There is a general sense in the business community that current database implementations are not providing enough “bang for the buck,” but there appears to be a lack of knowledge about how to improve the situation. According to a new InformationWeek survey of more than 750 business technology professionals, only 12% say their databases are a good deal.
NetEnrich: A Closer Look at Closet to Cloud Strategy
Posted January 26th, 2012 by Charlene OHanlon
You may or may not have heard of NetEnrich’s “closet to cloud” approach to IT operations. But it’s a simple concept: NetEnrich has a solution for MSPs to effectively monitor their customers’ IT infrastructure no matter where it’s located — on premise or in the cloud. And NetEnrich CEO Raju Chekuri believes such flexibility is critical as MSPs increasingly deal with closet infrastructure, cloud infrastructure or a combination thereof.
SMB Computer Security and Internet Security Awareness Grows
Posted January 10th, 2012 by Dan Berthiaume
An increasing awareness of IT security issues displayed by SMBs during 2011 could present an opportunity for MSPs in 2012. The “SMB Market Landscape Report 2011,” a recent survey of 1,000 US- and UK-based SMBs released by internet security software provider AVG, indicates that traditional IT vulnerabilities are still causing SMBs the most concern, but there is a slow awakening to threats related to emerging technologies, especially among larger SMBs.
Best Buy and mindSHIFT: Analyzing MSP And Cloud Services Valuations
Posted January 5th, 2012 by Joe Panettieri
Now that Best Buy (BBY) has completed the mindSHIFT acquisition, let’s take a much closer look at the financial aspects of the managed services and cloud services acquisition. MSPmentor has gathered some hard-to-find financial metrics about mindSHIFT’s business. Examine the numbers and you may get a better feel for managed services provider (MSP) and cloud services provider (CSP) valuations.
Beyond Retail: Best Buy Completes mindSHIFT Acquisition
Posted January 3rd, 2012 by Joe Panettieri
Best Buy’s acquisition of mindSHIFT is now complete, and mindSHIFT is now “officially a 100% owned subsidiary of Best Buy,” according to mindSHIFT CEO Paul Chisholm. So should customers — and rival managed services providers — expect big changes over at mindSHIFT? The simple answer is no. I believe mindSHIFT has a clear long-term plan for cloud services and managed services, while Best Buy has its hands full trying to bolster its traditional retail business. Here’s the background.
Considering the Cloud? Find Your Sweet Spot, CA Advises
Posted January 3rd, 2012 by Charlene OHanlon
Managed service providers considering a shift into cloud services are faced with a number of considerations: What should I offer? How much do I need to lay out in infrastructure costs? How can I get the word out? Each of those three questions demand answers that, if incorrect, could severely impact an MSP’s success.
NetEnrich’s Justin Crotty Offers 2012 Channel Predictions
Posted December 23rd, 2011 by Charlene OHanlon
As 2011 winds down and most folks are looking ahead to the year ahead, the crystal ball is getting quite a workout. Will the economy rebound? Will the channel adapt to new technologies and new selling models? Will the Denver Broncos win the Super Bowl?
Consumerism Drives Cloud Adoption for Businesses
Posted December 21st, 2011 by Renee Bergeron
I know what you’re thinking: Consumerism? Have you lost your mind? No, but I do want you to consider the positive impact consumerism can have on your business when it comes to cloud adoption.
Managed Services and MSP Planning for 2012
Posted December 19th, 2011 by Ted Roller
It is absolutely amazing how fast a year can fly by, and for many, my guess is this year has gone by much faster than some. As someone who attends quite a few trade events on an annual basis, I have the opportunity to sit down face to face with a host of MSPs and resellers who are moving towards the MSP model, and the dichotomy of success is amazing to me. Now, let’s look back… and ahead.
IBM Sees Three Managed Services Market Segments for MSPs
Posted December 8th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Managed services can be difficult to define and sell, especially as cloud computing blurs the picture. But IBM is seeking simplicity as it begins to more aggressively embrace mid-market MSPs. Indeed, IBM is starting to see the managed services market in three clearly defined segments.
Artisan: The Only IaaS Cloud With A Pure MSP Partner Model?
Posted December 7th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Artisan Infrastructure competes in the fiercely competitive IaaS (infrastructure as a service) market, hoping to build a pure channel-centric alternative to Rackspace, Amazon Web Services and other cloud titans. Artisan claims that it never — ever — sells directly to end customers. Instead, Artisan empowers third-party MSPs and emerging services providers to build and deploy self-selected SaaS applications on Artisan’s infrastructure. So is the strategy working?
SMB Disaster Recovery is Recipe for MSP Success
Posted December 5th, 2011 by Dan Berthiaume
The SMB disaster recovery market is poised for some change in 2012, according to new predictions released by cloud-based recovery services provider Doyenz Inc. The company forecasts that as the continuing consumerization of IT makes its way into the disaster recovery market, SMBs will have greater expectations around application availability, ease of use, intuitive web-based management with 24×7 data accessibility, and faster time-to-recovery with improved security of their data. Doyenz goes as far as saying these changes will drive a “disruptive shift” in the disaster recovery market next year.
