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Nothing Happens
by Itself
Copyright © 2024 Karl W. Palachuk
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Hello Karl, -
Let me start with a quick look into how my brain works.
I enjoy wall calendars. I have several of them. Two in my primary office. Birds tend to be over-represented. And when I travel, I try to pick up interesting calendars.
So, last week, I glanced up to verify the date for the Martin Luther King holiday and didn't see it on the calendar. I forgot that I got my bird calendar from Australia. And while January 22nd is the first day of the school term in Queensland, January 15th is blank.
As of last week, the bird calendar is on the other side of the office and the Retro Robots are right next to me.
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On more important fronts, a big thank you to Rich Freeman from Channelholic for covering professionalism in the SMB IT industry. See
https://www.channelholic.news/p/for-msps-its-time-to-go-pro.
Way back when I became an independent consultant (before the turn of the century), it seemed that my entire job consisted of cleaning up after amateurs, hit-and-run artists, and seriously incompetent consultants. Three examples:
1) Client bought a while new computer system (server and network) the previous year. No documentation. No scheduled maintenance. Now it's falling apart, so I get called in. I missed the initial $30K job, but got the maintenance and a programming contract. We documented everything and proceeded to take care of them for more than fifteen years.
2) Prospect wants a second opinion because they have ten new Windows 95 machines and their consultant wants to format the hard drives and install Windows 3.1 because it's a known, stable installation he can support. "Does that sound right to you?" I said no, but they took his advice. Six months later, they hired me to format the hard drives and reinstall the newer operating system.
3) Client comes to us on referral. Their old consultant left. Turns out all the hardware, software, and even the domain name are registered in his name. In an attempt to keep the client, he withholds passwords to router, firewall, and server. We have to break into everything to get it set up properly and documented.
I saw dozens and dozens of jobs like this in the first five years of my business. As Windows Server, TCP/IP, and active directory spread across the land, washing away Novel in it's wake, lots of bad actors were washed out of the system. Some of these bad actors were just too lazy to learn new technology. But then the technology gets easier.
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Most people in our industry are more professional than ever. Most people are good, and competent, and honest. Most are well-trained and provide excellent support.
But we still have bad actors. Today, the bad actors sign contracts and don't deliver service. They misrepresent themselves. They make promises and do not deliver. They call themselves MSPs and provide break/fix.
Some people don't like the move to more professionalism. They say that new guidelines won't make them more professional because they're already professional. I say: Good!
But here's the problem: The bad actors are still in your industry. They are giving you a bad name even if you never meet them face to face. They are making you work harder because you have to prove you're competent and ethical before they'll sit down and talk to you. You no longer have the benefit of the doubt.
No one who is a good, competent technician should be worried about a push for greater professionalism in our industry. You should be worried about an industry sliding into a reputation for un-professionalism.
My two cents.
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Misc. Notes
Minor calendar updates this week. Keep sending me your additional shows.
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January is a strange, long month this year! We have five Mondays, five Tuesdays, and five Wednesdays. So if you have lots of meetings planned on the first through fourth -day of the week, next week might be very light for your schedule. Congratulations.
I hope your end-of-year reports are going smoothly and your 2023 still looks good and profitable. Now it's time to start thinking about filing taxes. I always like getting that out of the way early in the year.
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The recording of my State of the Nation Address now has over 4,000 views. Thank YOU for that. If you haven't seen it yet, now is a good time.
And if you want to pass it along to a friend, I would appreciate that as well!
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Thanks for reading. Have a great week.
:-)
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Join me live at . . .
- ASCII Edge - Feb. 28-29, 2024 in Costa Mesa, CA
- Channel Partners Conference - March 10-13 in Las Vegas, NV
- ChannelPro SMB Forum - Nov. 12-13, 2024 in Los Angeles, CA
Links below in the events calendar - or at WhereInTheWorldIsKarl.com.
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Great New Class to Kick Off 2024 !!! | |
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You only missed two class.
Sign up today.
Catch up and join us live tomorrow!
