MSPmentor

Latisys, a colocation and managed services provider, is back on the acquisition track, purchasing a Washington, D.C. area firm that provides a similar set of services. Here are the details.

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We’ve described how electronic health records could present an opening for MSPs as healthcare providers seek externally hosted systems. But health organizations with in-house EHR systems also present a services opportunity: disaster recovery.

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Cloud vendors, at least the publicly held ones, have been disclosing cloud-centric revenue for a few quarters now. The top line revenue results are helpful, since they chronicle demand for emerging cloud services. But, obviously, it doesn’t say much about the underlying business fundamentals. With that in mind, what metrics should cloud companies use to track financial performance and operational efficiency? How should they keep score? Here are some clues — and some similarity between cloud success metrics, and MSP success metrics.

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There’s high-level support for cloud computing in the government space so, unsurprisingly, vendors are following the money. The latest to do so is Microsoft. The company this week rolled out a federal-specific version of its Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS).  And you can bet Google and Amazon Web Services will be making some federal cloud moves as well. Here are some of the details and implications.

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Managed security services providers (MSSPs) sometimes act as master MSPs, seeking out channel players as marketing allies. See here and here. Alert Logic follows a similar track, although the company believes it offers a different approach. The Houston-based firm targets a range of channel partners — hosting providers, MSPs, and VARs — with security offerings delivered as a service. Here are some new details.

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Government agencies continue to adopt the cloud, with the Department of Health and Human Services providing the latest proof point. HHS has tapped Acumen Solutions, a business and technology consulting firm, to provide cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM). Here are some quick details.

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As a managed service provider with a hosting operation, how to you prepare for customers with unpredictable web site traffic surges? Here are some best practices from Voxel, the managed hosting and cloud provider.

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For the second time in recent days, a major service provider is pointing to growing cloud revenues. Specifically, Terremark Worldwide’s cloud business climbed to a annualized revenue run rate of $17.2 million during the company’s December-ended third fiscal quarter. Here’s a look at the news.

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Nasuni is cultivating resellers and MSPs to help market its newly released cloud storage gateway offering. The venture-backed startup this week emerged from stealth mode to reveal its Nasuni Filer, a virtual appliance that sits in VMware. Here are some more details.

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A government program rolling out this year provides financial incentives to physicians and hospitals that adopt electronic health records. MSPs may benefit as well as healthcare organizations scramble to meet the program’s deadlines. But this isn’t a run toward easy money. MSPs that chase the healthcare dollars are going to need some key skills and relationships.

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Savvis Inc. has a message for anyone doubting the cloud computing market: Check out our cloud revenues. Although still a small portion of Savvis’s business pie, cloud revenues at the company  nearly doubled in 2009 — getting a boost from new customers and existing media industry clients. Here’s a closer look at Savvis’ cloud revenue trends.

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In a tough economy, the largest IT service providers — outsourcing firms and systems integrators — have been known to move downstream, seeking smaller deals with smaller customers. Cloud computing — and the ability to reduce the vendors’ cost of service — may also tempt the multi-billion-dollar, multinational IT firms to journey downmarket. Whatever the motivation, $6 billion Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is making moves in the small and medium business (SMB) arena. Here’s how.

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Microsoft is doubling down on the SaaS market through Avanade, the company’s joint consulting and integration venture with Accenture. Avanade’s SaaS platform, called Avanade Online Services, will initially focus on Microsoft Dynamics CRM. That space already has plenty of players — including Microsoft itself. Here are the details.

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A declining real estate market generally qualifies as bad news. But perhaps not for MSPs looking to expand. SunGard Availability Services is readying a data center for a May 2010 opening in the Sacramento, California area. Here’s the strategy. I wonder: Are rival MSPs considering similar moves?

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The New York Internet Company (NYI) recently landed a colocation deal with Meetup, a social network site for coordinating local get-togethers. Now here’s the twist: The customer’s selection decision was based, in part, on NYI’s business experience with startups. Is it time for MSPs to specifically target startups as customers? Here are some insights.

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ActivIdentity is gearing up to help managed security services providers offer its authentication and credential management solutions on a subscription basis. Here are some quick details about the effort.

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The U.S. government’s interest in the cloud is no secret. What’s less apparent is how adoption will evolve. Daniel Kent, director of federal solutions at Cisco Systems, recently shed some light on cloud’s government path. Speaking at a Digital Government Institute webinar, Kent suggested agencies are taking a cautious approach, amid cloud security concerns.

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Signs of life in the retail sector began surfacing in mid-2009, and 2010 finds companies carefully sizing up IT spending. Indeed, managed services providers are landing deals as retailers revisit initiatives that may have been stalled last year. Josh Wolff, regional director at Hosted Solutions, an infrastructure-as-a-service provider, says retailers are moving cautiously. But deals are happening. Here are some key examples.

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Companies and developers are taking early steps toward making proprietary clouds interoperable. Stephen Foskett, director of consulting at Nirvanix, believes the cross-platform cloud may first arrive in storage. Here’s why.

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Telepresence is growing as a managed services opportunity, as more business look to conduct business virtually as a cost-savings measure. Recent evidence of that expansion comes from Glowpoint Inc. The company, which offers managed telepresence and video communications services, says it expects year-over-year monthly recurring core revenue to climb more than 13 percent for its 2009 Q4. But that’s not all.

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FusionStorm, an MSP 100 company, has purchased CentriServ, a consulting company that focuses on client-side virtualization. This is the latest in a flurry of mergers and acquisitions across the managed services market. And it’s the second acquisition for FusionStorm in recent months.

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A number of cloud-related companies have attracted investment from venture capital firms in recent weeks and doubtless many more are queuing up for funding as well.  So, just what are VCs looking for in an investment candidate?

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Cross partnering within the services sector is nothing particularly new. Systems integrators have a history of teaming up with similar firms to cover gaps in geographic areas or add skills in short supply. In some cases, the arrangements can be quite free flowing, with companies alternately partnering and competing with each other depending on the circumstances. In the 1990s, such dynamic arrangements were labeled “co-opetition,” a term the late Sam Albert, Ray Noorda and others helped popularize. Fast forward a couple of decades, and MSPs can be found putting their own stamp on service-to-service alliances. Unlike the blurry co-opetition link ups, the latest arrangements seen have clear lines of demarcation.

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