There once was a symbiotic relationship between Telecom VARs and IT Solution Providers. For years this symbiotic relationship has been slowly eroding and turning into an all-out war, each differing entity actively trying to steal clients away from the other, while attempting to offer their competition’s services to their own client base. This battle hasRead more >>

There are thousands of books on how to grow your business, run your business, be a good leader, be more productive, etc…. I know a lot of IT & Telecom solution providers that read all those, attend conferences, but still run their business by “the seat of their pants.” This is understandable in our industryRead more >>

I know I am not alone in thinking that most vendors just don’t get what the channel is all about. For example, take IBM. While fear is mounting in the industry towards software providers, hardware providers, cloud providers …what do they do? I honestly do not know. I have met IBM at many channel events. Last yearRead more >>

February through April seems to be when all the technology associations plan their parties, conferences, and roadshows. While the travel can be hectic, I personally enjoy most of these events. Even through the constant chatter of cloud and managed services, I find the events refreshing for me; they serve as a recharge and a breakRead more >>

For several years I have been keeping in touch with managed print solutions with a 1,000 foot pole. I like the idea of increasing your footprint within a client. Deeper sales penetration usually equals “stickier” clients. But the problem I had with managed print providers was that many were acquiring large managed services practices andRead more >>

There is a lot of debate in the industry about whether solution providers should outsource their helpdesk. Just this week I was at an IT Conference and I heard some providers that were hard core fans and some that were aghast at the idea of outsourcing. I have seen and experienced both sides of theRead more >>

Last week I talked about the topic of introverts and how most technicians are introverts at some level. I talked about the differences between introverts and extroverts and presented some questions or scenarios that you might have experiences with your technicians. As I mentioned last week, introverts have a lot of qualities that make themRead more >>

What you think you know about managing technicians is probably all wrong! I know… a pretty bold statement. I have read a lot of leadership and management books (Triple Digits), and it was not until I read a book that had nothing to do with management two years ago, that I realized things that IRead more >>

Life in the tech industry can definitely be interesting and challenging.  So I thought it would be fun to compile the top 10 funniest tech support & IT videos on the Internet. If these don’t make you laugh, you are way too uptight and should see a psychiatrist right away. With several of these theRead more >>

Software has for many years been the lifeblood of businesses. A super-computer all the way to a cell phone would all be useless without software to do all the great things that make companies more productive and successful. But over the last couple of years there has been a subtle movement of the traditional model ofRead more >>