Candid conversations with industry veterans, compliance experts, and MSP leaders.
Hosted by Charles Weaver
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The end of Ransomware? You may have seen some news lately about the US government working with other governments to ban ransomware payments. Well, I'm not so sure it will stop ransomware, but it is an interesting topic and something we should discuss. Banning ransomware; what impact would it have? Government bans on ransomware payments will change how MSPs "manage" those clients Private sector should pay attention Can MSPs be more proactive? I read an article whose headline talked about MSPs bei
There is no recession in managed services You may be watching the economic news out there and thinking to yourself, how will this impact my managed services business. It’s a good question to ask. Economic indicators seem to be pointing to some form of recession or slowdown (some call it a soft landing) in the near future. For all we know we might already be in a recession. But, does a recession mean MSPs are going to be hit as well? Not if the past is any indicator. Historical recessions impact
In this riveting podcast episode, join us as we delve deep into the intricate landscape of recent high-profile cyber-attacks that have sent shockwaves through the digital realm. Our seasoned guests, Shannon Wilkinson, the CEO of Tego Cyber , and Brent Watkins, the Director of Business Development at Tego Cyber, step into the MSP Zone to unravel the layers of these incidents, providing invaluable analysis and guidance that every Managed Service Provider (MSP) should heed. Our exploration begins w
How are MSPs dealing with CMMC ? John Burgess, from Mainstream Technologies drops into the MSP Zone to discuss how MSPs should deal with the changes coming from CMMC, but how they can stay ahead of them as well. CMMC is not just about mapping controls, it's about understanding the correlation and interdependence of client controls and managed services. For MSPs, CMMC (and many other control-based frameworks) is about much more than just controls. Regardless of where you stand on the issue, havin
Poor MSP Growth May Not be Due to Lack of Sales Many times I hear MSPs complain about their stagnant or lack of growth. Now, regardless of whether you have a sales team and process or if you predominantly rely on referrals, lack of growth can frequently be caused by two general issues: inefficient process, and lack of customer focus. Limited service catalog Defined customers With these two elements, you can develop an effective sales and/or referral program Frankenstein Compliance If your MSP pr
About a year ago I started to hear MSPs talk about a new company, Halo PSA . It turns out, this company is not new, but they are doing some rather innovative things in the MSP ticketing space and being somewhat disruptive. After all, when you have a large community of MSPs actually switching their ticketing platforms, you know something disruptive is taking place. So, we decided to reach out and invite Tim Bowers, CEO of Halo PSA to join the MSP Zone and talk about his company and what they are
In this MSP Zone spotlight Travis Spring, vice president of Sagiss, joins us to share his thoughts on the MSP market. We discuss a wide range of topics, from economics, labor, technical, AI, and other business issues which impact all MSPs. Economy and its impact on managed services The impact of AI on MSPs Are MSPs using AI? Labor challenges facing MSPs
Modern lead generation is a racket I receive a lot of " lead generation " cold calls and emails. When I say these solicitations are horribly bad, I am being generous. MSPs get hit up all the time to create or expand their cold calling efforts and if these same groups are soliciting them, this is crazy. Does cold calling really work for MSPs? Cold calling vs Inbound lead generation MSP content must be a factor of your marketing and lead cultivation Control Frameworks: Which is right for you? A lo
MSP Growth Exaggerated? Canalys is doing some nice work analyzing managed services. Long overdue. Disproportionate # of MSPs producing revenue. Hardware/software influence (more on this in the next segment) Do MSPs Impact Hardware Sales? I recently saw someone promoting a webinar on the topic of MSPs increasing hardware sales, and it caught my eye. It's not a typical subject we see discussed these days, but it is still a relevant one. Legacy role of MSPs and hardware Modern day MSP and hardware
Out of the Box MSSPs This story came to us from one of our friends in the law enforcement community. At first, I thought it was a joke, but upon a second look, it wasn't. Completely serious promo from a security vendor…become an MSSP in 1 day! Unbelievable? I assure you it is not (the claim, not actually becoming an MSSP in a single day). Talk to any legitimate MSP out there and they'll tell you being an MSP takes practice, focus, and execution of strategy. Claims like this one ultimately harm t
SEC Adopts Cyber Disclosure Rule The securities and exchange commission recently made news with an announcement of their cybersecurity disclosure rule. While this isn't the first governmental agency to announce such a rule, it should confirm to every MSP on the planet the direction in which we are headed and offer plenty of guidance for handling privacy and security incidents. SEC rule explained Purpose behind the rule Impact of the rule on MSPs and clients Failure to comply (i.e., lack of compl
