) space over the past few years. I kept hearing the “buzz” about Pax8 and I had to visit it’s HQ to get the scoop. It built its own cloud distribution platform after looking at marketplace platforms (such as Parallels/Odin) and owns its own intellectual property (IP). A big part of its business behavior is akin to a traditional distributor with a few notable exceptions (e.g. no pcik-and-pack and no brick and mortar). Watch this video featuring Ryan Walsh and Nick Heddy. | ||
 |
Collabrance’s Greg VanDeWalker shares his thoughts on how MSPs can attacking a vexing problem: talent shortage. It comes down to expertise, focus and pursuing a scalable business that allows MSPs to both survive and thrive in a changing business environment. Think of it as off loading some the technical support work that isn’t the highest and best use of your time as an MSP business owner. There is also the argument for returns to specialization. Do what you do best. Watch! | ||
 |
Fraser: IT Nation 2019 Recap and More! Contributor Michael Fraser shares insights on the recent IT Nation conference where he was a speaker and had a booth on the floor. His talking points included DevSec Opps and “Everything as a Service” at the conference. Notably Fraser shares the interest from the vendor community was very high in these areas. His Refractr solution was demoed on the big stage with a new ConnectWise tool called Chat Genie. Fraser also offers up thoughts on 2020 moving forward. |
||
 |
Contributor Ken Dwight shares one last MSP being hit in cybersecurity scenario (recently in Houston) before revealing his own rebranding in 2020! Dwight has long been known as the “Virus Doctor” with a community education business model. However – his established and respected “Virus Remediation” training sessions will now be known as “Malware Incident Response” workshops. The strategy is more than just rebranding and really speaks towards delivering relevant content. Watch to learn much more. | ||
 |
Hanauer: Looking Forward to 2020 Contributor Mike Hanauer (CRO, Skout) gives us a year-ender with a look to 2020. His roadmap includes a focus on education: AI, Machine Learning, Cybersecurity. Any one of these three topics could be a separate interview but we tackle all three right here right now. And watch out for the acronym “speeds and feeds” from Hanauer. |
||
 |
Just when you thought you’d heard of all the “…as a Service” combinations, along come an innovative financing program for partners from Ingram at the Ingram ONE conference in Denver, Colorado. Essentially it’s a cash flow problem solver for partners who are seeking to grow into larger deals but might not have the cash cushion they need. The dets are in this interview with Ingram executives Kelly Carter and John Bak. | ||
 |
SherWeb MSP Makeover Contest Winner Dan Foote (Part 2) Earlier this year, DanTech Services, directed by Dan Foote (Anchorage, Alaska) was the grand prize winner of the MSP Makeover contest. We visited with Dan in August and provided advice on his Managed Services Provider (MSP) business model (you can watch that HERE). Fast forward 90-days and we’re back to check-in with Foote on how its going. In this updated interview, Dan shares three updates. His new sales and marketing director is now three months on the job and using some interesting sales tactics such as the telecom sales agent model. DanTech has also launched a ADA-compliant mirror site of its main website to accommodate all customers. And Foote has a cyber security play that you’ll just have to watch the vid HERE to learn about. Thanks again to SherWeb for the support in the MSP Makeover contest! |
||
 |
Fraser – Platform as a Service and IT Nation! Contributor Michael Fraser has one foot out the door to IT Nation in Orlando as we interviewed him for his monthly contribution. He’ll be speaking plus he’ll have a booth on the floor where his firm, Refractr, is launching a new Platform as a Service solution for Managed services Providers (MSPs). Fraser defines Platform as a Service – it lives between Software as a Service (SaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). It’s kinda both infrastructure and software. You’ll just need to watch the interview with Michael Fraser to understand the finer points! |
||
 |
Wilson: Password Protection via Google Chrome – GREAT THING! This month contributor Denis Wilson reaches across the yellow line to talk about Google Chrome and a new password checker. “It’s a great thing because we’ve struggled with our customer’s ‘buy-in’ to pay for a password checker.” Wilson shared. Technically – the Chrome add-in is called a password checkup. Wilson is pleased with the efficacy of the add-in and likes the scalability about how it comes with Chrome itself. You don’t have to pay for it. We also discuss how to affect generational change in a culture – the point about “buy-in” above. And we discuss how Google has institutionalized this feature putting the third-party gap fillers at business model risk. Watch! |
||
 |
Dwight – Cybersecurity Chatter Community Feedback Our best dressed analyst Ken Dwight is back joining us from Houston, Texas (Go Astros!) and talking about security chatter he’s detecting in his anti-virus community (don’t forget that Ken is the “Virus Doctor”). Dwight uses this interview to announce his new workshop called “Malware Incident Response” training (MIR). His students and alumni provide a great feedback loop on what’s important and trending. Dwight gives Emisoft a shout out as a trusted vendor that recently published an article revealed an interesting statistic: In 2019 to date – 621 local governments, schools and health care providers have been attacked by malware and suffered encrypted data. So listen up to learn more! |
||
 |
Haskelson: Business Solution Provider (BSP) Part II: Vendor Support Contributor Marc Haskelson speaks towards embracing your vendor as a Managed Services Provider (MSP) trying to latch on to the Business Solution Provider (BSP) wave. I speak towards the fact that historically a member of ‘da Nation wouldn’t wake up in the morning in bed with a vendor but Haskelson makes some assertions that vendors can be a resources for you. Vendors themselves about creating tool sets to help MSPs understand the clients BUSINESS PROBLEMS! That is the secret is to take the business problem and turn it into a revenue opportunity. |
||
 |
Weiss: Be a Confident MSP using Outsourcing Contributor Josh Weiss gave a speech at the recent Continuum Weiss spoke towards hot to maximum a partnership with the Continuum help desk to run his lean Southern California Managed Services Provider (MSP) business. His 75-min speech included eight tips and he shares a couple in this interview. One tip is to have a clear client communication strategy because you are outsourcing an “intimate relationship” with the client. Have confidence about the outsroucing decision instead of being embarrassed. Another tip is to treat your technicians like human beings (treat them well!). Note: Weiss also spoke at the Las Vegas version of Continuum Navigate (October 15-16) |
||
 |
Hurley: Soccer, Solutions and Global Partner Types We caught a busy Pat Hurley, VP and GM at Acronis, who claims the Americans beat the Europeans in an early morning soccer match. Hurley declares “backup is dead” and Hurley wants to have partners think of a complete Acronis solution, not just its backup roots. We then go on to discuss the definition of global partner types. Watch HERE.#CyberFit #AcronisCyberSummit |
||
 |
Rowe: Difference between an MSP and MSSP An attendee from across the pond, attendee Phelim Rowe isn’t your average participant at a security conference. Rather he’s a subject matter expert (SME) in the field and he orchestrates a series of partner security events global. In this conversation at the Acronis Global Summit Conference (Miami, October 2019), Phelim speaks towards the fine distinction between someone who is a Managed Services Provider (MSP) versus someone else who acts as a Managed Security Services Provider. A new twist on a hot topic. |
||
 |
Holzman: Mastering YouTube – Yes You Can as an MSP! This is a story of a geek from the senora desert who has NAILED YOUTUBE! Carey Holzman, over the past decade, has built a YouTube audience north of a quarter million followers who look to his point-of-view (POV) cinematic presentation style to solve real problems like how to fix a PC. Yes – he brings together B2C, B2B and MSPs all in one place. But this interview is much more than that. Holzman reveals the three pillars of his YouTube success that can easily be replicated for your MSP marketing success (with Holzman’s blessing). This first discover interview introduces Holzman to the “Nations” and we’ll have him back for geek stuff. Watch our interview HERE and the subscribe to Holzman’s YouTube channel HERE. We met Holzman at the recent Acronis Global Cyber Summit. #CyberFit #AcronisCyberSummit |
||
 |
I liken this interview with Lance Crosby, CEO of StackPath, to my being a long-time listener, first time caller on a radio show. What? I’ve been tracking Crosby’s successes for years and SMB Nation members would best remember SoftLayer, an early cloud player that was often seen at SMB MSP shows (and later acquired by IBM for $2B+). Crosby’s latest effort, StackPath, is leading the charge on edge computing solutions. However – in this interview I talk about his recent Facebook post about life at the top from his point of view. | ||
 |
Fields: Azure Active Directory – Intro and Resources Our professor in disguise and leading analyst Alex Fields (Success Computer Consulting, Minneapolis, MN) is back with the real deal: Azure Active Directory. This is a very important segment as Azure is quickly emerging as a trending topic for 2020 for Managed Services Providers (MSPs). We start waaayyyy back 20+ years ago with old fashioned Active Directory (spoiler alert: Harry flashes his Active Directory Planning and Design book on the screen LOL). We then fast forward the movie to Azure Active directory with a brief definition followed by a couple best practices. We drop you off HERE where Fields has extensively published on the topic! |
||
 |
Skout Updates: $25m Series B Raise and Selling Security as an MSP Skout has moved fast forward over summer of ’19 with a $25m investment round and a channel first strategy. The raise was a Series B lead by ClearSky (you can read about it HERE We get the real story from Mike Hanauer, CRO at Skout. He’s got a knack for putting it in perspective from an MSP point of view (not an investment banker point of view). We then shift gears and talk about the challenges of selling security to existing clients (spoiler alert – existing clients already THOUGHT tou were doing security as the MSP). Watch! |
||
 |
At the recent Data Night in Seattle, I interview Christy Marble of Visier and give her the name “Dr. Kill Joy” as a reaction to her thoughtful but tough presentation (ouchie). She likes to arms her marketers with hands-on data and challenges her staff to compete for being viable and kill programs that aren’t working. They hardest thing is to find out what’s not working and kill it. Put that money back into things that are working. Marble literally holds contests in this scenario. The “other side” of marketing analytics for sure. | ||
 |
Elissa Fink recently retired from Tableau and now advises companies on analytics. She makes points about having enough, not having enough data. Fink manages expectations concerning analytics: DON’T EXPECT PERFECTION. Just get started with the data that you have. Interviewed at the recent Data Night in Seattle – Fink offers the “real world” of the interconnectivity of data and making better decisions. Cheers to that! | ||
 |
Snowflake: Women in Technology At a late summer “Data Night” event, we chat with Denise Perrson (CMO at Snowflake) about women in technology. We caught her right before her flight and she highlights that women, once presented with an opportunity, take too long to make a decision and the opportunity is GONE! When you have an opportunity – say YES!!! By the way – here is the context of the event. The Data Night Seattle panel will feature four female CMOs who have been integral in building their fast-growing companies to a combined $25B. They'll each share from their wealth of knowledge and experience in leveraging data and innovations to drive business growth and answer questions like "What kind of data is important to their organization?", "What specifically do they look for that takes data to insight?", "What tools are best for turning data insights into impactful ROI?", and more. |