Navigating Emerging Technologies for MSPs
Taught by Dave Sobel
Technology Analyst and Podcaster
- Five Tuesdays
- Jan 9 - Feb 6
Register Now - Only $399*
In this five-week course, you will delve deep into the strategic facets of leveraging emerging technologies and trends for Managed Services Providers (MSPs). As the technology landscape continually evolves, the ability to identify and integrate new technologies into your MSP service offerings can be a significant differentiator. This course is designed to equip you with the tools, frameworks, and practical skills necessary to not only adapt but also thrive in this fast-paced environment.
Week 1 sets the stage by helping you understand the analysis process of current technology trends and how they can impact your MSP business. You’ll learn forecasting techniques that empower you to anticipate technological shifts, giving you a competitive edge.
Week 2 focuses on equipping you with decision-making skills tailored to technology adoption. By understanding how to evaluate and prioritize technologies based on various criteria, you’ll be well-placed to make choices that align with both market demand and your company’s capabilities.
In Week 3, you’ll gain financial literacy specific to technology investments. Whether you are a business owner, a manager, or a technical lead, understanding the financial implications of your choices is crucial. You’ll learn about building financial models to calculate ROI, TCO, and payback periods, enabling you to make fiscally responsible decisions.
Risk and compliance are the central themes of Week 4. In today’s complex regulatory environment, integrating new technology into your offerings isn’t just a matter of technical compatibility; it also involves meeting compliance standards and managing risks. You’ll acquire skills to navigate this intricate landscape effectively.
Finally, Week 5 enables you to put all the pieces together. You’ll engage in practical exercises that teach you how to create pilot programs, adjust your existing service offerings, and develop strategic roadmaps for incorporating new technologies into your business.
Through a blend of lectures, examples, exercises, and group discussions, you will emerge from this course with a robust understanding of how to strategically leverage technology trends. Whether you’re a seasoned MSP professional or aspiring to become one, this course will provide you with valuable insights and skills to elevate your career and business.
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Only $399
Top Take-aways:
- Technology Opportunity Identification: Gain the ability to identify and assess emerging technologies and trends relevant to Managed Services Providers.
- Decision-making Skills for Technology Adoption: Gain understanding in using frameworks and criteria to make informed decisions about integrating new technologies into service offerings.
- Financial Literacy for Technology Investments: Acquire skills in building and interpreting financial models to evaluate the ROI, TCO, and payback periods of technology investments.
- Risk and Compliance Management: Learn about risk assessment frameworks and compliance requirements for adopting and implementing new technologies in services.
- Practical Implementation Skills: Develop skills for creating pilot programs, adapting existing services, and formulating strategic roadmaps for technology adoption.
PLUS lots more.
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Here are the specifics of what you'll learn, week by week:
Unit 1 Scanning the Technology Horizon for Opportunities
Unit 2 Evaluating and Prioritizing Emerging Technologies
Unit 3 Financial Modeling and ROI for Technology-Driven Services
Unit 4 Risk Management and Compliance in Technology-Driven Services
Unit 5 Incorporating Emerging Technologies into Service Offerings
Delivered by Dave Sobel, Technology Analyst and Podcaster.
As always, this course includes instructor office hours, lots of handouts, and homework intended to help you actually make change in your business.
ITSP University Certification:
Meets Certification Requirements for:
- Management
- Service Manager
This class will be recorded. Each unit is generally posted within 24 hours of the live class. These recorded units will become the On-Demand class and you’ll have lifetime access to it.
Register Now - Only $399*
Note: * Members of the Small Biz Thoughts Technology Community attend at no additional charge. See details in the Community
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All the Resources That Are Fit to Print | |
Recent Blog Posts, Podcasts, and Videos | |
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Small Biz Thoughts Blog:
SMB Community Podcast - New episodes drop every Thursday
National Society of IT Service Providers News Blog
Relax Focus Succeed:
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Community News
SmallBizThoughts.org
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Join us every Thursday
9 AM Pacific / Noon Eastern
All members welcome.
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Chip Reaves Joins Us for the February 1st Roundtable
Bigger Brains is all about training - for you and for your clients. In "AI Year Two" we expect some major changes throughout our industry. One way to deal with that is training! We'll talk to Chip about this and more.
Way back when, Chip helped found Computer Troubleshooters and is still a franchise owner. So he has deep experience in managed services from different angles.
Join us for a great discussion about buying - and selling - training in 2024. I've been honored to work with Chip and Bigger Brains for many years. I promise with will be a great discussion.