Numara Links Mobile Device Management to IT Service Management
Posted December 2nd, 2011 by Nicholas Mukhar
Numara Software, a help desk software provider, has a message for MSPs: Your mobile device management (MDM) efforts should integrate with your existing managed services for network devices security, provisioning, management and control. So where does Numara Cloud fit into the MDM Conversation?
Desktone: VDI Solution for Windows 7 Migrations?
Posted November 28th, 2011 by Nicholas Mukhar
Desktone, a desktop as a service (DaaS) specialist, is touting its virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) as a solution to help enterprises migrate to Microsoft’s Windows 7. Desktone also promotes its VDI and DaaS solutions to managed services providers, cloud systems integrators and large telecom companies. I spoke with Desktone VP of Marketing and Product Management David Grant to learn where he thinks Desktone fits into the DaaS and VDI conversation.
Don’t Sell Cloud Services; Do Sell End User Experience
Posted November 15th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Cloud computing was only half the story at last week’s IT Nation conference in Orlando, Fla. Attendees — mostly MSPs and VARs — also focused heavily on mobile device management (MDM) and the growing influence of tablets in the workplace. But instead of talking cloud vs. on-premises or notebooks vs. tablets, it’s time for MSPs to focus their sales and business strategies on the complete end-user experience. Here’s why.
Integrating Cloud Solutions and Managed Services: 4 Questions to Ask
Posted November 15th, 2011 by Ted Roller
So, you’ve spent the last five years building out a successful managed services practice. You’ve spent innumerable hours evaluating vendors, selected an RMM vendor (or two, maybe three?) that will allow you effectively remotely manage your customers. You’ve had to make staff changes, and probably had to edit your customer list a little bit in the process too. If you are like most, you either added or started with a PSA solution to manage the day to day activities of your team and clean up your processes, billing, etc. All this has prepared you to layer on some cloud based deliverables which will add revenue across your customer base and create opportunity to land new customers.
CA: Looking for Cloud Opportunities? Look to the SMB Space
Posted November 3rd, 2011 by Sponsored Video
When it comes to finding new opportunities, MSPs are pretty adept at rooting out trends and complementary technologies. But for a number of MSPs, discovering opportunities within the cloud can be as difficult as driving through a heavy fog.
16 Questions Every MSP Should Ask During IT Nation
Posted November 3rd, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Roughly 1,600 VARs, MSPs and channel vendors are expected to attend IT Nation and related sub-conferences in Orlando, Fla., next week. Many of the attendees will be exploring new technology solutions (remote monitoring, cloud storage, etc.) and new business strategies (marketing, sales, etc.). Within dozens of vendor booths and during private meetings, you’ll hear plenty of sales pitches. But before you ink any deals, here are 16 questions every managed services provider should be prepared to ask during IT Nation.
Why Match.com Sites Don’t Work for Cloud Computing
Posted October 31st, 2011 by Renee Bergeron
We’ve all seen the ads. Match.com can be a great place to meet that special someone – maybe even your spouse or partner. But what the ads don’t disclose is all the time, effort and misses that led up to that “perfect match.” On the personal level, it’s all worth it, but in the business world, who has the time, energy or money to throw at relationships that just aren’t going to pan out?! My point is this – when it comes to selecting a business partner, especially for high-profile, game-changing technologies like cloud, a few clicks of the mouse aren’t going to cut it.
IBM’s Monshaw: MSPs are our Next Generation Business Partners
Posted October 28th, 2011 by Nicholas Mukhar
IBM continues to accelerate its partner strategy in the mid-market. The effort includes a growing push to transform VARs and resellers into managed services providers. Andy Monshaw, general manager of IBM’s global and medium sized business, offered MSPmentor an update.
Managed Services: 7 Blogs MSPmentor Didn’t Write, Oct. 21
Posted October 21st, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
The MSPmentor team had another packed week of travel, attending McAfee Focus and Tigerpaw User Conference. We’ve also been pursuing several rumors we’ve yet to confirm as factual (hint, hint: stay tuned). In the meantime here are seven managed services blogs the MSPmentor team didn’t have time to write for the week ending Oct. 21, 2011.
Zenith Infotech CEO: Debt Issue Won’t Sink Company
Posted October 20th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Zenith Infotech CEO Akash Saraf said the company’s recent bond default is a matter he takes seriously. But Saraf wants to assure Zenith Infotech’s MSPs, partners and customers that “we’re in the process of getting this fixed. It’s not something that will sink the company.” Saraf made the statements to MSPmentor today. To reinforce his point, Saraf described how Zenith Infotech is marching forward with new product rollouts, including virtualization and enterprise enhancements to the SmartStyle Computing platform.
Next Week: Join MSPmentor in New York on Tuesday, Oct. 25
Posted October 17th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
MSPmentor will host its first Executive Boardroom next week in New York City. During this exclusive event (Oct. 25, Manhattan), we’ll review how top MSPs are pushing into cloud services — either through strategic partnerships or via home-grown solutions. Our confirmed guest speakers during this roundtable discussion include ScaleMatrix CEO Mark Ortenzi, Mycroft CISO Liz Mann and CA Technologies GM Adam Famularo. Here are more details.