||
 |
Sneak Peek: Acronis Global Cyber Summit 2019 Hear Ye! Hear Ye! It’s now the “season” in Miami with the humidity on the way out and the perfect time to giddy up and attend the new Acronis-powered conference for MSPs and partners. In this quick hitter, I interview about what to expect at this conference. Stacked with notable keynotes, there is also a foundation charity event that touched me. Watch this sneak peek to learn more and click HERE to discover the “dets” on this conference. See you in Miami! |
||
 |
Liberman: It’s SHOWTIME! Fall Conferences One of the hardest working folks in the SMB MSP community, contributor Joshua Liberman talks about eh Fall conference line-up including The Channel Company’s Exchange event (that is primarily hosted), ASCII (Toronto), ChannelPro (San Jose) and others. Liberman talks attendee demographics including Women in Technology (WIT). A must watch! |
||
 |
This month, contributor Frank Ohlhorst brings value by discussing how revamped industry certifications are again adding value for stakeholders. He touches on Cisco, CompTIA and even Microsoft revamped “MCSE” and successor certifications. The biggest changes in certification are occurring in the cybersecurity realm (hint: MSSP). We also discuss the value of graduate school in our space. The central question is “to learn or not to learn.” Watch! | ||
 |
Our check-in with contributor Marc Haskleson where he drives home the concept of Business Solution Provider (BSP) as a way to elevate and expand beyond the traditional Managed Services Provider (MSP) business model. It’s all about grappling with all the tech tools and how to integrate everything. “The MSP that evolves into a BSP is in the best position to thrive.” Haskelson shares in the vid interview. | ||
 |
Our monthly check-in with contributor Alex Fields (Minneapolis, MN) focuses on Shared Mailboxes. Fields thinks that a lot of people use shared mailboxex improperly. For example – a real “gap” is the use of shared mailboxes on mobile devices. Multiple people and single multifactor authentication is one of the risk factors. Also – shared mailboxes tend to use dumb passwords (watch to find why). | ||
 |
Church: This is My Story (Road Trip) We’re on the road in Eugene, OR with Steve Church and his passions for boat racing and being a managed services provider (MSP). With a laser focus on small and medium businesses who appreciate technical expertise, Cobalt is now over ten years old. On the business front – Church has secured vendor sponsorship for his boat (e.g the branding wrap) from our friends over at AppRiver. It’s something we’re starting to see more of (Larry Doyle from Dublin, Ireland had his motorcycle sponsored by StorageCraft, a story you can watch HERE |
||
 |
Another year of SpiceWorld comes to an end. I end with a wrap filmed from the Dell Technologies Tech Tour semi-truck on the floor. This is akin to the infamous Microsoft Across America trucks a decade ago (and a similar initiative now underway with Lenovo). Bottom line: You must do SpiceWorld at lease once in your career so see you in the Fall of 2020 . |
||
 |
Tsai: IT Spend Growth Drivers in 2020 If its Fall, it’s time for SpiceWorld in Austin TX, the annual confab hosted by Spiceworks. And its time to check in with Peter Tsai, the long-time senior technology analyst who is on the team the produces tons of primary research in the tech sector (a lost art – lemme tell ya). In this interview we discuss the 2020 IT spend forecast (primarily at the enterprise level). Watch closely as we take a twist to justify what the spend looks like. It’s been driven in part by the Microsoft Windows 7 end-of-support (EOS) coming in January 2020. We wrap up with some findings concerning the enterprise appetite to embrace A.I. and 5G. |
||
 |
Hendrickson: The Education Debate – Certification v. Grad School This month, Lisa Hendrickson (CallThatGirl) provides an update on her reinvention journey. In a prior segment, we spoke with Lisa about life changes as she returned to her home region to attend graduate school and put more sills in her portfolio (always wise). Bottom line – graduate school isn’t necessarily the perfect fit for now so she’s surfaced a great conversation about industry certifications as an alternative pathway. |
||
 |
Dwight: Texas Tango and the MSP Attack Vector Ken “The Virus Doctor” Dwight from Houston Texas double-clicks into something we’ve discussed before – the bad guys are targeting MSPs as a channel to a customer portfolio. Dwight offers little known facts about the Texas MSP who was targeted and 22-cities were impacted with a ransomware scenario. You can also gain more visibility into this matter in a recent CRN article HERE. |
||
 |
Sneak Peek: Smith’s book “FOXOCRACY: INSIDE THE NETWORK’S PLAYBOOK OF TRIBAL WARFARE” Your chance to get intellectual (and a sneak peek) at Tobin Smith’s forthcoming (sure to be best seller) book. After 14-years at Fox News, Smith has a tell all book that is much more than just “that” with insights into the predatory psychological and emotionally manipulative powers of any major cable news network. This isn’t about right versus left but rather a guide to how the human brain responds to certain triggers to simulate endorphins. Maybe there are some business development lessons learned for all of us. A must watch teaser vid! After watching learn more about the book here: https://amzn.to/34RQO7Iry. |
||
 |
Tran: We Provide an Efficient Integration with IT Glue Liongard’s Vincent Tran represents the spirit of the exposition hall at IT Glue’s GlueX 2019 conference in Scottsdale. This right-sized conference has a vendor hall that makes sense. Each sponsor somehow, someway truly integrates into IT Glue. So this conference is about ecosystem. Tran shares the details on how Liongard’s solution brings order to documentation management saving the MSP time and ultimately allowing for better service delivery. |
||
 |
Is Analytics the Enemy of Innovation? Compelling keynote speaker David Robertson directly answers my questions about analytics and dog food. I formulated this line of questioning after his completing business keynote at GlueX in Scottsdale, AZ. Here is the scoop on his keynote – read before watching the vid so you have the context. Innovation doesn't always have to be disruptive to be effective. In fact, trying to push the limits too far, too fast, can be an outright disaster. Robertson, a Professor of Practice at the Wharton School, is a business expert . He's also the author of Brick by Brick: How LEGO Rewrote the Rules of Innovation and Conquered the Global Toy Industry. In the book, he explores the perils of "over-innovation" through the lens of LEGO, the iconic American toy brand. He provides an insider's look at how the company went from the brink of bankruptcy in 2003 to become the most profitable and fastest growing company in the toy industry today. In 1999, Robertson recounts, LEGO hit a roadblock: People worried that toys like LEGO, Barbie, and Hot Wheels were becoming passé. To stay competitive in a market being overtaken by digital gadgets and video games, LEGO decided to deviate from what consumers expected of them. As Roberts divulged to Lavin, LEGO's foray into the theme park market was an "innovative" move that turned out to be high-risk and low-reward. They focused too much on the innovation itself and not enough on managing that innovation, he adds. Another miss was when the company released a line of toys that featured very little physical assembly. For anyone who has used LEGO products before, it's easy to see why consumers would be confused by the brand's dramatic change. When talking to the keynote speaker about the shortcomings of LEGO's innovation strategy, he recalls a metaphor of a man strapping a jet engine to his car and trying—unsuccessfully—to steer the contraption around a sharp and unexpected curve. It's one thing to be innovative and keep customers on their toes. But if you try to innovative in markets that neither you—nor your customer—understands, you could end up going over the cliff. The important thing is that you provide both "the space [for staff] to be creative with the governance to guide," he argues. Further, he says that building families of innovation, where you build on the products you already have instead of always trying to create something brand new, is another of LEGO's winning strategies. In a world obsessed with the "next big thing" and highly disruptive innovation, sometimes it pays to approach innovation from a "brick by brick" approach. Build from what you have, and ensure that you are laying the foundation to manage those innovations long-term. It certainly worked for LEGO. |
||
 |
Mid-town Mr. Brown on SECURITY that MATTERS! No SolarWinds Empower conference is complete with touching all the bases and that includes a security talk with Tim Brown, VP of Security, SolarWinds MSP. While a fellow geek, Brown is also something of a well-spoken character and has a way of describing security matters in terms of something we can all understand. Bottom line this time? MSPs are under attack and need to take security seriously. Catch Brown’s baseline recommendations at 1:30+ into the interview. And beware of “drive-bys” – ouch!PS – why the mid-town nickname? Because the Empower event was held in mid-town Atlanta LOL! |
||
 |
Pagliuca, Five Things That Matter Most? SolarWinds executive John Pagliuca, EVP, SolarWinds MSP reveals several things in this interview including an update on the conference demographic (a record 500+ delegates attended). His talking points: 1. Security Watch up to discover the depth that Pagliuca goes into each topic. |
||
 |
Knox UPDATE: One Month Later and Looking Forward! Just over a month ago, we interviewed Colin Knox (Colin Knox, Director of Product Strategy, Passportal, SolarWinds MSP) at the CompTIA ChannelCon event and we caught up to him at SolarWinds Empower 2019. Spoiler alert: Knox launched his PassPortal solution at the 2011 SMB Nation Fall Conference (at the RIO in Las Vegas – YAY!). From there Knox defines what PassPortal “does” and what forthcoming integrations into the SolarWinds product stack you can anticipate!e. |
||
 |
Midwest Dental Practices Attacked Via MSP Larry Doyle brought his friend William along this month as they joined us from Belfast, Northern Ireland. We discuss the absolute hottest topic in the MSP community today: Bad actors attacking MSPs as a channel to customer sites. This was a central theme at the recent SolarWinds Empower event and it’s a topic receiving significant coverage. In this case, our guest William, discusses several dental clinics that were compromised with malware via a single MSP! There is a strong security lesson here for everyone. |
||
 |
As part of our journey around the SolarWinds Empower conference in Atlanta, we cornered Mav Turner who recently came from the mothership SolarWinds over to SolarWinds MSP. He takes a moment to lay out the organization structure and speak toward his ten-year SolarWinds career (built on his technical background with a Computer Science degree). Turner’s job is to listen with two ears and talk with one mouth (in that proportion) so he wants to hear from you. Leave a comment and he’ll get it! |
||
 |
Digital Transformation: Winning Customers’ Hearts & Minds at Scale A busy Erik Qualman, motivational speaker and best selling author, caught a few minutes with us at the SolarWinds Empower conference to talk about STAMP starting with “simple is hard” (an oft-quoted phrase here at SMB Nation). We also cover finding the balance between your offline and online presence. And we end with the notion of fully stepping into your story from the perspective of how you want to be remembered. |
||
 |
