MSP Business School

Show Website: https://mspbusinessschool.com/ In this episode, our team discusses what are the do's and don'ts of comp plans. 0:35 Brian dives right into the conversation, talking about making plans for the upcoming year and sharing about inflationary pressure and new challenges. Tim shares his thoughts on inflation/recession and how he observed shifts in the account management side for the past few months. 3:18 Robb stresses his point and disagrees with the all-in method kind of compensation. He also pointed out inflation and how hard it is for everyone, especially for the owners. 5:45 Brian talks about various compensation models and points out what salespeople predominantly think – rewards and numbers. Robb proceeds and agrees with Brian noting that it's fine to have different commission levels. 7:38 Robb goes ahead and talks about how to change commission plans. He explicates that it's all right to change plans annually based on performance but with a 60-day notice so the rep will get a gist of what the future will be. 8:52 Tim pitches in and examples that in MSPs commissions tend to be aggressive so he observes that many MSPs change compensation plans multiple times a year which is a recipe for disaster. 11:02 The conversation veered to how ego as an owner can become a hurdle and can get in the way when talking about profits. 13:53 Robb gives an example of how and when a rep should be compensated generously. Tim also emphasizes that if a rep brings in three times or five times but your company still struggles, it's time to get a business coach. 16:09 Brian shifts the topic of discussion from don'ts to do's. He continues by outlining Robb's examples and the significance of looking at the numbers long term. 21:00 Robb brings up that when there are changes, reps usually understand it. He also adds that it is significant to recognize that once you lower the commission, you must offer something that is very profitable. Giving them the ability and motivation while taking out known risks. 25:10 Tim expands Robbs' ideas saying that in the event there'll be changes, do not forget that sales reps are also human and has a family to feed. Also to be mindful of changes to not be so detrimental to the reps. 28:17 Robb closes the discussion by saying it's all about communication. No matter what decisions are to be made, always have open communication with the reps the earlier the better and they'll understand. Hosts Brian Doyle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandoyl... Robb Rogers: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robb-roge... Tim McNeil: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timmcneil3/ Sponsors vCIOToolbox: https://vciotoolbox.com OSR Manage: https://osrmanage.com

Show Website: https://mspbusinessschool.com/ Guest Name: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-scott-048b195/ Company: https://cleartoneconsulting.com/ Hosts Brian Doyle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandoylemetathinq/ Robb Rogers: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robb-rogers-07415251/ Tim McNeil: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timmcneil3/ Sponsors vCIOToolbox: https://vciotoolbox.com OSR Manage: https://osrmanage.com Brian Scott from ClearTone Consulting joins us today at MSP Business School. Brian is the President and the CIO of ClearTone Consulting. 2:42 The guest, Brian Scott, introduces himself and answers the questions on how he ended up being a service provider from being an electrical engineer. He also mentions how and why he started working as a consultant. 5:52 Brian shares how MSPs are now educated enough to see things such as cyber liability insurance. 8:28 Scott talks about educating the companies about the needs and criticality of security risks as he observed that there are still many executives that don't pay attention to these things. 9:26 Robb clarifies Scott if he means that the most important piece of his consulting business is education and having the people understand their risk assessment. Brian S. answers that even having risk assessments, executives don't really understand its meaning that's why educating them is really very important. 13:00 Scott discusses how important it is for heads of an organization not just to understand but also to have the mandate to ensure continuous improvement. He also adds that you need to have support from HR, staff, and executives to be successful. 14:43 Tim dives into the conversation asking Scott about failure rates and how long it takes for clients to realize that there should be changes to do. 19:43 Scott talks about having a security mindset and says that we are in a curve where people are just beginning to understand and pay attention to security-related matters. He adds that it gradually changes each year but is the new workspace norm we live in. 22:45 Scott shares about 510CISO, how it works, and what it provides. Brian adds how critical it is to have an accountability partner and why it's important to establish the culture to make it successful.

Show Website: https://mspbusinessschool.com/ In this episode, our team discusses what are the needs of the customers and what is the reality of what the customers want. 4:51 Brian dives right into the conversation, sharing that he read an article about QBR and how he has different opinions about it. He begins the discussion by stating that QBR should be about communicating with the customer. 6:00 Robb clarifies Brian's thoughts if he means about QBR being like in the past where it's just reviewing numbers and data and repeating everything. 8:15 Brian shares his thoughts on QBR and says to have a business conversation a couple of times a year to understand the customer better. The focus should be on what's in it for the customer. 11:34. Tim answers Brian's question about leadership expectations from an MSP and says when dealing with clients, focus on their business and ask where they want in the next 3-5 years and how your technology stack can get where they want to be. Robb adds that clients want to know what you are doing and how can it fit into their business. 14:46 Brian expands on what it really is QBR about: the key objectives and the obstacles. He also emphasizes that QBR is becoming a sales call. 16:30 Educate the customers, build strategies and get their input for their own plan. 20:28 Robb asks how to get clients who got dark in QBR back to engage in the process. Brian answers to start with deliverables and becoming a better partner. Open up with the customer, appreciate the customer, trust, faith, and transparency. Hosts Brian Doyle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandoylemetathinq/ Robb Rogers: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robb-rogers-07415251/ Tim McNeil: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timmcneil3/ Sponsors vCIOToolbox: https://vciotoolbox.com OSR Manage: https://osrmanage.com

