Category Archives for "Managed Services News"

Jan 10

The Definitive Guide To IT Security: Protecting Your MSP & Your Customers

By | Managed Services News

Learn strategies and industry best practices for protecting your MSP and your customers from ever-present security risks in this robust eBook, which covers:

  • The different types of security assessments available to MSPs
  • How to determine which security assessment is right for you
  • The latest security tips to protect your company and your customers
  • How to continue protecting your MSP in the future

Download the eBook today.

Brought to you by: 

Jan 10

Kaseya Reflects on 2021 as Transformative Year and Looks Ahead to 2022

By | Managed Services News

Strategic acquisitions, new data centers and the bolstering of a few key solutions have spurred the company forward.

Kaseya says it grew revenue more than 25% last year. That growth was driven by multiple acquisitions and helping MSPs expand their businesses through sales and marketing enablement.

“Kaseya’s massive growth in 2021 means we can make significant investments in 2022 to further strengthen our IT Complete suite of solutions,” said Fred Voccola, CEO of Kaseya. “This is both through strategic acquisitions and product innovations that eliminate the pain points IT professionals face. We expect to scale our team with over 1,300 new Kaseyans around the world who will help us enhance our best-in-breed products, provide five-star technical support and services, and ensure that we can deliver everything our customers need to grow their businesses.” 

Going Remote

Kaseya's Fred Voccola

Kaseya’s Fred Voccola

As MSPs and internal IT teams adjusted to new hybrid and remote work environments, Kaseya provided hundreds of deep workflow integrations that allowed IT pros to work more efficiently and overcome business challenges around cybersecurity and compliance that grew in complexity throughout 2021.

“While 2021 saw economic recovery in certain parts of the world, IT professionals still faced incredible uncertainty as they navigated ever-evolving IT environments on budgets that continue to be stretched by a growing volume of new technologies,” said Voccola. “We made two acquisitions that addressed key pain points for MSPs and SMBs, launched our Connect IT Community and released innovative new products like VulScan — all with a focus on helping our customers eliminate wasted time and stretch their budgets further. The IT Complete suite continues to be the gold standard for IT professionals in need of solutions that are truly automated, secure and priced right to ensure maximum profitability.”

Kaseya will continue to grow in 2022, Voccola said. The company has plans for new hires at its Miami headquarters as well as its offices in Dublin, Krakow and Sydney.

The Customer Focus

“One of our biggest strengths is our relationship with our customers; our senior executive team holds thousands of ‘pulse check’ meetings every year so we can truly listen and continuously improve,” Voccola said. “We intend to provide even more integrations between our product suites in 2022 to allow customers to save more time and work more efficiently.”

Voccola said Kaseya intends to continue investing heavily across all of its product suites. A significant focus will be on the security services their customers need to protect their businesses. That, and the growing complexity of compliance regulations. 

“2022 is going to be a big year for us with game-changing innovations and next-level advancements that will transform how our customers do business,” said Voccola.

Jan 10

The Definitive Guide To Onboarding: How Leading Managed Services Providers Deliver an Outstanding First Impression

By | Managed Services News

In this definitive guide, onboarding experts from the managed services industry—including Liongard’s COO Vincent Tran and Director of Partner Success Kendrics Hawkins—share advice about how MSPs can:

  • Develop a consistent onboarding process and a standardized approach to service.
  • Deliver an excellent customer experience that builds loyalty and satisfaction.
  • Leverage automation to perform discovery and update it continuously.
  • Create detailed documentation, empowering everyone on the team to help customers.

Download the eBook today.

Brought to you by:

 

Jan 10

The Definitive Guide To Running A Superior Help Desk: How Leading MSPs Deliver Efficient, Effective Support Without the Chaos

By | Managed Services News

In this definitive guide, Liongard’s Director of Partner Success, Kendrics Hawkins, and CEO Joe Alapat will take you inside the help desks of successful Managed Service Providers to learn how to elevate your support game.

You’ll learn:

  • What an all-star help desk team looks like
  • How to standardize and streamline your operations to provide better customer service
  • The power of automation in providing proactive, Level 4 support
  • Best practices for solidifying customer relationships and building trust
  • What help desk performance metrics to track and measure for continued improvement and growth

Download the eBook today.

Brought to you by:

Jan 10

Kaspersky: Organizations to Increase Cybersecurity Spending in 2022

By | Managed Services News

The spending increase should increase demand for a wider range of cybersecurity solutions.

Most businesses expect to spend more on cybersecurity this year, creating demand for a wider range of cybersecurity solutions.