Call That Girl – Lisa Speaks to SMB Nation! Community member Lisa Hendrickson recently returned home to Minnesota to start graduate school and continue to grow her thriving social community of technicians (known as “Call That Girl”). We play a round of “what’s your story” and that includes over ten books (including a best seller on social media). Fast forward and she’s grown a large LinkedIn following and YouTube (and don’t forget her 8,500 fans on FaceBook). But first and foremost, she’s a geek (she is a Microsoft Outlook expert) and shares her tales from the trenches. |
||
| |
Winner! Dan Foote wins MSP Technology Makeover Contest! Celebrating ten years in business, Alaskan Dan Foote of DanTech is the grand prize winner of the SherWeb-backed SMB Nation MSP Technology Makeover Contest (2Q 2019). I spent a day with Dan and his growing team (his MSP practice recently doubled in size) in Anchorage, Alaska. While I was able to offer some business planning ideas, Dan is actually far along the MSP maturity continuum with an emphasis on customer care, security and targeting emerging sectors and existing professional services. Enjoy the interview and look for his “red shirt” at leading industry conferences in the Lower 48. |
||
 |
Banks: These Phising Stats will SHOCK YOU! Rustin Banks lives and breathes the MSP experience all day every day for Washington DC-based DNS Filter. That’s because his entitie(s) are both an ISV and MSP. In this interview we look at current updates on phising sophistication – there’s something here for everyone with this update. |
||
| |
Liberman - Be an MVP MSP via MDF Joshua Liberman from New Mexico shares one of the secrets to his success: investing forward into his relationships with technology vendors. Specially the use of Market Development funds (MDF) aka “making do funds” (a phrase Liberman coined). There are a couple steps you will have to complete with a vendor to secure MDF funds. Plus each vendor might have a different emphasis such as lunch-and-learns. Watch! |
||
 |
Coffee with Denis! Social Selling and Bluetooth It wouldn’t be the dog days of summer without a chit-chat with contributor (and fellow MSP) Denis Wilson. He reveals his secret to social selling success to attract new clients (he’s grown a prospect base using these tactics. Then we get technical and talk about Bluetooth hacking. The Bluetooth standard is surprisingly unsecure and there is no impending fix according to Wilson. So is it a case of be like Harry and use tethered ear buds with your mobile phone? Listen up! |
||
 |
Dwight: Summertime and the Security Chat is Flowing Easy! We caught up with a busy Ken Dwight before he flew up to an aircraft owner’s convention in Oshkosh, WI. Dwight chatted with us about a variety of topics including malware attacks on mobile phones, IoT device penetration. Bottom line: we discuss being early in technology rather than late. Enjoy this summer chat! |
||
 |
Fraser: Privacy via the Microsoft Trust Center in ‘365 Contributor Michael Fraser (CEO, Refactr) joins us for a security double-click. This month with discuss a range of topics that fall under the auspices of the Microsoft Trust Center: Audit and review, compliance plus a look at how data is protected, governance, data across all devices, clouds services, applications in Azure and more. Use cases discussed include audit existing services in Azure and then decide what needs to be managed, etc. A tip of the hat to compliance topics including HIPAA and such. |
||
 |
Kallhoff: Let Me Let You (the MSSP) Sleep Better at Night! Defining what a Managed Services Security Provider (MSSP) is (hint: Kallhoff’s Infogressive company is SECURITY ONLY!). After a tip of the hat to it’s great partnership with Fortinet, Kallhoff share’s how SMB MSPs from both SMB Nation and Microsoft 365 Nation can work with him. It’s a build v. buy conversation. You can get to the same place as Infogressive in a few years and $1m+ or you can team with Infogressive to accelerate your MSSP transformation. |
||
 |
Fields – Our Most Technical Contributor is on the LOOSE! We review enhancements to the standard Office 365 proper SKUs don’t easily reveal (and in some cases you need to purchase. Starting with Advanced Threat Protection, we move to discuss safe links, safe attachments and anti-phish policies. Hang on fast for this long play format (over 18-mins) but worth every second. |
||
 |
Asset Life Cycle Management is COOL! Long-time community member Dan Wensley updates us on his whereabouts since the early Level Platforms days (kids won’t get that), his contributions to CompTIA and his new role as CEO at Warranty Master. Wensley asserts its about IT asset life cycle management and helping customers stay current and optimize spend. The secrets are in thie interview so listen up! |
||
 |
The man, the author and legend (and our contributor) Andrew Bettany joins us to talk about YET ANOTHER BOOK he has authored! This guy is nonstop and we’re lucky to have his attention. In this interview, we’re talking the new MD101 exam that is part of the MCSA for Windows 10 – this is for your desktop administrators. This is the second exam and builds upon the BASICS from Windows 10 MD100. Bettany shares that this is all about MANAGING modern desktops. Listen intently for the conversation(s) on AutoPilot, MSM and other Microsoft 365 product stack-isms! |
||
 |
Bradbury: Revisiting Barracuda and it’s MSP Brand At the recent CompTIA ChannelCon event, Harry interviews Neal Bradbury – Vice President, Channel Development – at Barracuda MSP. Bradbury sizes up the post-acquisition integration (Barracuda acquired Intronis) plus shares insights into how MSPs can make money while offering security to customers. Listen for insights into its recent email security study based on 600+ MSP interviews! |
||
 |
WOW – first time and will repeat. This is a deeply technical conference that touches all the bases when it comes to security. While the floor was more customer friendly, there were partner managers in the different exhibitions that could speak towards making money with security services. Bottom line? Over 20,000 attendees and 500+ sponsors engaging in a deeply technical conference. See you next year! |
||
 |
Black Hat: Saving Time with Trustfi Jason Green from Trustifi spends a few minutes with Harry at the recent Black Hat security conference to explain how to save time implementing email security. You could take many hours to do it yourself inside the Microsoft 365 family or you can engage Trustfi to do it for you and, ergo, your customers. |
||
 |
On the Road –Firewall Relevance Contributor Larry Doyle has figured out an interesting way to take a summer vacation cycling across Europe yet still staying in touch with the Microsoft 365 Nation! (Full disclosure: his trip is partially sponsored by StorageCraft, a backup vendor) But the real story is Larry’s analysis about the need for a physical v. cloud-based firewall (or both?). |
||
 |
Fraser Capital One Hack and AWS’s Role Contributor Michael Fraser (Refractr) lives in the world of cloud-based platforms and infrastructure so he’s deeply qualified to speak towards the recent well-know 100m record hack. Fraser puts it all into context that AWS is unlikely to incur liability for the Capital One security breach. |
||
| |
Security Awareness Training has the HOT HAND! Contributor Denis Wilson talks about the importance of staff training as a first defense against the bad guys in the cybersecurity realm. It’s a surpsiingly profitable revenue opportunity to provide security awareness training to clients. And you’ll feel good along the way providing an incredibly valuable service to your client. The “process” includes several steps starting with short Web-based training resources followed by…you’ll have to watch the vid for the rest LOL! |
||
 |
Contributor Larry Doyle jumps up to the Big Leagues this month with an infrastructure conversation that touches on hyper convergence, etc. It’s about using big tools to put it all into a single pane of glass. And Doyle explains the ease with which you can easily expand capacity with the right infrastructure. |
||
 |
Contributor Josh Liberman (Net Sciences) provides the dets on DattoCon with respect to product stack releases (e.g. a private cloud solution, etc.). Then he talks about the “Hallway 101” aspects of meeting/greeting fellow attendees. We also discuss maturity in the industry that is being dominated by a handful of big players (Datto, Kaseya, ConnectWise, Continuum for example). |
||
 |
New Security Startup from Longtime Player Contributor Larry Doyle jumps up to the Big Leagues this month with an infrastructure conversation that touches on hyper convergence, etc. It’s about using big tools to put it all into a single pane of glass. And Doyle explains the ease with which you can easily expand capacity with the right infrastructure. |
||
 |
Contributor Larry Doyle jumps up to the Big Leagues this month with an infrastructure conversation that touches on hyper convergence, etc. It’s about using big tools to put it all into a single pane of glass. And Doyle explains the ease with which you can easily expand capacity with the right infrastructure. |
||
 |
MD-100 Exam for IT Pros running Windows 10 Contributor Andrew Bettany takes the lead on focusing on the second leg of the Microsoft 365 product stack: Windows. Bettany has just shipped an exam cram on MD-100 and we’re the first community to interview him about it. This exam for IT Pros and MSPs focuses on planning, deployment and, to a lesser extent, on-going administration. If you’ve tracked Bettany, you know this is a must watch video. |
||
 |
Lightening Round – Office 365 Security Michael Fraser, CEO of Refactr and frequent contributor, is back for a lightening round update concerning security in Office 365. Topics this month include: Restriction of physical data center access. And much more in the interview (six more points) |
||
 |
Dwight: Dets on MSPs as Security Targets Contributor Kew Dwight offers a deeper dive on MSPs as security targets by the “bad guys.” The whole point is that MSPs have been identified by ransomware hackers as attractive targets. This conversation with Dwight is based on his recent article on the same topic at MSP Insights. Spoiler alert – MSPs, as a channel (one to many clients) are just to juicy to the criminal elements. This interview has meat on the bones! |
||
 |
Passion Project To Help MSPs in a 365 World Contributor Alex Fields, on to watch on the way up, has a heart. Much of his writing and analysis beyond his day job as an MSP engineering-type, concerns helping other MSPs and IT Pros be successful. It’s a winning formula as he builds his professional reputation (and you should imitate him!). |
||
 |
Azure is getting closer to SMB Esteemed IT analyst Frank Ohlhorst weighs in on Azure. He shares a couple important points starting with Azure evolving as a service (more and more capabilities are being added all the time). About two minutes into the interview, Ohlhorst proclaims that there is a new focus on small and medium business (SMB) with Azure. Do you believe it or not? Watch and decide for yourself. Ohlhorst asserts that Office 365 Business SKU included elements that allow you to leverage Azure (e.g. instead of just the traditional one drive integration). |
||
 |
A new twist on security conversations with these topics. Cryptojacking (also called malicious cryptomining) is an emerging online threat that hides on a computer or mobile device and uses the machine’s resources to “mine” forms of online money known as cryptocurrencies. It’s a burgeoning menace that can take over web browsers, as well as compromise all kinds of devices, from desktops and laptops, to smart phones and even network servers. |
||
 |
Bug Free Computing with Ken Dwight Did you know that Microsoft 365 Nation contributor Ken Dwight is a published author? Dwight wrote a book (“Bug-Free Computing”) a decade ago that still has legs. Dwight shares for the first time that he wasn’t thrilled by the title (he wanted to have “safety” in the title). Back in the day, it was a best-selling book before the term malware was coined and widely used. While this book reflects the world from a user point of view. Dwight goes deep in KLEZ, the first virus to extract money from afflicted parties. Dwight and myself (Harry) talk about what’s its like to self-publish a book. |