This episode discusses how to get involved in the business and how to start in the industry. 0:55: Brian introduces the guest and starts off the conversation by asking Kipp's backstory on how he ended up with ConnectWise. 1:46: Kipp introduces himself as the financial guy with an accounting background then he found ConnectWise and started working as an overnight help desk support technician while getting his MBA. He also shares how he did not start in the IT industry, his experiences, and how he transitions from various positions. 7:39: Tim jumped into the conversation and shared what he learned over the years and appreciate Kipp helping companies with exit strategies. 8:51: Kipp talks about the different owner programs such as life plans, and personal and business legacy. He also talks about the Modes theory. 12:03: Robb asks Kipp about how he hasn't heard a lot of peer groups take on a solid proactive focus on lifestyle and how peer groups are usually number-focused. 16:24: Brian halted the conversation by saying that work-life balance is a critical component in the industry and that taking care of one's mental health is now one of the essential elements of a successful business. 18:41: Kipp shares about the MAD (making a difference) Personality and how it helps to understand how to build relationships and understanding how to interact with people. 20:28: Brian asks about the steps on how to bridge those who know that they need people and help but aren't just ready monetarily. Kipp explains some of the barriers, especially for smaller companies, and how to get entry where it's not by a peer group. He also talks about the various programs the company offer depending on the size of the company. 26:22: Robb raises a question about "What if an MSP only wants to join a sales peer group, do they have to join the main peer group?". Kipp explains the people involved in different peer groups and how you may participate in only one peer group. 29:38: Kipp emphasizes how beneficial peer groups can be by just sharing ideas, having feedback, or even just asking what tools each company uses.

Frank Raimondi from Nodware joins us today at MSP Business School. Frank is the VP of Channel Development for Nodeware. 2:17 – Frank tells us about his journey in IT. He has seen the industry evolve and change with Apple Computer and Intel stops, giving him a great view of enterprise vendor relationships within the channel. From there, he moved to Synnex getting the distributor's viewpoint before joining IGI Cyberlabs (Nodeware) 6:07 – Brian asks Frank where should an MSP or MSSP start when looking at creating a program looking at cyber hygiene. Frank shares his viewpoints on why the SMB should care and how it can impact the customer's ecosystem. Also, the hits are more often in the SMB than the customers might understand. 9:19 – Tim discusses the range of security products and how it takes more than a product but also an education to help clients. Frank speaks a bit about cyber fatigue at the MSP level and how things with a client should start simply by knowing what needs to be protected. 14:23 - The conversation goes into discovering rogue IPs and controlling what is being secured and what assets exist in your environment. Cybersecurity is a daunting task for many MSPs, and Nodeware can help drive this first step. 20:19 - Tim asks about the people factor in cybersecurity and how education is a critical early step in cybersecurity. Frank speaks that leadership needs to drive the conversation within each business. Show Website: https://mspbusinessschool.com/ Guest Name: Frank Raimondi https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankraimondi/ Company: Nodeware https://nodeware.com/ Hosts Brian Doyle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandoylemetathinq/ Robb Rogers: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robb-rogers-07415251/ Tim McNeil: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timmcneil3/ Sponsors vCIOToolbox: https://vciotoolbox.com OSR Manage: https://osrmanage.com

In this episode, our team talks about the tactics to accelerate revenue growth. With many MSPs and MSSPs focused on the holy grail of recurring revenue, there may be some low-hanging fruit to boost your top line and expand your profits. 2:04: Tim opens the discussion by talking about a trend where MSPs feel the need to diminish hardware revenue. He talks about tactics to work deal registration, discounts, and spiffs to dramatically grow your margin on NRC projects. 4:27: Robb talks about contract reviews and the mindset of not rocking the boat with MRR customers. If you are not looking at increasing rates for your services within your contracts you will ultimately be losing money (think inflation). Brian shares his thoughts about the deals that can haunt you if you don't correct them. 9:15: Brian suggests never discounting, but adjusting the scope to the right size on underwater contracts. Robb and Tim share their tactic of reducing the inflationary clause in exchange for time commitment driving a win/win for both parties. 13:04: New customer acquisition strategies and ensuring you are market-pricing are critical. Leverage peer groups, trade shows, and market demographics to build pricing models. Robb also mentioned asking for contracts "to ensure apples-to-apples comparisons to get market pricing. They had an 80% success rate in looking at contracts. 16:04: We close by looking at how to goal yourself on customer acquisition. Robb hits the fact...you need to prospect, prospect and prospect.

Vince Tinnirello joins us today on MSP Business School. Vince leads the Business Development team for Anchor Network Solutions and today we talk about the steps he has taken to help grow the business 2x in three years. 2:01 – Vince kicks off his backstory by sharing the career path that ultimately sent him towards a career in IT. Coming from a hospitality background, Vince saw that the standard IT companies they worked with didn't deliver with a customer service focus and that became his mission 7:26 – Brian shares his experience in the hospitality sector and Vince responds by sharing about a presentation he has given in the past about "Customer Service the Marriott Way" and shares how problems and questions in the hospitality industry translates to the issues we face in IT. 11:41 – Robb kicks off a discussion on how Anchor got past the $2.5M barrier that many MSPs get stuck at and grew to $6M+ in just 3 years. Vince shared how he helped the team get past that and the steps taken by his management team to drive upward success. 15:03 - The conversation shifts to client assessments/raters that allow you to measure the relationships with your customers. Tim brings up criteria for firing a client and the team expands on this concept. 22:26 - We close out the conversation of how Vince came to understand how culture is real and plays a part if generating client success.

In this episode, our Brian and Tim talk about Risk Based Selling an how it can drive a more consultative discussion where customers can make a more informed decision about projects and services. We discuss that the biggest reason that customers do not want to engage in meetings like QBR's is often because it is treated like a sales call by the MSP vs. an opportunity to learn and grow a relationship. Risk based selling can change the narrative. When leveraging risk based selling process you need to first understand how the customer views risk in their business and then match your discussion to their viewpoint. We need to help them understand the risk factor and what the cost to be to their business if that risk is realized. This will arm them with the proof points they need make a decision they feel confident about when choosing technology initiatives to move forward.