That’s according to a new survey by Kaspersky. The survey targeted 600 employees who are key decision makers for their company’s cybersecurity sector. Respondents were based in the United States and Canada.

According to the research, 86% of IT decision makers in North America said their organization intends to set aside budget for cybersecurity when planning for 2022. In addition, 85% said their budget would increase anywhere up to 50% in the next 12 months.

In addition, more than one in four (28%) said their company annually invests anywhere from $25,000-$50,000 per year in cyber insurance. There are three top criteria they would be willing to meet in order to obtain cyber insurance. Those are security controls (70%), compliance (52%) and education (44%).

Volume, Sophistication of Attacks Likely Driving Higher Spending

Rob Cataldo is managing director of Kaspersky North America.

Kaspersky's Rob Cataldo

Kaspersky’s Rob Cataldo

“While the reasoning behind why organizations are spending more money on cybersecurity was not specifically addressed, we suspect the primary drivers to be the growing volume and sophistication of cyberattacks, and increasing security requirements stemming from cyber insurance underwriters,” he said.

The increase in cybersecurity spending should open up opportunities for organizations to use a wider range of cybersecurity solutions, Cataldo said.

“The majority of small to medium-size businesses and even smaller enterprise accounts will benefit from turnkey solutions like managed detection and response (MDR),” he said. “Larger, more security-mature organizations will continue to need unique, world-class threat intelligence to gain deeper insight into their cybersecurity posture and where they might be most vulnerable to attacks.”

The survey also analyzed how businesses respond when reactively dealing with a cyberattack. In terms of who’s held responsible, vendors were the top choice with the internal IT team as a close second. However, should a cyberattack occur, two in five (41%) respondents said they would ask their cybersecurity vendor for more recommendations on what their organization could/should do to avoid future attacks.

Assess Before Spending

“Increased investment to fight cybercrime can only be positive if the chosen solutions are effectively preventing or mitigating attacks without significantly increasing operational complexity,” Cataldo said. “Before making such investments, organizations need to conduct an honest assessment of their own security maturity and risk management profile. Armed with this plan, companies can more appropriately decide what use cases they want to prioritize and what resources will be required in order to select the most appropriate solution for their needs.”

Armed with this research, vendors will now be more informed when approaching potential clients and can speak more relevantly to their cybersecurity priorities in the year ahead, he said.

Jan 10

Private Equity-Backed Inflow Buys Contact Center Advisory Partner

By | Managed Services News

Inflow purchased PeakView last year.

Oregon-based Inflow Communications has acquired another technology consultancy.

Inflow, which bills itself as strategic advising partner for contact center, customer experience and unified communications, is buying Epic Connections. Nebraska-based Epic specializes in contact center, offering consulting, outsourcing and professional services. Inflow is harnessing investments from the private equity firm Renovus Capital Partners.

The deal expands Inflow’s portfolio and grows its customer base. Inflow says its customers range from Fortune 500 to SMB. Epic has existed since 2003.

Smith, Ken_Inflow

Inflow’s Ken Smith

“Epic has long been recognized as a trusted implementation and professional services partner in the CCaaS industry, and Inflow adds immediate scale to that line of business,” said Bill Pieper, president of Epic Connections. “I’m particularly excited to accelerate the momentum that Epic has had in operational and outsourcing consulting, with Inflow’s expanded reach and scale.”

“Inflow’s expanding service offerings provided a natural fit for Epic’s experience in operational consulting, outsourcing and customer experience technology implementation,” Inflow CEO Ken Smith said. “As a market leader, Inflow is always focused on building out our portfolio of services to best meet our client’s evolving needs. The Epic Connections team complements us well, and furthers our ability to deliver an expanded suite of value-creating services for our clients and our technology partners.”

Pieper, Bill_Epic

Epic Connections’ Bill Pieper

Smith co-founded PeakView, a partner firm that Renovus purchased and combined with Inflow last year.

Private Equity

Pennsylvania-based Renovus announced its partnership with Inflow in January 2020. Crunchbase lists the transaction as an acquisition. The private equity firm led a funding round announced on Jan. 13.

The traditional telecom agent channel has seen an influx of private equity investment in the last year. While most of the money has gone to technology solutions brokerages such as Avant and Telarus, agencies like Upstack have also received large investments.

Epic’s technology solutions brokerage partners include Advantage Communications, Avant, Intelisys, TBI and Telarus.

 

Jan 10

Converge Technology Solutions Buys Paragon Development Systems

By | Managed Services News

Paragon Development Systems joins Converge as the company’s 26th acquisition.