||
 |
This contribution from Michael (MickyJ) Jenkin is very special. It’s a case of while the cat is away; the mice will play! Jenny and MickyJ filmed the rogue conversation while harry was gone. The content is a solid and the new format is worth the view alone! |
||
 |
You are an MSSP whether you like it or not! The always engaging Microsoft 365 Nation contributor Joshua Liberman is back with a view of the next security frontier(s) you’ll encounter in 2019. First up is internal vulnerability scanning. Second is device alerting. When Liberman speaks, people listen! In this interview he walks the viewer through the “processes” surrounding the above messages such as vulnerability scanning. Because Microsoft 365 Nation is an independent community separate from Microsoft, Liberman takes advantage of the opportunity to recommend third-party solutions. Just after minute three, Liberman talks about outsourced firewall log reading. |
||
 |
Success Computer Secret to Success – Community Book 4 U This segment is a doozie – and there’s a free Microsoft 365 book on the other end of this video. Author Alex Fields, Success Computer Consulting, has written an amazingly technical book titled “Microsoft 365 Business Admin Guide” that we quickly do an overview of parts of the book (with this month’s contribution – future months will be a deep dive). The parts of the book that we discuss are:
|
||
 |
Ohlhorst: Optimistic about online office suites Contributor Frank Ohlhorst shares his monthly insights including a recent workflow conference (Workfront Leap) in Dallas that embraces the managed services providers (MSP) community. But then we drop into the good stuff! The good stuff for May 2019 includes a conversation on Microsoft 365 automation. At a basic level, the modern office is evolving with online solutions (Ohlhorst views it as abstracting from the physical solution). He’s optimistic that the complete online office solutions now meet the same synergistic impact the our beloved Windows Small Business Server had a technology generation ago. |
||
 |
Dwight: MSPs are Malware Targets! Ken Dwight – virus expert and contributor – weighs in on a newly revealed security attack vector: managed services providers (MSPs). He cites a specific attack that exploits the connection between two well-known ISVs in the MSP space. In all fairness – a patch was issued – but many folks haven’t implemented the patch yet. Boo hoo! The conversation then shifts to discuss how the “bad guys” understand MSPs are a channel – hack just one and you potentially can do bad things to a portfolio of customers! |
||
 |
Two Guys Disrupting Azure in SMB The proverbial lost opportunity appears to have been found. Forever and a day, smart minds have struggled with how to right size Azure consumption for small businesses. Michael and Zack have done exactly that an a SMB Azure solution that is purpose built and already in production and deployed. Amongst all of our content, this is a top five interview and a must view. |
||
 |
Andrew Bettany: Gamechanger or Gimmick Many companies - Windows Autopilot is a modern ways for device deployment…in Andrew's words "…it's pretty cool." In this deep dive, we look at three main stages in the Windows Autopilot Process: (1) Purchase (Vendor), (2) Set-up (Administrator) and (3) User receives devices (End User). There is a brain teaser at the start of the second minute in the interview: how is the device ID created? You'll just have to watch to gain insights into the and much more. |
||
 |
Long-time MVP and MCT Andrew Bettany has just completed another book: “Exam Ref MD-100 Windows 10.” It’s his sixth book for Microsoft Press and is ready for pre-order on major book seller sites (wink-wink) and scheduled to ship in early June 2019. A peek into the book? Is an enterprise focused book that tackles deploying Windows 10 inside organizations. Learn about AutoPilot and listen intently as Bettany likes InTune! It’s all about using a cloud-based tools versus that old System Center tool. Bettany connects the dots between small and medium business (SMB) and the enterprise space. You might be surprised to know that we have more in common than pulls us apart! |
||
 |
Wilson: Monthly Security Check-in It’s a double hitter with contributor Denis Wilson this month. He’s on a tear publishing heaps of articles. Topic one is “Google Ads Now Steal Information” and topic two is “12 Email Clients Found To Have Serious Flaw.” |
||
 |
Issue of the Month: Bad Guys Targeting MSPs According to contributor Ken Dwight, the bad guys are targeting managed services providers (MSPs) because, as a channel partner, MSPs have a one-to-many relationship with multiple clients. Simple math. Hack an MSP and gain access to, on average, potentially two dozen client sites in the small and medium business sector. “Yes – this ransomware is starting to target us MSPs because it’s the door to a larger community of clients.” Shared contributor Michael Jenkin. “ https://www.linkedin.com/in/mickyjj/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/ken-dwight-3b70995/ |
||
 |
Core Security in a Microsoft 365 World I spent a few minutes with Davin Cooke, president of the Austin-area IAMCP right after the SxSW 2019 conference I Austin, TX. I said to Cooke – “Let’s talk security!” Cooke said SURE! Cooke’s day job is the Director of Business Development for Identity Maestro – a Microsoft ISV partner that is MSP and CSP friendly. His solution set allows MSP and CSP partners to provide Identity Management as a Service (IMaaS). What the heck is that? Cooke shares in this interview HERE that: Identity management is core to any security framework Solution specifics include these three pillars: Delegating rights to service desk personnel without having admin rights Plus a tip of the hat to the IAMCP trade group |
||
 |
SxSW Summary – Tip of the Hat to Security At the recent south-by-Southwest (SxSW) conference in Austin, TX...security was never far from my mind and also how the broad Microsoft 365 product stack crossed over to many conference tracks. I quickly discuss security in the contest of Blockchain and Crypto! Join me and 200,000 people in 2020 for the next SxSW - let's have an M365nation beerfest! |
||
 |
Rodriguez: Helping MSPs with Security Marketing + IAMCP This is an amazing interview with Rudy Rodriguez, Principal, Dunamis Marketing and Chairman Emeritus, IAMCP. Rodriguez is all about helping MSPs with marketing messages. Recent example of helping an MSP with a security marketing message, etc. His firm uses the a "voice of the customer" approach. As Chairman Emeritus for IAMCP, he shared why M365nation members should join! Hint: Rudy mentors newer and younger partners...and shares the partner-to-partner (P2P) paradigm that is so powerful. The conversation ends with a STEM scholarship fund in place with Rudy's name. |
||
 |
On the Road: GDPR and Security One Year Later (Dublin, Ireland) It’s been almost a year since the GDPR regulations kicked in and Larry Doyle, long-time managed services provider and Microsoft 365 Nation contributor, shares a very interesting update. Today Europeans are seeing the effect of GDPR 10+ months later, which is not a surprise as business behavior tends to lags regulatory and compliance deadlines (for example, I share the time lag in the tech community *after* the April 14, 2014 deadline for Windows XP support). Doyle double-clicks down into how businesses are trying to secure and protect data – it’s all about what are the biggest priorities in the GDPR long-tail. Plus a tip of the hat to Windows 10 growth and BitLocker encryption round out this conversation that, at its core, is focused on GDRP compliance. https://www.linkedin.com/in/larrydoyleireland/ |
||
 |
Long-time MSP and technology professional in the Seattle-region, Sid Herron offers comments on why security matters. He is an expert in VDI and remote/virtual desktop computing. When Herron speaks, people listen and so should you! | ||
 |
MickyJ White Hat Security Topics IT Pro Michael Jenkin shares top insights concerning security in a 365 world. Trends include malware trends included target phishing. Jenkin shares this is 100% targeting knowing things only you would know like your favorite wine (hint: your Facebook posts tell all to hackers). Catch the conversations about passwords being a concern and WordPress site vulnerabilities (hint: encryption). Listen to the interview HERE. Jenkin, Managing Director at Business Technology Partners Pty Ltd in Adelaide, Australia and long-time community leader (MVP, GITCA), has transformed into a security expert and a social media whiz. Beyond his community heart of gold – he has actively assisted law enforcement in his community using his cyber security expertise. |
||
 |
Security in the Silicon Valley I recent visited a security ISV in the Silicon Valley surfaced a couple observations. Hiring! Channel Account Managers (CAMs) and Partner Account Managers (PAMs) at security ISVs in in demand and being hired. Vibe – security ISVs are profitable and flexing their muscle. How do I know? Upper scale lunch establishments are busy – a true sign of good times. |
||
 |
We carved out several minutes recently to speak with well-respected technology industry analyst Frank Ohlhorst (Magnum Consulting, NY, NY). Security is a pillar coverage area for Ohlhorst and he's already thinking way ahead about how quantum computers will be able to decrypt encoded data and what that means. Ohlhorst concludes with ideas for growing Microsoft 365 Nation | ||
 |
Long-time MSP and technology professional in the Seattle-region, Sid Herron offers comments on why security matters. He is an expert in VDI and remote/virtual desktop computing. When Herron speaks, people listen and so should you! | ||
 |
Security Expert Jeffrey Graves: Pen Testing and More We caught up with a real do'er and go getter in Jeffrey Graves at a recent IT conference in Seattle. Graves is out there doing security every way every day - very impressive. His niche is penetration testing (pen testing) and his got the street cred to back up his statements. |
||
 |
We caught up with a busy Angus Robertson, CRO for Axcient, at the start of CompTIA’s ChannelCon 2019 event in Las Vegas. Today (Tuesday, August 6, 2019) at 10:45am, Robertson will be on a panel discussing vertical opportunities. In the interview we discuss sector rotation strategies including take a fresh look at growing verticals that Managed Services Providers (MSPs) might have missed. | ||
 |
Wayne Small, Correct Solutions (Sydney, NSW, Australia) discussed security topics including having security lunch-and-learns with clients. Learn more about Small HERE. | ||
 |
John Krikke and Bob Nitrio interview Fast forward to 2:02 in this vid to catch security talk. John Krikke claims people won't pay for security but they need it - so you got to start with simple security and layer on additional security srevices as the client has an appetite. But don't be confused - he secret is touch love when it comes to security. Bob Nitrio talk DevOps and Community. Learn more about Krikke HERE and learn more about Nitrio HERE. |
||
 |
John Hill, TechSage Solutions (San Antonio, TX) leads all client engagements with SECURITY! He does this before even starting the managed services conversation. Listen to how Hill does a full security sweep at the start of a client relationship. Learn more about Hill HERE. | ||
 |
Denver-based MSP Jack Smith (Initial.IT) launched a social initiative to give back to his community. He focuses on assisting not for profits and other social entities that align with his passions and beliefs. Take eight minutes to learn how you can be like Jack! | ||
 |
Thwarting the Technical support Scammers! Regular contributor Ken Dwight has out done himself this month! He’s reached into his rich content library to share a topic that applies to everyone – you as an individual and as a Managed Services Provider (MSP). He’s condensed a long play presentation to distill the facts on how you can thwart the technical support scammers. This interview contains specific keystrokes, process and procedures.
