MSPmentor

CompTIA, the Computing Technology Industry Association, is launching a Managed Service Provider Thought Leadership Group. The group, spearheaded by CompTIA Vice President Robert Biddle (pictured), will seek to educate VARs that are marching toward a managed services business model.

CompTIA enters an increasingly crowded market — where organizations and associations like MSPAlliance, MSP Partners, and MSP University strive to educate VARs and MSPs. But CompTIA ranks among the world’s largest IT organizations, giving CompTIA instant access and credibility with thousands of VARs and MSPs across the globe.

First Steps

During a kick-off meeting October 22, more than 40 VARs, managed service providers and industry leaders participated in a one-hour discussion about their hopes and goals for CompTIA’s MSP efforts.

“This is an opportunity for CompTIA to continue down a path of education, and to create a rising tide for all the boats in the managed services industry,” said Dan Wensley, VP of partner development at Level Platforms. Wensley was one of four panelists who helped to kick off the discussion.

During the session, attendees also expressed a need for CompTIA to potentially provide:

• Best practices and methodologies for managed services
• Managed services roadmaps
• Coaching to help MSPs determine client needs
• Guides to help MSPs convert their break-fix customers to proactive managed services
• Case studies
• Localized content and regional representatives for MSPs across the globe

Next Steps

When the meeting wrapped up, Biddle said CompTIA would use many of the ideas to help create a charter for the organization’s MSP Thought Leadership Group.

Although no official time frame for the group has been announced, CompTIA has been moving more aggressively in new directions under CEO Todd Thibodeaux, who joined the association in June 2008.

In some cases, I can see CompTIA potentially competing with other association and education groups within the managed services market. But here’s one key item to note: CompTIA allowed attendees representing multiple organizations (MSP Partners and MSP University, in particular) to join and participate in the kick-off discussion.

MSPmentor is updated multiple times daily. Don’t miss a single post. Subscribe to our Enewsletter, RSS and Twitter feeds.