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GreatAmerica Leasing Corp., a U.S. commercial equipment finance company, is making multiple moves to engage managed services providers, managed print experts, and VARs that participate in HTG Peer Groups. Here are some of the emerging details.
And now for something completely different. Autotask has acquired VARStreet. The move potentially allows VARs and MSPs to have a single dashboard for managing distributor relationships and product sourcing (VARStreet) and IT services automation (Autotask). Here’s some analysis of the deal, the potential implications, and a FastChat video conversation with Autotask CEO Bob Godgart.
Call it a small step for the managed services market, but a significant move for the Utility Company. The Master MSP, which works with a range of managed services providers, has attracted $1 million in financing, led by BDC Capital Inc. The Utility Company plans to use the money for a mid-market push, among other things. Here are the details.
How do you continue to “build” a managed services business — even as you try to “run” day-to-day operations while maintaining your existing customer engagements? I must concede: We deal with that balancing act Nine Lives Media Inc. (MSPmentor’s parent). On the one hand, our team has to meet daily business and editorial deadlines. But on the other, we have to keep innovating. Otherwise, a market shift or competitive shift will surely sink us. It’s a careful balancing act that I suspect many MSPs are facing as well.
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.
A hedge fund has offered to acquire Novell, developer of SUSE Linux and a range of systems management and security tools. Moments ago, Novell confirmed that it plans to review the buyout offer. But our sister site, The VAR Guy, wonders if another software company will step in to buy Novell. Here’s the speculation.
Earlier this week in Miami, I got locked in a conversation about Hardware as a Service (HaaS) with a few skeptical MSPs. Their key question: Can you really turn a HaaS profit without taking on big financial risk? I’ve heard some successful anecdotes, but I’m deferring the question to two top MSPs and CharTec’s Alex Rogers. If you’d like to hear how they’re tackling HaaS, join our March 24 MSPmentor Live webcast. We’ll take your questions through the webcast discussion.
The deadlines kept coming this week. We met most (but not all) of them. Plus, we’re still busy chasing some rather strategic news that will break within days. Here are some clues, plus seven managed services blog entries we didn’t write for the week ending February 19.
Former ConnectWise Chief Operating Officer Santo Cannone (pictured) has joined Open Solutions Inc. as executive VP, group sales. Cannone says he wasn’t looking to leave ConnectWise, but a unique opportunity to move back into the financial services market proved too intriguing to turn down. Here are some details.
Hewlett-Packard evangelists sound pretty excited by the company’s latest quarterly financial results. The Associated Press noted “revenue was up in most of the technology company’s major divisions and HP raised its 2010 outlook, citing accelerating market momentum.” Great news for HP partners. But there were two weak spots in the earnings report: HP Services and HP Software. Here are the details.
Two things are competing for my time and attention today: A blizzard here in New York, and the launch of the third-annual MSPmentor 100 — which debuts at 2:00 p.m. eastern today during our special webcast. How will I escape from the blizzard to moderate the webcast? Here’s the answer…
Our third-annual MSPmentor 100 list and report — tracking 100 of the world’s most successful managed service providers — will debut February 10. Check our MSPmentor 100 center for details, or join our special webcast at 2:00 p.m. eastern on February 10. The MSPmentor 100 is a global survey, and we’ll be putting an extra-bright spotlight on international markets such as Europe and Australia this year.
We’re officially in the cloud bubble. Plenty of money continues to flow into the cloud market. Some businesses will succeed. Many will fail. We — many readers and the media — are forgetting the lessons of the dot-com and ASP (application service provider) bubbles. It’s time to get back to discussions about profits, earnings and financial fundamentals. Fast. Here’s why.
Sometimes I jump to the wrong conclusions. A few weeks ago, when the MSPAlliance said there was a potentially “urgent” tax issue facing Florida managed services providers, I dismissed the report because sometimes I think the alliance cries wolf. But to the MSPAlliance’s credit, there’s now a healthy, growing discussion around MSP taxation in certain states. Here’s the update.
We’re careful not to hype the managed services market. Not everyone succeeds. But anecdotal evidence reinforces the fact that the managed services industry continues to grow. The latest example comes from Nimsoft CEO Gary Read’s personal blog, and some follow-up emails with MSPmentor.
Where did the top managed services providers find new customers in 2009? The surprising answer: Many of the best performing MSPs secured revenue in 2009 from target customers that had previously said no in 2008. Want more sales and business tips? Join our next MSPmentor live webcast, scheduled for February 10 at 2:00 p.m. eastern. Here’s what we’ll cover.
I’ve gotta admit: I don’t listen to many of the messages from Washington, D.C. Instead of worrying about what the government is going to do for our small business, I worry about what our own management team is going to do for our business. Still, President Obama’s Small Business Jobs and Wages Tax Cut caught my attention. I wonder: Will it really benefit MSPs and their small-business customers?
Investment money is starting to flow into the hardware as a service (HaaS) market. A prime example: ConnectWise Capital today announced a “joint venture” with CharTec — which specializes in hardware as a service. Financial details of the relationship were not disclosed. But here are some perspectives.
When I want to learn about a business topic, I always try to get the scoop from people who are battling it out in the trenches. Real-world success trumps the white board gurus any day. So, for this blog post, I’m culling business insights, sales advice and cloud strategies from three MSP All-Stars. Here’s their guidance.
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?
I’ve spent the past 24 hours reaching out to software companies that partner with ConnectWise. My question: What’s your initial reaction to ConnectWise Capital, the company’s $20 million effort to incubate channel-centric technology companies. The responses ranged from skepticism to applause. Here’s a recap.
When ConnectWise announced ConnectWise Capital earlier today, some readers asked me two point-blank questions: First, where is ConnectWise getting the $20 million for ConnectWise Capital? Second, is it possible for a technology company to (A) launch a venture fund while (B) maintaining existing hardware and software partnerships? Here are some potential answers.
ConnectWise around January 25 is expected to launch ConnectWise Capital — a $20 million initiative that seeks to “incubate innovation” across the IT channel. I’ve got a few dozen thoughts about the move, which will involve multiple companies. But let’s start with the news…
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