MSPmentor

Another one of Bob Godgart’s ideas is now a reality. In January he hinted to me that Autotask was developing a professional services team to help VARs further automate their businesses and maximize their managed services opportunities. After a few more months of planning and tinkering, Autotask announced its Professional Services team today. Read More >

During a mid-2007 phone chat with Autotask CEO Bob Godgart, I asked him which managed services-oriented companies he watches most closely. His immediate reply: Google. Fast forward to the present, and it’s clear why Godgart and the rest of the managed services industry keeps close tabs on the search engine giant.

Indeed, Google has quietly launched a managed email security service for businesses, schools and non-profit organizations. For managed service providers, Google’s growing interest in software as a service is both a challenge and an opportunity. Read More >

I had another lengthly chat with Autotask CEO Bob Godgart earlier this week. The conversation touched on multiple points. For this particular blog entry, I’m zeroing in on Autotask Go!, an entry-level platform that allows small VARs to get started with professional services automation. Autotask has learned quite a bit about the small VAR market since launching Go! last fall. Read More >

Nobody, it seems, is immune to an economic slowdown.

As the Bulls and Bears do battle on Wall Street, certain technology sectors will hold up better than others during a slowing economy.

Managed services seems to be holding its own, and Autotask’s CEO remained upbeat during a call with me yesterday. But two other hot buttons — Software as a Service and Open Source — are now coming under Wall Street’s skeptical microscope.

Yes, I’ve predicted that companies like Red Hat and Salesforce.com (along with MSP platform providers) will weather the economic storm better than traditional closed-source or on-premise software companies. However… Read More >

Recession. Inflation. Rising unemployment. While many Americans worry about broad economic issues, certain sectors of the managed services space appear to remain red hot. A case in point: Autotask is seeking to expand its workforce by about 30 percent to 40 percent this year — while doubling its engineering staff along the way, according to an email exchange with CEO Bob Godgart (pictured). Read More >

The spirit of former Novell CEO Ray Noorda lives on in the managed services market. In the late 1980s, Noorda coined the term “coopetition” — which described rival technology companies that competed but also cooperated to grow a market.

Such is the case in the managed services sector. In recent weeks, both the MSP Alliance and MSP Partners have formed vendor advisory panels to help grow the overall market. The advisory boards will, in some cases, feature representatives from rival companies looking across the table from one another. Consider these recent moves: Read More >

If cost is the biggest hurdle standing between you and a managed services practice, consider this: Autotask has launched a new, low-cost managed services platform called Autotask Go! The hosted MSP platform has a fixed fee of $99 and no start-up costs. And the user interface resembles intuitive, consumer-oriented designs (a la Quicken or Google Analytics).

According to Autotask CEO Bob Godgart, the Go! edition is designed for solutions providers with three or fewer employees. Godgart has been hinting about a potential low-cost solution for a few months, and officially announced it the SMB Nation conference in Seattle. Read More >

I just got off the phone with Autotask CEO Bob Godgart. He’s out at the SMB Nation conference in Seattle to share his managed services vision and make a few strategic announcements.

Godgart has a habit of sharing interesting factoids that a lot of people may otherwise overlook. A case in point: He’s extremely upbeat about managed service platforms converging with the mobile market. Surely, field technicians and mobile executives want to access their MSP dashboards from handhelds, smart phones and other devices.

Skeptical? Don’t be. The number of people leveraging Autotask’s LiveMobile software has doubled in the past 45 days, according to Godgart. The software’s CRM (customer relationship management) component is particularly popular, Godgart adds.

Check this site again on September 28 for more perspectives from Godgart. If you do, you’ll learn why Godgart had such a strong motivation to “go” to the SMB Nation event.