|
||
 |
What an amazing journey it’s been for Marvin Bee. Having entered the technology consulting and services business organically (starting with after hours work), Bee has grown a successful practice in Southern Florida (automotive, legal and other verticals). Along the way he started to give back to the community with his popular Podnutz Pro series where he interviews thought leaders. We turn the tables on Bee and interview him. What you’ll take from this is that Bee has struck a balance in driving business success and giving back to the community. | ||
 |
Longtime IT professional and MSP Steven Church (Eugene, OR) plays as hard as he works. We found him at a recent “ESP sprint boat” race (Port Angeles, WA) where he charges around a short and narrow waterway course in front of thousands of spectators. Talk about leaving your weekday work worries behind! An interesting twist is that Church has engaged the SMB MSP sponsor community and is partially underwritten by AppRiver, a Cloud Services Provider (CSP). That alone demonstrates there are unique and interesting ways to work with your vendors to enjoy mutual success. In the following figures, you can see this unique sporting endeavor! Figure 1: An aerial view of the ESP spring boat race course. If you’d like to watch the entire race, click HERE for the vid feed. Really cool! |
||
 |
Podcast – Pax8 offers Security Insights Pax8 isn’t your normal intermediary or distributor. The Denver-based firm thinks outside the pick and pack boxes. At the recent DattoCon conference, it announced a security solution set focused on end point protection. Shout out to security architecture and sandboxing so you can run a test bed, etc. As a bonus – this was recorded as a “Harry on the Ferry” podcast. |
||
 |
Marketplaces and other gizmos from GoDaddy Turn on and tune in to this conversation with Greg Goldfarb from GoDaddy about recent announcement concerning marketplaces. SMB Nation managed services providers (MSPs) have increasingly been asking about the role of marketplaces in “our world” and while this interview takes a different approach, it does provide the context needed to fully embrace marketplaces where online sellers connect with buyers (over 50% of all transactions occur in marketplaces now). One approach is enhancements to the seller’s accounts to list on multiple new marketplaces (Amazon, Etsy, etc.). We also discuss with Goldfarb an acquisition – Sellbrite – a top multi-channel management platform. Watch the interview |
||
 |
MSPs should lead with COMPLIANCE! In this impactful interview, Marc Haskelson, CEO of the Compliancy Group in New York, offers a fresh view to business development for managed services providers (MSP). Use compliancy matters such as HIPAA to open the door to new client opportunities. Then make it part of your technical domain expertise to establish a successful on-going business relationship with clients. Spoiler alert – your budding experience in compliancy isn’t just for health care. There are other sectors in the world! |
||
 |
On The Road: Get Your Messages Read Now! (Fort Lauderdale, FL) As part of our “On the Road” series, Let’s look at Message Pro - a 20-year old Florida-based company – with telephony roots that has built add-on applications. “We allow businesses to text message their customers, patients, etc. with ease. The reality is that few people answer the phone today. But people typically view text messages instantly. We cut through the clutter and are way beyond appointment reminder(s) and other traditional business text.” Said Mark Herring, vice president of business development at MessagePro. |
||
 |
On the Road: Blog Passion Project and Profits (Fort Lauderdale, FL) Long time SMB technology player Rob Leon has reemerged in the South Florida area working with a larger MSP. His day job is to focus on helping small businesses do better with technology. But there is more to Rob than meets the eye. For the past two years, Rob wakes up and does a daily morning blog: it started as a passion project and has led to profits. Leon explains how he has developed an audience and has built a reputation for his expertise in the following area: Get you tech right! |
||
 |
On The Road: San Francisco and Dropbox What’s Ted Hulsy up to now? From SonicWall forward, Hulsy has been a friend of the SMB Nation family. Fast forward and Hulsy is Global Head of Channel Marketing (he just crossed one year in his gig). Building channel ecosystem for the “business product” of Dropbox (everyone knows the consumer side). The company is growing one year later after its Initial Public Offering (IPO) and Hulsy speaks to that. More importantly, Hulsy shares the secret about how Managed Services Providers can make money. Finally – Hulsy emphasizes product integrations. |
||
 |
Tech Tuesday Ramey from TechReputation com with Harry Brelsford on Northwest Digital NEWS NDN ILong-time SMB Nation community member and managed services provider (MSP) Ramey Bell from TechReputation continues his conversation with the partner community via Northwest Digital News (NDN) on the Tech Tuesday segment! |
||
 |
Money Makers: Attach voice to data as a Managed Services Provider (MSP) More goodness from our telephony community member SoundLine! We return for more wisdom from CEO Barrett Adams. This is a serious conversation about money! We hit is head-on about how MSPs can make money with a Unified Communications (UC) and telephony attach. Watch the Adams interview where we dive into lifetime recurring revenue opportunities when you partner with SoundLine. Spoiler – SoundLine handles all the billing and sends the profits to you – the MSP! |
||
 |
Tech Tuesday Upcoming Conferences with Harry Brelsford on Northwest Digital NEWS NDN Love ‘em or not – events *still* have a place in our small and medium business (SMB) technology space. Surviving the test of time – events are the one place to build professional relationships the old fashion way and you can “swipe right” in real time to grow your community contacts. In this Tech Tuesday installment on Northwest Digital News (NDN) you can watch HERE, I profile a few upcoming events I’ll be attending that are targeted to Managed Services Providers (MSPs) in the SMB Nation community. Secret: Networking at events the past 20-years has to be considered a success factor for me – so join me! |
||
 |
I catch up with a busy Pat Hurley, VP and GM/Americas at Acronis and we discuss baseball, F1 racing and a new October 2019 conference (Acronis Cyber Protection Summit). Nuts and Bolts Watch the vid to catch the full story. |
||
 |
In 1Q2019, I had the chance to speak with ServiceTree founder Paul Azad about his journey from MSP to ISV. Azad’s Melbourne Australia-based MSP practice, This Solution, was the basis for his creating a purpose build Professional Services Automation (PSA) solution that he has brought to America! You can watch the interview where we are joined by industry thought leader Carrie Simpson. |
||
 |
STARTUPS - Last Look at Ingram Cloud X and the Comet Competition One last look back at the recent Ingram Cloud X conference concerns the Comet competition and the startup row on the trade show floor. Here are three favorites you need to know about! Watch the interview with the following three companies. Sempulse Re3D The key is recycling plastics (e.g. water bottles) as an ecology play 9plus creating green jobs). This Austin, TX-based firm also participated in SxSW 2019 on the Interactive track. ITsMine |
||
 |
Book review Harry's Tech Tuesday on Northwest Digital NEWS NDN Looking for some interesting spring geek reading? Several books are suggested here for SMB Nation members to consider. More importantly, the explicit act of reading and the power it brings you are reviewed. For example, reading an hour a day brings at least a half dozen benefits to you from sharpness, memory exercises and worldly insights. Also there are conversations about receiving book referrals from friends and why that is so important. Be the life learner! |
||
 |
Slater: Partners are STILL EVOLVING! In a recent chit-chat at IT EXPO in Fort Lauderdale, FL, I pulled Michael Slater, Technical Solutions Manager (PBX, UCaaS) from his busy SherWeb booth to discuss evolving partner demographics. The context was what was the basic demographic at the show but his insights extend further into the industry itself. For example, it’s all too easy to magnify the role of the pure play Managed Services Provider (MSP) where there is the perception that 100 percent of MSP revenue is from monthly recurring revenue (MRR). Such is not the case. In the interview, Slater imparts that “…there is a legion of break-fix professionals that are used to selling on-prem products (data, telephony). We’re seeing IT EXPO attendees who never part of the cloud movement and now interested in learning more.” Slater shared. Again – it’s all in the interview PLUS a tip of the hat to SherWeb cause marketing (I covered that HERE: |
||
 |
On the Road: Freifield “I’m Back” Well-known community member Josh Freifield is back running AXONTECH, his Southern California managed services provider (MSP) firm. After a two year hiatus where Freifield served a large MSP serving enterprise clients, Freifield is solidly back in the small and medium business (SMB) space for which is best known. Long-time SMB Nation members will recall Freifield as one of the co-founders of the SMBTN trade association. Watch the vid E where I interview Freifield and, in his own words, he reintroduces his good self. |
||
 |
Helping ISVs manage partner programs better TIDWIT is focused on digital interconnectivity of ecosystems. They are working with some of the largest brands: Microsoft, Accenture, CenturyLink…and some of the smallest. Simply stated, it’s a partner digital ecosystem that connects partners together in the ISV’s partner program. In this interview, Will Yafi, founder of TIDWIT, pains the partner ecosystem picture as only the spoken word can do. I caught up with a busy Yafi at the recent Ingram Cloud X conference in San Diego. Here is a peek at the topics we cover with respect to platform workloads. @IngramCloud @ThisIsCloudBlue #CloudSummitX #BeCloudAwesome |
||
 |
Transformation Defined - Axcient Transformation R Us – Axcient at Ingram Cloud X |
||
 |
SxSW 2019 Tech Tuesday with Harry Brelsford on Northwest Digital NEWS NDN A snapshot of the just completed South-by-Southwest (SxSW) 2019 conference in Austin, TX. After a recap of the events 30+ year history, the three main pillars are discussed (Interactive, Film and Music) then a double click down into a few of the business/technology tracks.. and the segment ends with sage advice on how to attend SxSW in 2020. |
||
 |