Members learn more here and join us Thursday February 1st:
https://www.smallbizthoughts.org/member_content/chips-reaves-join-us-for-the-february-roundtable/
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Our first Community Breakout last week went well. You are welcome to join us on February 15th for the next one.
Our breakouts are a special hybrid of
- Content
- Member engagement, and
- Peer group.
Our first Breakout is: The 2024 Year of Intention. We held classes in November and December based on the new book.
ALL Small Biz Thoughts Technology Community members are welcome to attend for free. The earlier classes are not required.
See details and member access here.
If you have questions, send me an email. karlp@smallbizthoughts.com
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Here's the last Community News video: | |
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I got a kick out of this sticker.
If you haven't heard the Dave Ramsey radio show, his most common advice to help people get a handle on their finances is to get rid of that ego-building car you can't afford and drive a reliable used car.
And hence . . .
:-)
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What's Here?
This calendar lists two kinds of things: LIVE in-person events from any organization that focuses on the SMB consulting community; and MY events, whether live, webinar, etc.
If you have live events on your calendar that may be useful to others in the SMB Community, please let us know. We'd be happy to list them.
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February 2024
ConnectWise Automation Nation
Feb. 5-8
Tampa, FL
More Info: https://info.connectwise.com/events/automation-nation-2024-announcement
Cisco Live
Feb. 5-9
Amsterdam, Netherlands
More Info: https://www.ciscolive.com/emea.html
Microsoft Envision AI Tour
Feb. 7
Sydney, Australia
More Info: https://envision.microsoft.com/en-US/sydney
SMB TechFest
February 8-9
Irvine, CA
More Info: https://www.smbtechfest.com/showdates.asp
World AI Cannes Festival
Feb. 8-10
Cannes, France
More Info: https://www.amd.com/en/corporate/events/advancing-ai.html
MSP Expo
February 13-15, 2024
Fort Lauderdale, FL
More Info: http://www.mspexpo.com/
NerdioCon
Feb. 12-16
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
More Info: https://nerdiocon.com/
MSP Expo
Feb. 13-15
Fort Lauderdale, FL
More Info: https://www.mspexpo.com/east/
TDWI Transform
Feb. 19-23
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://tdwi.org/events/conferences/las-vegas/home.aspx
Gartner CIO Leadership Forum
Feb. 26-27
Phoenix, AR
More Info: https://www.gartner.com/en/conferences/na/cio-us-west
Mobile World Congress
Feb. 26-29
Barcelona, Spain
More Info: https://www.mwcbarcelona.com/
ChannelPro LIVE
Feb. 28-29
Chicago, IL
More info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/
ASCII Edge 2024
February 28 & 29
Costa Mesa, CA
More Info: https://events.ascii.com/
Join me Live!
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March
XChange Orlando
March 3-5
Orlando, FL
More Info: https://www.thechannelco.com/xchange
VSLive!
March 3-8
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://vslive.com/events/las-vegas-2024/home.aspx
Cloud Expo Europe
March 6-7
London, England
More Info: https://www.cloudexpoeurope.com/
Right of Boom
March 6-8
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://www.rightofboom.com/event/22f53824-56a7-4e87-9dc4-c25d1d93baf7/summary
MSP Summit
March 11-12
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://channelpartnersconference.com/msp-summit
XChange UK
March 6-7
UK
More Info: https://www.thechannelco.com/xchange
Channel Partners Conference & MSP Summit
March 11-14
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://www.channelfutures.com/channel-events
Join me live!
