RSPA Trusted Advisor

In Episode 67 of “The Trusted Advisor,” Hunter Allen of VAR Cervion Systems, Tom Bronson of industry consultant Mastery Partners, and the RSPA’s Jim Roddy analyze the 2022 RSPA Retail IT Channel KPI Study. Among the topics discussed are the recent success of ISV/VAR hybrids, the as-a-Service recurring revenue business model’s continued acceptance, expected mergers and acquisitions, and the state of today’s retail IT channel. To obtain your copy of this year’s RSPA Retail IT Channel KPI Study, follow this link: 2022 RSPA Retail IT Channel KPI Study “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for retail IT resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. Registration is now open for RetailNOW 2022, the retail technology channel’s #1 trade show, education conference, and networking event! Join RSPA and retail IT channel leaders live and in-person July 24-26 at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Orlando. RetailNOW will have everything you’ve come to expect from the RSPA – plus several new features including Niche & Startup Alley in the expo hall, the first-ever ISV Community Networking Reception, six education tracks (Executive Education, Security & Legal, NextGen Technology, Sales & Customer Service, Cannabis, plus a new ISV Education Track), and more. If you’re serious about the retail IT channel, you have to attend RetailNOW 2022. It’s Where the Industry Meets! www.GoRSPA.org/retailnow

In Episode 66 of “The Trusted Advisor,” the RSPA’s Jim Roddy sits down with Mark Fraker, CTO of RSPA distributor member BlueStar, to explore VAR opportunities with electric vehicle charging stations. Roddy and Fraker discuss the technologies, target market, and reseller recurring revenue opportunities related to EVCSaaS – Electric Vehicle Charging Stations-as-a-Service. “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for retail IT resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. Registration is now open for RetailNOW 2022, the retail technology channel’s #1 trade show, education conference, and networking event! Join RSPA and retail IT channel leaders live and in-person July 24-26 at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Orlando. RetailNOW will have everything you’ve come to expect from the RSPA – plus several new features including Niche & Startup Alley in the expo hall, the first-ever ISV Community Networking Reception, six education tracks (Executive Education, Security & Legal, NextGen Technology, Sales & Customer Service, Cannabis, plus a new ISV Education Track), and more. If you’re serious about the retail IT channel, you have to attend RetailNOW 2022. It’s Where the Industry Meets! www.GoRSPA.org/retailnow

In Episode 65 of “The Trusted Advisor,” the RSPA’s Jim Roddy talks with Randy Gunter, one of the principals at VAR Spark Solutions Group, and Jeff Sanders, the President of VAR Southwest Point of Sale, about customer service best practices for retail technology solution providers. Among the topics discussed are reactive and proactive customer communication strategies, the importance of an annual customer survey, how to win over an upset customer, and the biggest customer service mistake many resellers make.   “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for retail IT resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org.   If you like this episode, you’ll love the courses offered at RetailNOW 2022 – the retail technology channel’s #1 trade show, education conference, and networking event! Join RSPA and retail IT channel leaders live and in-person July 24-26 at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Orlando. If you’re serious about the retail IT channel, you have to attend RetailNOW 2022. It’s Where the Industry Meets! Learn more and register today: www.GoRSPA.org/retailnow

In Episode 64 of “The Trusted Advisor,” the RSPA’s Jim Roddy interviews Rohan Mani, the Senior Vice President of Business Development at Shift4, about lucrative growth strategies for retail IT VARs. Among the topics they tackle are achieving trusted advisor status in a chosen niche, adding new products and services, outspending the competition on marketing, and ramping up an outbound salesforce. “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for retail IT resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. If you liked this episode of the pod, you’ll love courses offered through RSPA Academy EXCELerate, the next generation of education for the retail IT channel. This online system offers continuous learning, training, and development opportunities anytime, anywhere, from any device. For more information on RSPA Academy EXCELerate, visit learn.GoRSPA.org.

In Episode 63 of “The Trusted Advisor,” the RSPA’s Jim Roddy talks with Mike Canevaro, Senior Vice President at ISV Fobi, about how retail IT solution providers can embrace – and generate recurring revenue from – analytics, AI, and IoT. Roddy and Canevaro also discuss how Fobi will use its technology as the official Health and Safety Technology Provider for RSPA Inspire 2022. Fobi will help RSPA provide vaccination and COVID testing verification for the event (follow this link for more details). RSPA Inspire, the retail IT channel’s premiere leadership conference, is scheduled for Jan. 23-26 at the Wyndham Grand resort in Clearwater Beach, FL. Mornings include breakfast followed by executive-focused educational presentations, group workshops, and panel discussions. Afternoons and evenings feature world-class networking through elite excursions away from the resort and relaxing events at the resort. For more information on Inspire, follow this link: www.gorspa.org/inspire “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for retail IT resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org.