Converge Technology Solutions, the software-enabled IT and cloud solutions provider, is buying PDS Holding Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries. This includes Paragon Development Systems (PDS), a Wisconsin-based company focused on fueling digital transformation. Converge acquired PDS from Mason Wells, a private equity firm based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

PDS offers solutions ranging from cloud and security to servers and infrastructure to virtualized work environments and remote work. PDS serves clients in three distinct markets: health care, public sector and corporate. The company said it advises and assists with unique information technology needs in upgrading and modernizing core business technology infrastructure. 

Converge isn’t saying how much it’s shelling out for PDS.

Expansion Across Midwest

Shaun Maine is CEO of Converge Technology Solutions.

Converge's Shaun Maine

Converge’s Shaun Maine

“We’re pleased to announce the addition of Paragon Development Systems, with its expertise in digital transformation, to Converge’s portfolio of companies,” Maine said. “PDS’ knowledge and proficiency in the health care space will enhance Converge’s ability to deliver enterprise solutions and managed services. This includes our clients in this sector across North America. Additionally, PDS’ presence in the central region will give us more scale across Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota. This will help us continue to meet the requirements of our clients in these areas.”

Increased Benefits

Greg Berard is president, North America, of Converge. He said Converge is looking forward to working with PDS to continue to deliver the same kind of customer satisfaction their clients have relied on.

Converge's Greg Berard

Converge’s Greg Berard

“The synergies between Converge and PDS will allow us to offer increased benefits and an expanded solution portfolio for our mutual clients across North America,” Berard said.

Jan 10

Four M&A Considerations When Selling Your Business

By | Managed Services News

While the sale of a company can be exciting and normally leads to a positive outcome, “the M&A process can be quite confounding and stressful.”

There might not be a hotter topic in the IT space today than mergers and acquisitions (M&A). The private equity world has descended upon us, and the buzz is everywhere. In 2021, global mergers and acquisition volumes have so surpassed $4.3 trillion, according to Refinitiv data. It marks a surge from a total of $3.6 trillion reached in 2020.

Earlier this year, P1 Network News hosted corporate/M&A attorney Garth Stevens, Partner with Arizona law firm Snell & Wilmer. The segment was an attendee favorite, packed with substantive advice that our partners, and all business owners, need to know when it comes to selling their businesses.

For those of you who are being asked about an exit strategy, pay attention. The decision to sell can be lifechanging, and there is much to be considered.

According to Stevens, while the sale of a company can be exciting and normally leads to a positive outcome, “the M&A process can be quite confounding and stressful.”

During the P1 Network News segment, he shared four key considerations when preparing for a potential M&A event:

  1. Have you set your goals and expectations?

The most important thing for someone contemplating a sale: What are your goals and expectations from a sale transaction?  As a seller, you will want to be sure that your goals and expectations are aligned with reality. This is particularly important in terms of aligning your perspective on what your company is worth relative to what the market says and how you intend to be paid. Most buyers these days are private equity firms that do not pay 100% cash at closing and may expect you, as the owner, to retain a portion of ownership–and even remain employed for a period of time after the sale closes. They may also want to pay a (small) portion of the purchase price by giving you an unsecured promissory note.

  1. What can you be thinking about in anticipation of the sale?

First of all, if the business is owned by more than a single owner, you should work to get buy-in from all owner parties as to moving forward with a sale, or at least from those owners who comprise a majority of the company’s ownership. Second, you should do your best to get your house in order. Organize your documents and records. Update your financial records, including, if possible, having your most recent annual financial statements reviewed or even audited. If you have operational, customer or supplier issues that need fixing, get on that. The more organized and “clean” your business is going into the sale process, the easier the process will be. Buyers can lose confidence if a company targeted for acquisition is in administrative disarray, has poor financial accounting or records or has a pattern of unresolved operational problems.

  1. What to expect in the sale process?

A typical M&A deal takes anywhere from two months to six months from start to finish. Phase 1 is the most exciting phase, which may be viewed as the “dating phase.” During this phase, sellers are having discussions with prospective buyers and getting a sense of what a deal is going to look like.  Click on Page 2 to continue reading…

Jan 10

Four M&A Considerations When Selling Your Business

By | Managed Services News

While the sale of a company can be exciting and normally leads to a positive outcome, “the M&A process can be quite confounding and stressful.”

There might not be a hotter topic in the IT space today than mergers and acquisitions (M&A). The private equity world has descended upon us, and the buzz is everywhere. In 2021, global mergers and acquisition volumes have so surpassed $4.3 trillion, according to Refinitiv data. It marks a surge from a total of $3.6 trillion reached in 2020.