How to Be an MSP - Volume 1: Vertical Edition (Book Annoucement) Announced at SxSW in Austin, TX! This book, Harry Brelsford's 21st publication, focuses on the HOTTEST VERTICAL MARKET in the US and Canada that demands robust and secure technology solutions yesterday from qualified managed services providers (MSPs) Further dets here: http://bit.ly/HowToBeAnMSP |
||
 |
At the recent Ingram Cloud X conference, I made “Women in Technology” a pillar coverage area. There are important reasons for this – Ingram Micro has made it a solid pre-day session at it’s spring show. And more research is coming out that speaks towards the “Middle School cliff” for girls trying to get involved/stay involved in Jennifer Anaya, VP-Marketing at Ingram Micro, speaks to the above issue plus much more in this interview sharing how she is supporting diversity in the workforce. And you can attend our Women in Technology online event as part of our MSP Tech Talk series. It’s March 20, 2019 at 12:00pm (Noon – Pacific). Details are HERE. @IngramCloud @ThisIsCloudBlue #CloudSummitX #BeCloudAwesome |
||
 |
Cloud Summit Ingram Micro 2019 Special Guest Mathias Bjorkholm Tech Tuesday on NDN TechTuesday broadcast live from Ingram Cloud X in San Diego, CA today with a conference overview and hooks to Northwest companies. One start-up ISV, Pickit, is profiled as it's now working with Ingram Micro in its cloud market place. |
||
 |
Seattle ISV Pickit Launched Inside Ingram Cloud Market Place If we’re anything at SMB Nation, we’re chippy! So it was a high honor and privilege to discover Pickit, a Microsoft 365/Office 365 gap filler ISV with attitude. It’s delivering a purpose built add-in that we can use at SMB Nation right here right now as a publisher. It’s about legally managing art and visual assets when creating stuff with the Office family. Watch this launch vid with Pickit Founder and Co-CEO, Mathias Björkholm, shot on location this morning at the sold out Ingram Cloud X 2019 conference in San Diego, CA.... |
||
 |
Harrybbb's 21st Book Coming Soon! Right here right now I’m happy to reveal that my 21st book is ahead of schedule and will be released next week at SxSW in Austin, TX. It’s my first book after a ten-year recharge and I’m fired up! Things have changed, and SMB Nation has led the transformation parade – this book reflects. The book took two years of research on new vertical opportunities that you will learn more about at launch. Essentially, I’ve taken my best book ever, the SMB Consulting Best Practices, and updated it for a mature MSP world seeking the next great thing. You won’t be disappointed. By-the-number, after the aforementioned two years of research, the book took 48-days to write (ahead of schedule) plus another couple weeks of production. And just to tease you – you’ll have to wait for the SxSW launch for the dets. Thank you for your support over the years. |
||
 |
MSP Makeover Contest Deadline: March 31, 2019 Hear ye! Hear ye! The MSP Makeover contest deadline is March 31, 2019. Complete two simple steps to participate i the contest. One luck SMB Nation managed services provider (MSP) wins a "Day of Harry" that includes a morning workshop and an afternoon sales call. Watch the vid about the MSP Makeover content HERE. https://youtu.be/zvQX1J3xgVs Visit http://bit.ly/MSPmakoverContest to discover next steps! |
||
 |
Reporting that the small and medium business (SMB) managed services provider (MSP) community’s sad demise are greatly exaggerated! On my recent trip to the Silicon Valley just south of San Francisco, I ZEROED on trying to get together with long-time community members for a few reasons. First and foremost was the storm of storms that presented severe traffic challenges – the winter of ’19. Second was a natural maturity within the community where monthly user group meetings have been replaced with social media-based groups and texting as the new togetherness. Finally the reality that life happens is slow walking into our cabal. Spouse health issues, focus on the family and outside interests have a dilutive effect on core community-isms. And it’s a nature act. | ||
 |
Meet SoundLine - SMB Nation's Telephony Partner Having started in November 2008 in the early depths of the Great Recession, SoundLine Communications has not only survived and thrived. Today’s its crossed the ten year mark and is a small business serving the business community in the voice-over-IP (VoIP), telephony and Unified Communications space. Watch our interview with Barrett Adams, co-founder at SoundLine about his business success (HERE). Full disclosure – SoundLine Communications proudly provides the telephony services for SMB Nation! |
||
 |
First Look: Cyber Insurance Report for IT Pros and MSPs Our favorite “thinking man” Peter Tsai (Sr. Technology Analytst, Spiceworks) carved out a few mins recently to discuss Spicework’s new study on cyber insurance. This is important to the SMB Nation community of managed services providers (MSP) who are on a death march to add more solutions to balance products/services typically delivered to clients via the monthly recurring revenue model. In this interview with Tsai – we discuss several topics as well as peek into forthcoming Spiceworks research studies. Topics covered include: |
||
 |
In this recent interview with Joel Maloff, Senior Vice President – Strategic Alliances/Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) at PHONE.COM, after proper introductions we give a tip of the hat to the good old days of being in IT service provider (organic customer referrals, could do it all yourself, etc.) and then…and then…we look forward to the future. | ||
 |
ConnectWise Acquired; Autotask War Over; Business Good Guys In this segment of Northwest Digital News (NDN) Tech Tuesday we explore this week's ConnectWise acquisition by Thoma Bravo, the end of the ConnectWise v. Autotask story line and a deeper conversation about good and bad guys finishing first in business. |
||
 |
MickyJ Speaks Security and Social Talk about a blast from the past and the good old Windows Small Business Server (SBS) days! Michael Jenkin, Managing Director at Business Technology Partners Pty Ltd in Adelaide, Australia and long-time community leader (MVP, GITCA), has transformed into a security expert and a social media whiz. |
||
 |
Leon: MSP Passion Project = BiZDev Rob Leon, well known in the managed services provider (MSP) and ISV worlds for over a decode has started a passion project to build his brand and further his business development efforts. It's a cross between technology advise and business topics that he writes as a blog every morning for the past two years. He has built an audience and made himself a brand. we can all benefit from Leon's insights in this video. |
||
 |
RECAP - IBM THINK 2019 Tech Tuesday with Harry Brelsford on Northwest Digital NEWS NDN A last fond look on Tech Tuesday (Northwest Digital News) at the recently completed IBM PartnerWorld and THINK 2019 combo conference. special mention of IBM diversity with its woman CEO - a rarity in tech plus a shout out to Blockchain in agriculture. Toss in mentions of it's partner program and security efforts (Managed Security Services Provider). And we end with a look at HACKERS and a new comic book. |
||
 |
Long-time friend of SMB Nation, Mark Baird from StorageCraft, provides both personal and professional updates ranging from hitting deer while cycling to converged backup coverage from end-to-end with the StorageCraft solutions. |
||
| |
Frank Ohlforst - My Top Three Favorites at IBM THINK 2019 Well-respected industry analyst Frank Ohlhorst speaks with SMB Nation about three top favorites: Managed Security Services Providers (MSSP), Watson and AI and finally Blockchain. Ohlhorst is well-published and a long-time member of SMB Nation. |
||
 |
Did IBM just leap frog everyone in the MSSP race? Sometimes you have to raise your head from the traditional SMB managed services provider world (trees) to see the forest. IBM has deftly asserted itself in the partner security realm with an at-market Managed Security Services Provider program unlike I've seen from other major players. I interview Johan Arts, VP WW Channels and Routes to Market, IBM Security to get the straight story. This program is also good for SMB Nation MSP members seeking to redefine and relaunch their old school server-side careers as security experts. Watch to the end as Arts also talks about inter-cooperation between Microsoft, Amazon and IBM. This is not a mis-print! |
||
 |
IBM's New Marketing for Partners I speak with Jamie Mendez, Director of Global Partner Ecosystem at IBM at its recent THINK conference. Mendez outlines several new marketing solutions for partners including content assets, partner-to-partner connections and Value Package 2.0. |
||
 |
For the Win: Refactr and Michael Fraser Perhaps best know for his $100k prize at a startup pitch contest at IT Nation 2018, Michael Fraser is an amazing individual in the SMB Nation community. His strengths are in the DevOps area and he's keen on bringing that thinking to SMB nation members who seek customer solutions and the ability to develop intellectual property (IP). This is both a thought leadership piece and a demo customized for SMB Nation - at the keystroke level. Don't miss! |
||
 |
How to Become an MSP and Computer Technology Consultant Tech Tuesday with Harry Brelsford on NDN The start of an on-going series on HOW TO become a computer consultant and/or managed services provider (MSP) in the small and medium business (SMB) community. These tips and tricks are extracted from Harry Brelsford's SMB Consulting Best Practices book. Have a long cup of coffee and join the fun! |
||
 |
Report On the Road in Austin, TX (CMIT) Don't miss this On the Road (OTR) segment in Austin, TX with Jeff Connally as he gives a major update on CMIT. Craftsman Capital has acquired CMIT. Connally will remain in the saddle and discover how this is really a franchise acquisition of MSPs. It's a fine distinction compared to how this was reported in late 2018 when the acquisition occurred. |
||
 |
Interface Seattle Technology Conference - Report A look at the recent Interface conference in Bellevue - right in the heart of the high tech corridor. This show is for IT Pros and customers. A couple of our traditional SMB Nation managed services providers (MSP) had booth on the floor selling their solutions and services. |
||
 |
Flashback to NexGen - Nitrio and Krikke A chat with community leaders Bob Nitrio and John Krikke at the recent NexGen conference in SoCal. These two are leaders in the small and medium business (SMB) managed services provider (MSP). community. Krikke shares security insights at 2:02 in the video. |
||
 |
On the Road: Atlanta GA and Channel Journeys Technology channel executive Rob Spee updates us on his own professional journey in the channel. That includes a new podcast series on his side. We also enjoy insights into what he thinks will happen in 2019. |
||
 |