Is it better to be cyber secure or cyber resilient? If you think this is a trick question, it isn't. There are many who believe that security is solely a matter of defense. While defensive measures are crucial to any MSP (or their customers), preparing for eventual attacks which are successful, is also crucial. So, what is an MSP to do? Here are some simple measures every MSP ought to be doing right now to be both prepared for cyber-attacks, but also resilient to them if they are succe
I often hear MSPs talk about innovation: but what does that mean? To get one answer, I invited an MSP CEO to join me in a conversation about the innovation that goes into being an MSP, and the impact such innovation has on the business and customers. I was able to do just that when Jimmy Puckett, CEO of SPINEN, entered the MSP Zone. Being innovative does mean customers need to come along for the ride. What if some customers don't want what you are creating? Getting rid of problem clien
The MSP Generation Divide Time changes everything. That certainly seems like an appropriate saying when examining the managed services profession. MSPs seem to be getting younger and younger every year. Or maybe we are just getting older. The point is, the generational divide amongst MSP professionals is increasing. We have older and younger members of our profession, and a lot of knowledge must be transferred between these generations. New MSP generation doesn't have preconceived noti
What do PE Firms Want from MSPs? For the last several years MSPs have been courted by private equity firms desperate to enter the managed services space. At the risk of being obvious, what do private equity (PE) firms want from their MSP investments? It's an important question and knowing the answer can help you successfully navigate the process of working with a PE. PE vs other MSP buyers Types of investment Hold times Managed Service Sales is Easier Than you Think Stop overthinking s
Are Accounting Firms Squeezing MSPs? It's no secret that accounting firms are entering the managed services profession. Some CPA firms are developing managed services practices, others are content to audit MSPs through programs such as MSP Verify and SOC 2. To ignore accounting firms and their role/impact on the managed services profession would be a mistake. Misunderstanding MSPs in the larger IT channel discussion Why are accounting firms getting into managed services? How doe
Internal IT vs MSP Can an MSP do everything an internal IT department can? That is the quintessential question the world has been asking for 30 years. Just because an organization has an internal IT department does not guarantee that it will be efficient. In fact, all IT departments face the same choices as IT service providers: you can be proactive or reactive. Struggles of internal IT Natural barriers of scalability with internal IT Reactive vs proactive internal IT MSP Market Still
N-able CEO Advises MSPs on Upcoming Challenges N-able held its partner conference in Prague recently and their CEO had some interesting comments regarding the economy, compliance, security, and other "challenges" facing MSPs. Headwinds for the rest of the economy are tailwinds for MSPs, if they position themselves correctly Major "business" shift for MSPs This is a very simple adjustment for MSPs, if you don't look at it as a technical change MDR vs MSP Do you think managed detection a
Can MSPs "Guarantee" Compliance? It's no secret that many MSPs are helping clients deal with compliance issues. Whether this is gathering evidence for a client audit, or simply offering traditional managed services to demonstrate compliance for a given framework. However, when it comes to guarantees, compliance may not be the area where you make any guarantees. Here's why. Compliance within the MSPs' control Customer interference Making guarantees in the first place Converting Reactive
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low Don't Rely (too much) on Cyber Insurance Barracuda surveyed 400 enterprise IT and security professionals globally, ranging from IT managers to CISOs, to discover the biggest cybersecurity challenges businesses face in 2023. Are organizations placing too much emphasis on cyber insurance ? What should MSPs do about this? Are cyber insurance policies being used to target ransomware victims? MSP Economics Update for Q2 We just had the latest MSPAlliance Inspire me
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low AI Ethics in Managed Services You heard correctly. Ethics in artificial intelligence. This is going to be a big issue moving forward and MSPs had better familiarize themselves with what is happening because before too long, MSPs will be dealing directly with AI devices and scenarios. Google CEO says he doesn't 'fully understand' how new AI program Bard works AI teaching itself AI creating malware Compliance reporting All the discussion around compliance lately
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low Cyber Consultants at it Again We have been coming across a unique brand of marketing and website design company lately; yes, you guessed it, they also do cybersecurity . It seems difficult not to come across cyber security "experts" these days, even if that claim may be dubious. Marketing gets into cybersecurity Cyber consultants need understanding of MSPs First do no harm! Managing MSP remote workers (ticket reviews) Since the pandemic remote work has explode
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low Q1 Managed Services Industry Report Card We have officially wrapped up Q1 2023 and its time to evaluate how the managed services profession did and what the outlook is like. Q1 analysis MSP outlook Tech stock performance S&P 500 doing well because of IT stocks Cyber Consultants Continued We have been discussing (for years) the ongoing evolution and emergence of consultants in the cybersecurity field and the impact they are having on managed service provide
