ARTICLES BY JIM RODDY

• Pre-INSPIRE Homework Shortcut: "Roadside MBA" Book Review

  9/30/2016

  The Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA) INSPIRE Conference 2017 will feature the three authors of the business book Roadside MBA. Whether you’re attending or not, you’ll want to read the book in advance of the event.

• Growing MSPs Share Advantages Of ASCII Membership

  6/6/2016

  Three successful managed services providers (MSPs) detailed how The ASCII Group has benefitted their businesses during a lively panel discussion at Business Solutions’ Channel Transitions Conference June 2 in Philadelphia.

• E-Myth Author Gerber Sounds Wake-Up Call For VAR, MSP Owners

  5/10/2016

  In addition to being recognized worldwide as a small business guru, Michael Gerber is known for his straight talk. And he’s eager for solution provider owners to be candid with themselves and embrace their reality as well. In a recent interview with Business Solutions President Jim Roddy, Gerber said, “Until the straight talk happens, until somebody pulls the chain, until somebody says something that strikes (VARs and MSPs) so deeply that they can't avoid it or ignore it any longer, nothing's going to change for them.

• From ASCII Milwaukee: Build A Better Brand Through SOPs

  4/28/2016

  I can’t keep up with Karl Palachuk. Recognized in our channel as a managed services pioneer and the owner of solution provider advisor Small Biz Thoughts, Palachuk dispensed an avalanche of wisdom today at the ASCII Success Summit in Milwaukee, so much that I couldn’t capture it all.

• VAR Lesson From ASCII Milwaukee: Laser Focus On A Market

  4/28/2016

  At the ASCII Success Summit in Milwaukee today, C.J. Ezell, CEO of managed services provider PointClear Networks, gave an encore performance of his 2015 ASCII presentation titled “Adding Dental Integration To Your Managed Services Practice.”

• Pool Helps ASCII MSPs Understand “One Hour Marketing”

  4/27/2016

  Herman Pool has worn many hats during his lifetime: entrepreneur, managed services provider, father (now grandfather), and marketing guru among them. Later this year he will add one more title to that list – author – and so he shared highlights from his soon-to-be-published book One Hour Marketing on stage at today’s ASCII Success Summit in Milwaukee.

• From ASCII Milwaukee: MSPs Can “Hack” Prospects, Grow Sales

  4/27/2016

  ASCII President Jerry Koutavas kicked off the ASCII Success Summit in Milwaukee today instructing nearly 100 MSPs (managed services providers) how to “hack” their prospects. No, no, no – he didn’t encourage attendees to break into someone else’s computer network.

• Business Solutions Adds New Channel Resource: “Ask Michael Gerber”

  3/30/2016

  Business Solutions and renowned small business expert Michael Gerber have expanded their partnership with a new offering that will benefit the entire IT channel. For a limited time, executives from VAR, MSP, and ISV organizations can have their business-related questions answered directly by Gerber at no charge.

• Niche Media Honors Business Solutions For B2B Event Success

  3/7/2016

  Niche Media, a leading event management advisor and host of the annual Niche EventFest Conference, recently featured Business Solutions conferences on its event best practices podcast and blog.

• Speakers At Channel Events: Read This Book, Please!

  3/7/2016

  I hope every speaker I listen to at future channel conferences for the rest of my life follows the principles in the book Do You Talk Funny? 7 Comedy Habits to Become a Better (and Funnier) Public Speaker. I think tolerating dry presentations at events has taken a few years off all of our lives. Or at least it feels that way to me.

• Top Quotes From The Recurring Revenue Conference 2016

  2/29/2016

  An added bonus to my trip last week to Santa Ana for BSM’s ISV IQ Live! Conference was driving north to Los Angeles to attend the Recurring Revenue Conference 2016. The Feb. 23 event attracted nearly 200 entrepreneurs and investors from Southern California to the gorgeous Skirball Cultural Center just outside LA.

• RetailNOW 2015: Distributors Focus On Managed Services, So Should You

  9/3/2015

  When BlueStar and ScanSource, the two most powerful distributors in the point of sale and data collection space, commit significant resources to an initiative, everyone in the channel better pay attention or risk falling behind.

• It's Time You Made The Transition To Greater Profits And Predictable Revenue

  6/18/2015

  Welcome to the Channel Transitions VAR/MSP Executive Conference in Newark! The Business Solutions team is thrilled to present to you this education and networking conference designed to help VARs, MSPs, and ISVs learn how to best implement and manage the as-a-Service model.

• From ASCII Chicago: 7 Cybersecurity Tips For Solutions Providers

  5/28/2015

  Reading the biography of ASCII member Eugene Tawiah, it’s clear the guy is all about security. First, he’s the founder and CEO of information security services provider Complex Technologies which serves the New York City and New Jersey metro area. Tawiah talked about cybersecurity to 100+ channel executives Thursday at the ASCII Success Summit at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare in Chicago. I captured seven of his best pieces of advice for solutions providers.

• What Lawyers Need And How MSPs Can Sell To Them

  5/28/2015

  The general public may be frustrated with today’s litigious world, but those legal wranglings could be a boon for solutions providers. “Successfully Winning In The Legal Market With Managed Services” was the title of Charles Tholen’s presentation Thursday at the ASCII Success Summit in Chicago. Tholen is the president and CEO of managed services provider (MSP) Cognoscape and an active ASCII member.