During Ingram Micro Cloud Summit last week, a few MSPs pulled me aside to ask a key question: Is Intermedia, the hosted Exchange specialist, still committed to managed services providers (MSPs) and channel partners? The question popped up because Oak Hill Capital Partners, an investment firm, acquired Intermedia in May 2011. The change in control has some MSPs wondering how Intermedia will evolve. Here’s the answer.
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Intermedia: Still Committed to MSPs and Channel Partners?
Posted June 9th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Schnizzfest: Strange Name, Strategic Managed Services Conference
Posted June 6th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
A strategic MSP-related conference is set to start later this week (June 9-11, Philadelphia, Pa.). But there’s no mention of managed services in the conference name. And you’ve got to work closely with TruMethods, an MSP-centric consulting firm, to get your foot in the door. The event’s name: Schnizzfest. Here’s what to expect.
Microholdings US Makes Managed Services Acquisition
Posted January 10th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Microholdings US has acquired ConnectIT Networks Inc., a managed services provider in Canada. We’ve reached out to Microholdings US and ConnectIT Networks for additional comment about the deal. In the meantime, here’s what we know so far.
Managed Services Acquisition: Konica Minolta Buys All Covered
Posted January 6th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
For the fourth time in recent days, a managed services provider has been acquired. And this appears to be the biggest deal yet: Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. has acquired All Covered, a national IT service provider with 350 employees. The deal, completed in December 2010, was announced today. Here are the details, including insights from All Covered President Todd Croteau and Konica Minolta COO Rick Taylor. Plus, thoughts on how Konica Minolta will attempt to balance is channel partner program and All Covered ownership.
Managed Services: 5 Biggest Surprises in First 5 Days of 2011
Posted January 6th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
I have a confession. I was a little depressed on Monday, January 3. The news cycle was a little slow and it seemed like the managed services market was trying to wake up from a holiday hangover. (I despise slow news days.) And then: Boom. Lots of managed services news and surprises that, quite frankly, I didn’t expect. We’re only five (and a half) days into the New Year. But here are the biggest managed services surprises I’ve seen so far.
Mergers and Acquisitions: Suitors are Dialing ETG
Posted January 5th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
When mindSHIFT acquired Alpheon (an MSP focused on health care) earlier today, I picked up the phone and dialed Mike Jones, CEO of ETG — another MSP focused on the health care vertical. I asked the obvious question: Has mindSHIFT also approached ETG about a potential buyout as part of a deeper health care push?
Update – mindSHIFT CEO: Why We Acquired Alpheon
Posted January 5th, 2011 by Joe Panettieri
Why did mindSHIFT acquire Alpheon, and will mindSHIFT make more managed services acquisitions this year? I posed both questions (and a few others) to mindSHIFT CEO Paul Chisholm (pictured) a few minutes ago. Here are Chisholm’s replies.
VAI, mindSHIFT Partner On SaaS ERP
Posted June 15th, 2010 by John Moore
Vormittag Associates Inc., known as VAI, ranks among the latest enterprise resource planning (ERP) vendors to pursue software-as-a-service (SaaS) options for customers. MSPmentor noted the pattern in mid-2009, citing moves from SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, and SunGard. But VAI’s move also involves mindSHIFT, the fast-growing managed services provider. Here are the details.
Managed Services Acquisitions: Do Big Deals Threaten Small MSPs?
Posted June 11th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
What a week for managed services mergers and acquisitions. Covad, Megapath and SpeakEasy are rolling up to form a national voice and data service provider. PC Mall is buying Network Services Plus Inc., a 73-person MSP. All Covered is dialing MSPs up and down the U.S. East Coast to see if they’d like to be acquired. And ETG, a health care MSP, is receiving unsolicited inquiries about its business. All this confirmed and potential M&A activity makes me wonder: Can small MSPs continue to go it alone?
Gary Pica: How to Bolster Your Managed Services Sales
Posted June 8th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
Gary Pica, founder of TruMethods and a well-known managed services veteran, is onstage at the Ingram Micro Seismic Partner Conference in Dallas. Pica is sharing managed services sales tips. Here are some of the highlights, plus a hint about Pica’s next potential career move.
Another Day, Another MSP Merger
Posted February 16th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
Blink an eye and you may miss the latest managed services merger and acquisition news. This one involves Waypoint Solutions Group and Carolina Computer Network Solutions merging their businesses. And more deals are coming. Here’s an update.
mindSHIFT: Making Another MSP Acquisition?
Posted February 12th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
mindSHIFT, which landed atop our third-annual MSPmentor 100 survey, appears to be considering another acquisition. A potential deal could be announced by mid-year. mindSHIFT CEO Paul Chisholm shares some clues about where the company is heading in this FastChat video with MSPmentor…
How to Measure Your Managed Services Progress
Posted August 18th, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
When I visited mindSHIFT (a prominent managed service provider) on August 14, I quickly discovered the company measures everything. Pushing far beyond revenues, operating income and net income, mindSHIFT offered me a range of statistics culled from the company’s business operations. Here’s a look at some key performance milestones at mindSHIFT, and the bigger-picture implications for rival MSPs.
Top MSP Heads to Legal Conference
Posted August 17th, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
The latest evidence that managed service providers are going vertical: MindSHIFT, ranked No. 1 in our most recent MSPmentor 100 report, will descend on the International Legal Technology Association (ILTA) 2009 Conference, August 23 near Washington, D.C. Here’s why.
European Managed Services: Land Grab Continues
Posted January 22nd, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
Anecdotal evidence and our MSPmentor 100 research confirm the European managed services market is growing up fast. I’m hearing rumblings from ConnectWise, N-able and Intel (yes, Intel) about some new European efforts. And we’ve uncovered some of Europe’s top managed service providers in our latest MSPmentor 100 survey results, which we’ll unveil in February. Here are some early details on the European trends.
How Savvy Managed Service Providers Attract Investor Attention
Posted May 27th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
If you’re a managed service provider that’s seeking potential investor dollars — or if you simply want to promote your business momentum — perhaps you should steal a page from mindSHIFT Technologies. The MSP acquired a software as a service (SaaS) specialist in April, and is now stepping into the spotlight at Capital Connection 2008, a major investor conference this week in Baltimore, Md.
mindSHIFT Acquires Software as a Service Specialist
Posted April 3rd, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
mindSHIFT, a managed service provider, is pushing deeper into the software-as-a-service (SaaS) market. The company has acquired Collaboration Online, which specializes in hosted Microsoft applications.
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