MSPmentor

Managed services aren’t just for small business. In fact, the managed service providers see ample opportunity in mid-size businesses. But targeting the mid-market often means competing with well-funded, profitable consulting firms that specialize in host ERP (enterprise resource planning) applications. Read More >

Apparently, Do IT Smarter and ZINFI Technologies couldn’t contain their excitement. The duo will officially debut a partnership during next week’s MSP Alliance conference in Atlanta. But Do IT Smarter and ZINFI are already describing their new relationship to the world at large. Read More >

When the history of managed services is written, Mark Scott may earn two prominent mentions.

First, as co-founder of N-able, he helped shift VARs to managed services. Now, as president and founder of The Utility Company, Scott is striving to blend IT franchises with on-demand services. Here’s a look at his latest efforts, and the potential implications for MSPs. Read More >

Move over, Steve Jobs. Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff is teasing press and analysts with a cryptic invite to a major announcement on April 14.  Salesforce.com won’t say what’s cooking.

But we’ll be all ears, as Salesforce.com continues to evolve from a hosted CRM system into an application platform. Will Benioff start preaching about cloud computing? Does a key partnership await us? Other deadlines are calling, so we’ll need to chase down details about this event at a later event.

Windows Vista has sold more than 100 million licenses as of January 2008, but the operating system hasn’t exactly been a hit in business environments — where many companies are holding strong to Windows XP, and some firms are exploring Windows alternatives.

But an announcement from Dell could signal a potential turning point for Vista. The PC giant has announced a Client Migration Solution that aims to accelerate and simplify migrations to Vista. The services are designed for companies moving 2,500 or more PCs to Vista.

Dell’s announcement made no mention of Silverback Technologies and other managed services tools that the company has acquired over the past year. However, Silverback partners should watch Dell’s Vista strategy closely. Here’s why.

Read More >

In recent weeks, my inbox has become filled with “cloud” computing press releases. The good news: Many of the high-tech industry’s smartest companies are allocating resources to hosted services, managed services and software as a service.

The bad news: Just about anybody with a heartbeat in high-tech now claims to offer cloud computing services. Similar to the ASP (application service provider) hype cycle from nearly a decade ago, we should expect some cloud computing companies to thrive — and many to fail. Read More >

Lots of schools are closed this week in the United States. Email and voice mail traffic seems a  little bit lighter. It’s the perfect week to come into the office a little late and leave a little early.

Or is it? In reality, big companies are working overtime to win new sales and ensure they meet their 1Q financial goals. And small firms should take some time to carefully review their managed services strategies heading into 2Q. Here are five items that should be on your priority list for the week ahead. Read More >

We told readers about the latest Kaseya platform release earlier this month. However, we don’t really do “product reviews” here, nor do we analyze product features and functions. MSPmentor focuses more on MSP business and partner strategies.

Still, we know readers want product info. And it’s certainly available on the Web. Kaseya CEO Gerald Blackie’s personal blog, for instance, has some deeper info about the latest Kaseya 2008 product release. It’s a quick read, highlighting 12 quick features found in the new Kaseya platform.

We don’t endorse any specific MSP platforms. But we do think Blackie’s approach to communicating is worthwhile. In a single blog post, he manages to make some quick, easy-to-follow pitches to readers.

If you author a blog in the MSP or IT services market, let us know about it. We link out on a regular basis as a service to our readers.