In Episode 62 of “The Trusted Advisor,” the RSPA’s Jim Roddy talks with labor technology experts Audrey Hogan of ISV TimeForge and Barb Trushenski and Jeff Zimmerman of VAR North Country Business Products about how VARs are helping merchants solve their labor crisis. They discuss their joint report on grocery labor market trends, how to best start a labor tech conversation with a merchant, and which technologies are helping merchants improve their labor situation. “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for point of sale resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. If you liked this episode of the pod, you’ll love courses offered through RSPA Academy EXCELerate, the next generation of education for the retail IT channel. This online system offers continuous learning, training, and development opportunities anytime, anywhere, from any device. For more information on RSPA Academy EXCELerate, visit learn.GoRSPA.org.

Episode 61 of “The Trusted Advisor” features the wildly popular “Battle of the Channel Stars” format, an industry-focused conversation in a fun and competitive framework. The RSPA’s Jim Roddy talks with Steve Silberman of VAR MPI POS and Stacy Carrillo of North American Bancard about the six key skills every channel leader needs: Sales/business development Customer service Troubleshooting Teamwork Lifelong learner Servant leadership “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for point of sale resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. If you liked this episode of the pod, you’ll love courses offered through RSPA Academy EXCELerate, the next generation of education for the retail IT channel. This online system offers continuous learning, training, and development opportunities anytime, anywhere, from any device. For more information on RSPA Academy EXCELerate, visit learn.GoRSPA.org.

In Episode 60 of “The Trusted Advisor,” the RSPA’s Jim Roddy connects with Jeff Brown, host of the world-renowned Read To Lead podcast and co-author of the new book Read to Lead: The Simple Habit That Expands Your Influence and Boosts Your Career. Brown discusses which practices will encourage your team to read more, effective tactics for sustaining that development, where to find the books your team will want to read, and more. “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for point of sale resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. If you liked this episode of the pod, you’ll love courses offered through RSPA Academy EXCELerate, the next generation of education for the retail IT channel. This online system offers continuous learning, training, and development opportunities anytime, anywhere, from any device. For more information on RSPA Academy EXCELerate, visit learn.GoRSPA.org.

In Episode 59 of “The Trusted Advisor,” RSPA Legal Counsel Atty. Jill Miller talks with the RSPA’s Jim Roddy about compliance best practices for VARs and ISVs. Miller discusses common SMB compliance blind spots, steps solution providers should take to ensure they are compliant with the latest regulations, and more. “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for point of sale resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. If you liked this episode of the pod, you’ll love courses offered through RSPA Academy EXCELerate, the next generation of education for the retail IT channel. This online system offers continuous learning, training, and development opportunities anytime, anywhere, from any device. Included in EXCELerate are these courses: Preventing Workplace Harassment and Discrimination Preventing Workplace Harassment and Discrimination for Supervisors For more information on RSPA Academy EXCELerate, visit learn.GoRSPA.org.

In Episode 58 of “The Trusted Advisor,” the RSPA’s Jim Roddy connects with John Bachanov, CEO of cannabis ISV Appspensary, and Oscar Alvidrez, Business Development Manager for Custom America, about selling technology to cannabis dispensaries. They discuss key differences between selling to dispensaries vs. traditional retailers, the best contact sources, how to earn a first meeting with the dispensary decision maker, and where the cannabis channel is heading. “The Trusted Advisor,” powered by the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), is an award-winning content series designed specifically for point of sale resellers and software developers. Our goal is to educate you on the topics of leadership, management, hiring, sales, and other small business best practices. For more insights, visit the RSPA blog at www.GoRSPA.org. If you liked this episode of the pod, you’ll love courses offered through RSPA Academy EXCELerate, the next generation of education for the retail IT channel. This online system offers continuous learning, training, and development opportunities anytime, anywhere, from any device. Included in EXCELerate are courses on: Entering the Cannabis Vertical – Where Should VARs Start? 7 Elements of a Successful Cannabis VAR Mistakes VARs Can’t Afford to Make in the Cannabis Market and more For more information on RSPA Academy EXCELerate, visit learn.GoRSPA.org.