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low North Dakota Announces Mandatory Cybersecurity Education North Dakota just announced a new educational mandate for grade school students to learn more about cybersecurity . Such a move is not only a smart one, but it is going to have a positive impact on future generations of cybersecurity professionals. Cyber skills gap acknowledged Good example of government leadership and action Good news for MSPs (and other employers) in the near future MSP Recession Plann
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low What is continuous compliance ? Sound like a headache? It isn’t. Continuous compliance is where the managed services profession is headed and MSPs had better start preparing now. Continuous compliance defined Why continuous compliance is the future Guidance for transitioning from standard to continuous Recent news stories would have you believe that the recent bank failures are really caused by underlying fractures within the tech sector. Let’s examine an alte
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low First, let's discuss Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). You may be wondering what SVB has to do with managed services. Good question. Nothing directly ties SVB to managed services, other than there are a number of MSPAlliance members who bank there and may be impacted by recent events. Will SVB have any long or short term effects on the managed services profession? Is the SVB collapse an indicator of technology health? Second, some advice for MSP startups. Much of the
Weaver Outrage Meter: Medium MSP Zone examines the idea of a cyber tax, what that would look like, and whether a cyber tax would be a good thing for MSPs Highlights: Cyber tax credits Codes of conduct Government oversight? Cyber Verify has been launched. What is Cyber Verify? How can it help MSPs at both ends of the MSP maturity spectrum? The Art of Managed Services 2nd Edition is now available for purchase. What went into the 2nd edition? What has changed since the first edition was p
Weaver Outrage Meter: Low) In the US, we just had our national state of the union address, so we thought it would be fun (and interesting) to do our own state of the union address on how the managed services profession is doing in 2023. Drawing from global IT spending data and MSPAlliance member input, we have put together some of the more noteworthy areas of interest to MSPs in 2023, both areas of opportunity and issues of concern. Enjoy Highlights: IT Spending for 2023 Compliance challenges an
Weaver Outrage Meter (Low) There are many reasons why you would want to work with a provider of managed services . During a recession (or the threat of a recession), IT and business needs tend to become a bit more clear and in focus as you come to reality about what it is you really need versus what you don't. The benefits of managed services really only apply to true MSP organizations. We are not talking about break/fix and reactive IT companies as they do not create the same types of economic
Weaver Outrage Meter (Low) Many MSPs think of compliance as a "once a year" activity. Much like doing your taxes, compliance is a doing it once and then forget it event that gets revisited next year. This is dangerous thinking and should be part of every MSP's new year's resolution for 2023. Compliance doesn't have to be a dirty word. In fact, compliance should have nothing to do with tax preparation or any other dreaded activity you have to do on an ongoing basis. Instead, compliance
Weaver Outrage Meter (Medium) I recently read a blog written by a government about how to properly use MSPs in a cloud environment. Now. I am not sure what background this author has but I’m assuming a good number of people read and approved of the article since it was published (for the public to read) on a government website. I do not like attacking people directly when they have no ability to respond to the allegation but in this case, but I believe the idea raised is so contentious that it m
Weaver Outrage Meter (Medium) I thought you'd never see the day when you hear me say the words, maybe roll ups work in the MSP profession. Before you get too excited, there are still some "right" ways and "wrong" ways to go about doing M&A and that is part of what we will discuss today. But, part of my analysis on MSP acquisitions over the last few years does involve what some of you out there would classify as roll up acquisition strategies. Do they work? Are they really roll ups? Let's dig
Weaver Outrage Meter (Low) Cyber is uninsurable according to the executive of a major insurance company. If cyber is uninsurable, then MSPs just got a lot more valuable. Here's the conundrum. If MSPs represent aggregate risk to insurers yet are invaluable in the fight against cyber threats, and if cyber is becoming more uninsurable, then MSPs become even more critical in the cyber risk equation. Sound complicated? I'll explain. Most of the discussion around cyber risk insurance today can be boil
Weaver Outrage Meter (Low) 2022 began very differently than it ended. The pandemic, global supply chain, cyber-attacks, cyber risk, the economy, MSP talent, and many other areas saw change (good and bad) during the year. This summary of the year 2022 in managed services looks at a variety of areas all related to the global managed services profession and attempts to extract some lessons learned so we can apply them to 2023. MSP Zone Guest: Rob Scott Highlights: Cyber Risk - legal, technical, bus