On the Road in Dallas Texas: Hi-Tek Computing We visit with Ryan Becker who focuses on the small and medium business (SMB) market plus the residential home market. Spoiler alert - Becker is your guy to assemble the drone you received as a gift over the holidays! |
||
 |
Cisco Embracing MSPs and SMB Partners? At the recent Cisco Partner Summit, Cisco held a half-day MSP summit. The idea is that the new management team is attentive to the SMB Partner who are managed services providers (MSP). While Cisco stick with it this time? Of course only time will tell. |
||
 |
Small Business Saturday contest winner! Alice Stevenson at Geeks@Site is the grand prize winner of our first Small Business Saturday contest! Watch this vid to celebrate the excitement! |
||
 |
On The Road: Brian Keith in Bend, Oregon Long-time technology professional and SMB Nation member BRian Keith from Bend, OR spends a few minutes updating the community with his past, present and future. He's carried the bag as a managed services provider (MSP) and is currently an IT Pro serving a large firm as a hleath care technology consultant. He is AWS certified so watch out world! |
||
 |
Join Harry Brelsford in Seattle as he breaks down Cyber Monday 2018. By the numbers, there was overall growth (oc course) but did you know there is an online shopping holiday in June that is 4x larger than Cyber Monday. Watch this vid to discover more. |
||
 |
Small Business Saturday 2018 - Recap Report Watch this Small Business Saturday (November 24, 2018) recap in this report by small and medium business (SMB) expert Harry Brelsford. There are several interview with small business owners and anlaysts participating in this popular annual event between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. #ShopSmall |
||
| |
Cisco: Latest Unified Communications Effort What goes around comes around – at least one or twice a decade. At the recent Cisco Partner Summit in Las Vegas, Cisco trumpeted that its back in the small and medium business (SMB) sector with its voice solutions. SMB Nation has historically had a long relationship with Cisco in the voice-over-IP (VoIP) area that is now more affectionately called Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS). In this video, I report to you from the conference and wrap my arms around this topic. Discover if UcaaS is a “thing.” |
||
 |
On the Road: Nashville, NC and Jason Harrison Long-time SMB Nation managed services provider (MSP) Jason Harrison from Harrison Technology Consulting reflects on over two dozen years in the technology field. We visit a snaopshot from the past: Small Business Server (SBS), Small Business Accounting (SBA) and Response Point. And we look to the future with Apple consulting and security. Onward and upward! |
||
 |
Colonel Matt Elledge: What? Me Worry? Elledge was the featured speaker at Canon multi-function printer (MFP) product launch at SpiceWorld 2018 in Austin, Tx (October 2018) I double-click down on his worry-free beautiful state philosophy that is a tenant in his book. "We tend to worry about the future and that's a gateway drug to depression, etc." Elledge stated. |
||
 |
At the recent SpiceWorld 2018 conference in Austin, TZX, I interviewed Erick Kron, a security awareness advocate at KnowBe4 – a well-respected phishing security solution vendor. We discuss it’s new Virtual Rick Office (VRO) Kron discusses how this is a whole new way of looking at your users security risk behaviors. “VRO can visualize individual risk behaviors and group risk behaviors.” States Kron in the podcast (ya’ just got listen up). “We’re using artificial intelligence ( AI) to develop and update the solution. Bottom line: we are using VRO to determine "who your next clickers are" and our partners can roll this out to clients today.” Said Kron. |
||
 |
Please subscribe to our channel and participate in the SMB Nation community. Thank you! |
||
 |
Election Day 2018: Friebert Interview Remember this guy? Just before election day, I caught up with Jonathan Friebert who is well-known in the SMB Nation community as the past director of Microsoft’s Voices for Innovation (VFI) – a non-partisan, political trade association charged with technology public policy advocacy. Friebert has recently moved on from Microsoft and returned to Washington D.C. in a new role starting the government affairs operation for JD.com. We cover off on that in the interview HERE but the real story is to reflect on how Friebert drove political involvement in the SMB Nation tribe, the MSP community, IAMCP and the Microsoft Partner Network (or what ever they call it now). Rest easy – Friebert is doing just fine and welcomes your connection request at his LinkedIn profile here. BTW – this interview was part of a walking tour of George Washington University where Friebert completed both his undergraduate and graduate studies. |
||
 |
Raimondi: IoT Right Here; Right Now SMB Nation friend Frank Raimondi (Intel SMB fame) has a new gig - helping Chargifi getting traction in the small and medium business managed services providers (MSP) partner community. Simple and practical - help SMBs provide a power up feature for customers seeking mobile phone juice. Add reporting and revenue opportunities and you have an IoT play. |
||
 |
Paul Bay: SMB MSPs should "Reach Out" Paul Bay, Executive Vice President and Group President of the Americas, Ingram Micro, discusses how Ingram Micro is responsive to the small and medium business (SMB) partner with its SMB Alliance – a subset of its reseller community. It's focused on resellers and managed services providers (MSP) Bay suggests that “the small partner” like the typical SMB Nation member is to reach out. Ingram Micro is investing in SMB technology and encouraging partner-to-partner conversations. Bay also discusses how Ingram Micro’s rebranding over recent years includes providing business and marketing services. Catch Bay’s 2019 forecasts that there will be more consolidation and the continued growth of the “as a service” mindset. |
||
 |
Two Minutes with Robinson: Uncomfortable! Years ago when knights were bold, and telecom owned the gold, a wise man (the publishers of Telecom Reseller) shared that you should be disturbed when you attend a professional conference. Fast forward the movie and Kirk Robinson, SVP & Chief Country Executive of the U.S., Ingram Micro intimated a similar line of reasoning at the Ingram One conference in Washington DC (October 2018). In this quick hitter interview here, discover how Robinson believe you should extend beyond your professional comfort zone to become “uncomfortable” as a tactics to push yourself. |
||
 |
Tiffani Bova's "Growth IQ" book discussed In this interview, Tiffani Bova shares insights into her life's work as an anlalyst and IT executive about how business grow and go. I particular Bova imparts knowledge about companies that stall at a certain duration or revenue level. This was part of her apperance as a keynote speaker at #ONEIngram. |
||
 |
Save changes Small Business Saturday Contest with SMB Nation Watch this important vid on how SMB Nation members can participate in the Small Business Saturday (November 24, 2018) as a managed services provider (MSP), reseller, and partner. Just a few easy steps and one person wins a generous AMEX pre-paid card for a holiday shopping spree! Learn more here: http://www.smbnation.com/startup-start-over/2718-small-business-saturday-contest-2 |
||
 |
Report from Office 365 Saturday! Bo Woronowicz, community leader and the power behind Office 365 Saturday at Microsoft Redmond speaks. He presents the context of the event plus other similar events worldwide: Barcelona, Ottawa, Leicester, San Juan, Cincinnati, Reston, Calgary, Ahmedabad and many more coming up! Listen until the end - the prizes at the complimentary event are worth the time commitment over the day alone! Learn more here: http://www.spsevents.org/ |
||
 |
New Website Security Report - Patch 'em up folks! Join me as I interview Tony Perez (General Manager and Vice President of GoDaddy’s Security Product Group) and his new small business website focused on security. Spoiler alert – it’s all about the managed service provider (MSP) maintaining trust with the small business. Perez and team’s ” Small Business Website Security Report “ Small Business Website Security Report report takes a double-click look at GoDaddy’s security research and analysis of over 65,000 infected website cleanup requests from small business customers across the globe, as well as a survey of very small businesses (between one and five employees) on their experiences and perspectives on security. Think of this as BIG DATA goes small. In the interview, and the report you can download here, some of the key finding are: • Of the 1000 very small businesses surveyed, nearly half reported suffering a financial loss due to hacking. One in 8 say the loss was greater than $5000. Download the full report here. https://www.godaddy.com/garage/godaddy-small-business-website-security-report/ |
||
 |
VendorView: Educating Office 365 Users with Brainstorm Todd Marinos from Brainstorm asserts his educational solution focused on Office 365 makes his firm a change agent. He asserts there is a value proposition to getting folks to use Office 365 better, faster and further! Seen here at SherWeb Accelerate 2018 in Montreal. |
||
 |
VendorView: Nerdio at SherWeb Accelerate 2018 - Montreal Nerdio's Pete Langass and Tony Cai were vendors at the recent SherWeb Accelerate conference and share insights from life on the floor! My question about if managed services providers (MSP) are ready for Azure and a tool to provsion and managed are answered by these gents! |
||
 |
25 UNBREAKABLE RULES FOR RUNNING A SUCCESSFUL MANAGED SERVICES BUSINESS Well-known small and medium business (SMB) speaker Karl Palachuk presented his 25 rules at the recent SherWeb Accelerate18 conference in Montreal. Beyond the standard stuff, Karl speaks toward the initmacy of this conference and how SherWeb kindly offered attendees his managed services provider (MSP) book. Standard stuff: "Success doesn't just happen, you need to make it happen. Renowned speaker, author and one of the pioneers of Managed Services, Karl Palachuk provides an insightful strategy workshop on the most important principles for driving a profitable MSP. Sharing his experiences and best practices in delivering IT services, he reveals 25 unbreakable rules for success." |
||
 |
Vantage point: Interview with Andy Higgins, attendee at SherWeb Accelerate 2018 In this report, I interview Andy Higgins from Dripping Springs, TX. He flew north to Montreal to attend the SherWeb Accelerate 2018 conference and offers insights from the floor. In particular this event was impactful in providing insights into how to better his IT consulting practice. Watch to end as Andy has to take off to a business opportunity meeting. |
||
 |
SherWeb's Office Protect security solution launched Office Protect – SherWeb’s New Security Solution |
