MSPmentor

2009: The Year of Managed Services Franchises?

Mitch York — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 16:14:55 +0000

If you’re wondering who’s going to do well in this economy, look no further than companies that sell franchises. In a very insightful article on MSNBC.com, Mark Siebert notes that the increase in the unemployment rate of 1.4 percentage points over last year adds 2.2 million people to the jobless pool. And “every 0.1 percent increase in the unemployment rate adds another 150,000 prospective franchise buyers to the marketplace.” Add to those who are being pushed overboard the folks who are going to jump before they are pushed–Siebert calls them the “near layoffs”–and the pool grows larger still.

So lots of workless people are sloshing around. Franchisors are salivating, and that’s true whether you’re in the retail market, the fast food industry or even the managed services market. (more…)

Are You A Top 100 Managed Service Provider?

MSPMentor — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 16:09:08 +0000

If you’re a manged service provider —of any size, in any country — you could earn free publicity across the managed services industry. But you need to act on or before December 18. Simply fill out our MSPmentor 100 survey. If your company lands on the resulting MSPmentor 100 list, your organization could be ranked among the world’s top managed service providers.

Deadline for submissions is December 18 (based on requests from several MSPs that expect to close big deals later this month, we’ve added a few extra days to the deadline). But don’t delay: Fill out the survey now. Here’s why. (more…)

Weekly Poll: December Managed Services Revenue

Joe Panettieri — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 16:02:49 +0000

Welcome to the final month of 2008. MSPmentor is curious to know how your December business is shaping up. Please complete the following poll and we’ll blog about the results on Friday, December 5.

Thank you for completing the poll.

26 Managed Service Providers Acquired In 2008

Joe Panettieri — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 15:55:41 +0000

A quick observation: Despite the economic turbulence — or perhaps because of it — 26 companies within the managed services market have completed merger, acquisition or investment deals this year, according to MSPmentor M&A Tracker.

DirectPointe, Top MSP, Launches New Company

Joe Panettieri — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 08:00:19 +0000

DirectPointe, the top managed service provider in our 2007-2008 MSPmentor 100 report, apparently has spun off a new company called CentralPointe. The start-up intends to blend open source and cloud computing to make IT more affordable and easier to manage. An official announcement about CentralPointe is expected the week of December 1, but here are some early details. (more…)

SaaS Strategies for 2009

Joe Panettieri — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 23:37:22 +0000

If you’re seeking to polish your software as a service (SaaS) strategy, check out this intriguing blog post from the Instigator Blog. Author Ben Yoskovitz predicts SaaS companies will be in “a whackload of trouble.” That sounds a bit dramatic to me, but Yoskovitz does offer some great tips to help you formulate and improve your SaaS strategy.

Found: 70 Managed Services Case Studies

MSPMentor — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 15:31:58 +0000

Whether you’re an established or aspiring managed service provider, MSPmentor’s free Resource Center contains more than 70 case studies, customer profiles and how-to guides for managed services. Within the Resource Center (registration required) you’ll also find:

The MSPmentor 100 report (2007-2008 edition), highlighting the world’s most successful managed service providers
The MSPmentor 250 report (2007-2008 edition), describing the top executives, entrepreneurs and experts in the managed services industry

Full disclosure: Many of the case studies were submitted by MSPmentor’s sponsors. Within the Resource Center, we clearly indicate the source of all content.

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Blurring the Lines: Managed Services and Cloud Computing

Joe Panettieri — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 15:17:58 +0000

Software companies and MSPs are erasing the line between managed services and cloud computing. In fact, I don’t think there ever was a line between the two specialties.

We’ve written quite a bit about the growing trend toward integrating managed services solutions (such as Vembu StoreGrid) with cloud services (such as Amazon Simple Storage Service).

But ScienceLogic blog has furthered the discussion with this blog entry — which describes how managed services, cloud computing and virtualization are coming together.

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

HP’s Double Migraine: Nimsoft and GroundWork Open Source

Joe Panettieri — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 23:41:47 +0000

We’ve written a bit about Nimsoft’s success disrupting Hewlett-Packard’s traditional OpenView business. Now comes word that HP’s network management team also faces major pricing challenges in a showdown with GroundWork Open Source. You’ll find details about HP’s software and managed services headaches over on MSPmentor’s sister site, The VAR Guy.

Sales Lead Strategy: Extreme Office Makeovers

Joe Panettieri — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 17:01:11 +0000

Erick Simpson (pictured), CIO of MSP University, blogged a bit about a rather interesting sales lead strategy known as the Extreme Office Makeover. I’ve been hearing more and more about that sales lead strategy in recent months — and it seems to be working in cities across the United States. For specific details check out Erick’s blog.