Earlier this year, P1 Network News hosted corporate/M&A attorney Garth Stevens, Partner with Arizona law firm Snell & Wilmer. The segment was an attendee favorite, packed with substantive advice that our partners, and all business owners, need to know when it comes to selling their businesses.

For those of you who are being asked about an exit strategy, pay attention. The decision to sell can be lifechanging, and there is much to be considered.

According to Stevens, while the sale of a company can be exciting and normally leads to a positive outcome, “the M&A process can be quite confounding and stressful.”

During the P1 Network News segment, he shared four key considerations when preparing for a potential M&A event:

  1. Have you set your goals and expectations?

The most important thing for someone contemplating a sale: What are your goals and expectations from a sale transaction?  As a seller, you will want to be sure that your goals and expectations are aligned with reality. This is particularly important in terms of aligning your perspective on what your company is worth relative to what the market says and how you intend to be paid. Most buyers these days are private equity firms that do not pay 100% cash at closing and may expect you, as the owner, to retain a portion of ownership–and even remain employed for a period of time after the sale closes. They may also want to pay a (small) portion of the purchase price by giving you an unsecured promissory note.

  1. What can you be thinking about in anticipation of the sale?

First of all, if the business is owned by more than a single owner, you should work to get buy-in from all owner parties as to moving forward with a sale, or at least from those owners who comprise a majority of the company’s ownership. Second, you should do your best to get your house in order. Organize your documents and records. Update your financial records, including, if possible, having your most recent annual financial statements reviewed or even audited. If you have operational, customer or supplier issues that need fixing, get on that. The more organized and “clean” your business is going into the sale process, the easier the process will be. Buyers can lose confidence if a company targeted for acquisition is in administrative disarray, has poor financial accounting or records or has a pattern of unresolved operational problems.

  1. What to expect in the sale process?

A typical M&A deal takes anywhere from two months to six months from start to finish. Phase 1 is the most exciting phase, which may be viewed as the “dating phase.” During this phase, sellers are having discussions with prospective buyers and getting a sense of what a deal is going to look like.  Click on Page 2 to continue reading…

Jan 10

Four M&A Considerations When Selling Your Business

By | Managed Services News

While the sale of a company can be exciting and normally leads to a positive outcome, “the M&A process can be quite confounding and stressful.”

There might not be a hotter topic in the IT space today than mergers and acquisitions (M&A). The private equity world has descended upon us, and the buzz is everywhere. In 2021, global mergers and acquisition volumes have so surpassed $4.3 trillion, according to Refinitiv data. It marks a surge from a total of $3.6 trillion reached in 2020.

Earlier this year, P1 Network News hosted corporate/M&A attorney Garth Stevens, Partner with Arizona law firm Snell & Wilmer. The segment was an attendee favorite, packed with substantive advice that our partners, and all business owners, need to know when it comes to selling their businesses.

For those of you who are being asked about an exit strategy, pay attention. The decision to sell can be lifechanging, and there is much to be considered.

According to Stevens, while the sale of a company can be exciting and normally leads to a positive outcome, “the M&A process can be quite confounding and stressful.”

During the P1 Network News segment, he shared four key considerations when preparing for a potential M&A event:

  1. Have you set your goals and expectations?

The most important thing for someone contemplating a sale: What are your goals and expectations from a sale transaction?  As a seller, you will want to be sure that your goals and expectations are aligned with reality. This is particularly important in terms of aligning your perspective on what your company is worth relative to what the market says and how you intend to be paid. Most buyers these days are private equity firms that do not pay 100% cash at closing and may expect you, as the owner, to retain a portion of ownership–and even remain employed for a period of time after the sale closes. They may also want to pay a (small) portion of the purchase price by giving you an unsecured promissory note.

  1. What can you be thinking about in anticipation of the sale?

First of all, if the business is owned by more than a single owner, you should work to get buy-in from all owner parties as to moving forward with a sale, or at least from those owners who comprise a majority of the company’s ownership. Second, you should do your best to get your house in order. Organize your documents and records. Update your financial records, including, if possible, having your most recent annual financial statements reviewed or even audited. If you have operational, customer or supplier issues that need fixing, get on that. The more organized and “clean” your business is going into the sale process, the easier the process will be. Buyers can lose confidence if a company targeted for acquisition is in administrative disarray, has poor financial accounting or records or has a pattern of unresolved operational problems.

  1. What to expect in the sale process?

A typical M&A deal takes anywhere from two months to six months from start to finish. Phase 1 is the most exciting phase, which may be viewed as the “dating phase.” During this phase, sellers are having discussions with prospective buyers and getting a sense of what a deal is going to look like.  Click on Page 2 to continue reading…

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