||
 |
In this interview, a busy Thies Monk, Sennheiser executive, speaks towards the SDW 5000 solution set for telephone headsets, etc. You can read the entire review here: https://www.smbnation.com/analysis/2704-can-you-hear-me-now-sennheiser-sdw-5000 |
||
 |
Beat the Coming Bear Market: Muscular Portfolios Bestselling Windows Secrets author Brian Livingston has more secrets to share - in the financial technology (FinTech) area. His new book, Muscular Portfolios, is here and advises you that, yes, computers are smarter than emotional humanoids. Learn how Warren Buffett-style investing methods allow you to beat the street with Papa Bear Portfolio, Momma Bear Portfolio and Baby Bear Portfolio strategies. |
||
 |
Spiceworks: 2019 State of Future Workplace Tech I interview Peter Tsai, rock star analytics dude (@supertsai) who works for @spiceworks. We chatted at the #SpiceWorld2018 conference in Austin TX. Hint: biggest IT spends at the enterprise-level in 2019. |
||
 |
Long-time SMB Nation tribal member Fred Pullen (all the way back to the TS2 days) lays out the conversation for Microsoft Edge v Internet Explorer 11. Hey - the both ship with Windows 10. Do you need both? Which is more secure? Answers to these questions in more in our interview at Microsoft Redmond recently. |
||
 |
Review: SyncroMSP solution for MSPs Watch my review and lab testing of this right-sized professional services automation (PSA) and remote management and monitoring (RMM) tool for Managed Services Providers (MSP) in the small and medium business (SMB) space. It's simple yet complex. You can download my full product review here: http://bit.ly/smbnationsyncromsp |
||
 |
Moore: Bring your Techs to Microsoft Ignite NEXT YEAR Long-time SMB Nation member Joe Moore - known for attending every single major Microsoft conference - has insights into the five day Microsoft Ignite conference.Bottom line: Tech execs should bring a techie with 'em to get maximum value out of this confab. Will Moore repeat? Watch and learn. And we'll make this the last word on Microsoft Ignite 2018 from Orlando FL from SMB Nation! |
||
 |
Coming to the SMB sector: Big Data At Microsoft Ignite - I engaged in a convesation with Matt Glickman, an executive at Snowflake - about BIG DATA and connecting it all via warehousing, etc. If being a continous learner in the SMB Nation community means you should challenge yourself by stretching your mind - this is the interview for you. |
||
 |
Interview: MSP Wes Haire from Sybersolutions Not everyone sees the value in attending conferences and workshops. But dont't tell that to Wes Haire - a New England MSP - who recently attended the ChannelPro SMB Foorum in Boston. Haire underscored the intimae and authentic nature of the SMB partner community. Enjoy the interview with Harry Brlesford. |
||
 |
The new distributor model: "Un-distributor" - Interview with Ryan Walsh (Pax8) I caught a few moment with Pax8 channel chief Ryan Walsh at the recent GlueCon conference in Scottsdale, AZ. In this segment, you'll hear Ryan speak towards the "broken distribution" model in information technology (IT). Walsh is on a mission to disrupt IT distribution and he shares his strategic insights. I offer he's really thinking about the "un-distributor" and looking for ways to create relevancy. Enjoy the view. |
||
 |
SolarWinds EmpowerMSP attendee MiaCate Kennedy I A quick end-of-conference chat with two-time attendee MiaCate Kennedy I from Spokane, WA. Kennedy is on the management team of ABC Office Equipment and helps direct its MSP solutions practice. |
||
 |
We are all evolving as MSPs in the channel. Discover how an industry-leading, intuitive marketing solution for small to medium sized business (SMB) that has been offering primarily email marketing as SAAS since 1995 has been radically updated. It might be a great time to see how adding the solution as a VAR tool can help your clients and you grow. |
||
 |
Wrapping Up EmpowerMSP: Muto “I am a GEEK!” As a wrap up to the SolarWinds MSP EmpowerMSP 2018 event, I interview newly arrived SolarWinds MSP executive Marco Muto. Muto was "acquired" when his firm, Trusted Metrics, was purchased in early July 2018. He offers a fresh view into his role and his roadmap. He is just under 90-days into his gig and has clearly hit the ground running. |
||
 |
IoT: Interview with Robert Stephens - Geek Squad founder
Podcast: IoT Musings with Robert Stephens – Geek Squad Founder After delivering a rousing keynote at the SolarWinds Empower conference (Scottsdale, AZ), I spent a few minutes with Robert Stephens – the founder of Geek Squad. His speech detailed his journey from bicycling computer repair guy to car-based Geek Squad to its corporate acquisition by Best Buy. I was more interested in his final speech topic, the Internet of Things (IoT), and how managed services providers (MSPs) and IT Pro, technicians et al could make money. Listen to this podcast and you will leave with his futurist insights. A couple of points from his speech and the podcast interview include: “No Geek Squad for IoT” Augury - installs sensors in industrial machines “Screw taking care of printers and computers” “Sensors are like SHAZAM for industrial clients” “Augury measures sound wave...sound deviates” Future: *Not automation...its anticipation *Natural act: monitoring *3D Printing: cost of sensors will be low...say printable… *Imagine what kinda of customers could you have today that you don't have |
||
 |
Myron Morgan, ASI (distributor), shares insights into the imprvoed Intel "Network Unit of Computing" (NUC) small form factor computer. SMB Nation used one of these to drive the 2014 WW tour on Windows and Office 365. Interviewed at the recent ChannelPro SMB Forum in Boston, MA. |
||
 |
8 Ways to Take Control of Your Technician's Efficiency With a focus on the internal operations of an MSP IT servcies business, this "How To" lecture presents eight dimentions on to to both take control and improve your technician's efficiency. |
||
 |
Inside Scoop: Rapid Fire Tools acquired by Kaseya Harry catches up with Kaseya CEO Fred Voccola at the GlueCon conference in Scottsdale AZ to discuss the recent Rapid Fire Tools acqustion in the MSP partner channel sector. Voccola is on the record saying the acquistion is accretive and additive to contribute to top-line revenue. He is not prediction layoffs of consolidation. |
||
 |
8 Ways to Take Control of Your Business! Discover eight ways to use the right support tools to take control of your technology practice, your MSP entity, your IT shop. Hosted by long-time IT Pro Harry Brelsford, this educational presentation speaks to channel partners, MSPs and IT Pros seeking to run their own businesses better and thus provide a better customer experience. |
||
 |
How To: Protect Your Email Identity A chat with David Hughes, CEO of ManyMe.com, on the one simple trick you can use to reduce spam, protect your email identity and catch unsavory players who pass along your email address to vendors, etc. This is a rare MUST WATCH vid. |
||
 |
7 Ways to Take Control of Your Customer's Experience Join Harry Brelsford as he shows you HOW to use 7 ways to take control of your customer's experiences. Focused on Managed Services Providers (MSP), consultants, Value-Added Resellers (VAR), resllers and IT Pros, this is an important business lesson for technology professionals serving customers and clients. |
||
 |
Top 3 Takeaways from ChannelCon18 with Karl Palachuk Leading author and speaker in the Managed Services Provider (MSP) community, Karl Palachuk, shares top insights into the recently completed CompTIA ChannelCon 2018 conference. |
||
 |
MSP Tech Talk Summer 2018- Health Care IT Vertical: Cannabis Are you looking for the next great thing? Take a fresh look at the legal cannabis market (in ten states and growing). The net-net on the new-new is that this is a completely legitimate business that is cash-heavy and technology dependent. It’s akin to the pharmacy business with respect to compliance and other workflows. Meet a real MSP who is capitalizing on the cannabis opportunity already. Plus you’ll be schooled on the nuances of this business including the seed-to-sale supply chain, the differences between states, etc. Leave this webinar with an understanding on how the cannabis opportunity can be part of your MSP portfolio moving forward with ready-to-rock technology solutions. |
||
 |
MSP Tech Talk Summer 2018-Online Video Marketing: Online Video Marketing: Six Essential Principles of Success. Everyone recognizes the power of creating captivating, compelling messaging with video. Thousands of dollars are routinely spent in script writing, video recording, and editing during the creation of a professional looking end product. Yet, despite the great potential of video, most of the attempts to compete online with a video marketing strategy fall short. Unlike traditional TV, Radio, or print media advertising, online video has its own set of rules. Understanding the six principles of successful online video changes everything. Tune in on July 18th and learn how you can start implementing these online marketing essentials in your organization today. |
||
 |
HOW TO: Take your MSP Business to the Next Level! Well-respected Managed Services Provider (MSP) business coach Manuel Palachuk shared his secret sauce at the recent CompTIA ChannelCon 2018 (#channelcon18) conference in Washington DC. Hint: Culture. Second hint: Agile Service Delivery! Also learn how Manuel was a day-to-day IT professional how elevated to being an in-demand speaker and strategy guy.
|
||
 |
Newbie MSP - CompTIA Workforce Training Outreach John Cooper left his job of 18+ years as a security guard in the summer of 2018 to become a technology Managed Services Provider (MSP) working for a channel partner orgazination (headed by CompTIA board member Nathan Archer). Cooper is benefiting from the workforce outreach efforts provided by CompTIA - he was interviewed while attending CompTIA's ChannelCon18 conference in Washington DC (August 2018). Enjoy this happy story!
|
||
 |
FinTech: Brian Livingston Muscular Portfolios Learn HOW TO make consistent financial portfolio gains with your hard earned wealth from best selling author Brian Livingston of Windows Secrets fame. In this interview, Livingston discusses his new portal, newsletter and forthcoming book, all called "Muscular Portfolios" and easily explains sophisticated technology-based financial investment frameworks (simple models called Papa Bear, Momma Bear and Baby Bear). |
||
 |
How To....make money with voice with Robert Cooper (Wildix) at CompTIA ChannelCon 2018 Harry Brelsford (SMB Nation) speaks with Robert Cooper (Wilddix) at CompTIA ChannelCon 2018. The BASIC QUESTION: How to MAKE MONEY with Voice technology. Warning - money maker secrets embedded inside! |
||
|
|