Gartner Data & Analytics Summit
March 11-13
Orlando, FL
More Info: https://www.gartner.com/en/conferences/na/data-analytics-us
Microsoft Envision AI Tour
March 12
Paris, France
More Info: https://envision.microsoft.com/en-US/paris
NVIDIA GTC
March 17-21
San Jose, CA
More Info: https://www.nvidia.com/gtc/
Datacenter Dynamics Converged
March 18-19
New York City, NY
More Info: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/dcd-connect-live/connect-nyc/2024/
CloudFest
March 18-21
Rust, Germany
More Info: https://www.cloudfest.com/
Midsize Enterprise Summit IT Security 2024
March 18-19, 2024
Indianapolis, IN
More Info: https://www.thechannelco.com/events
KubeCon + CloudNativeCon
March 19-23
Paris, France
More Info: https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/
ASCII Edge 2024
March 20 & 21
Houston, TX
More Info: https://events.ascii.com/
Days of Knowledge
March 21-22
Birmingham, England
More Info: https://www.directionsforpartners.com/conferences-and-events/days-of-knowledge/uk-2024
Gartner CIO Leadership Forum
March 25-26
Hollywood, FL
More Info: https://www.gartner.com/en/conferences/na/cio-us-east
Microsoft Fabric Community Conference
March 26-28
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://fabricconf.com/#!/
MSP Rescue from SMB Nation
Date TBD
Los Alamitos, CA
More Info: https://msprescue.pro/
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April 2024
Fortinet Accelerate
April 1-5
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://www.fortinetaccelerate.com/home/3861565
Intel Vision
April 8-9
Phoenix, AZ
More Info: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/events/on-event-series/vision.html
Google Cloud Next
April 9-11
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://cloud.withgoogle.com/next
North American Cloud & Collaboration Summit
April 9-11
Dallas, TX
More Info: https://www.collabsummit.org/
ChannelPro LIVE
Apr. 10-11, 2024
Orlando, FL
More info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/
Days of Knowledge
April 12-13
Odense, Denmark
More Info: https://www.directionsforpartners.com/conferences-and-events/days-of-knowledge/nordic-2024
Directions
April 14-17
San Diego, CA
More Info: https://directionsna.com/
Black Hat Asia
April 16-19
Singapore
More Info: https://www.blackhat.com/asia-24/
ASCII Edge 2024
April 17 & 18
Newark, NJ
More Info: https://events.ascii.com/
eMerge Americas
April 18-19
Miami Beach, FL
More Info: https://emergeamericas.com/
TDWI Transform
April 28-May 3
Chicago, IL
More Info: https://na.eventscloud.com/ereg/newreg.php?eventid=777592&_gl=1*x88u25*_gcl_au*NjI4NDAyOTQxLjE3MDE3Mjk1NjI.
Kaseya Connect Global
April 29-May 2
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://www.kaseyaconnect.com/
Microsoft 365 Conference
April 30-May 3
Orlando, FL
More Info: https://www.m365conf.com/#!/
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May
Red Hat Summit
May 6-9
Denver, CO
More Info: https://www.redhat.com/en/summit
RSA Conference
May 6-9
San Francisco, CA
More Info: https://www.rsaconference.com/usa
ServiceNow Knowledge
May 7-9
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://knowledge.servicenow.com/events/k23/getupdates
ChannelPro LIVE
May 8-9, 2024
Baltimore, MD
More info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/
SMB TechFest
May 9-10
Irvine, CA
More Info: https://www.smbtechfest.com/showdates.asp
European Collaboration Summit
May 14-16
Wiesbaden, Germany
More Info: https://collabsummit.eu/
Gartner Application Innovation & Business Solutions Summit
May 14-16
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://www.gartner.com/en/conferences/na/applications-us
Dell Technologies World
May 20-23
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://www.dell.com/en-us/dt/events/delltechnologiesworld/2024/index.htm
IBM Think
May 20-23
Boston, MA
More Info: https://www.ibm.com/events/think
Microsoft Licensing Boot Camp
May 21-23
Atlanta, GA
More Info: https://www.directionsonmicrosoft.com/members/get-training
Nutanix .NEXT
May 21-23
Barcelona, Spain
More Info: https://next2024.nutanix.com/
MSP GeekCon
May 21-23
Orlando, FL
More Info: https://www.mspgeekcon.com
ASCII Edge 2024
May 22 & 23
Denver, CO
More Info: https://events.ascii.com/
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June 2024
Cisco Live
June 2-6
Las Vegas, NV
More Info: https://www.ciscolive.com/global.html
Gartner Security & Risk Management Summit
June 3-5
National Harbor, MD
More Info: https://www.gartner.com/en/conferences/na/security-risk-management-us
ConnectWise IT Nation Secure
June 3-5
Orlando, FL
More Info: https://www.connectwise.com/theitnation/secure/cybersecurity-conference
VeeamON
June 3-5
Fort Lauderdale, FL
More Info: https://www.veeam.com/veeamon
Microsoft 365 Educon & PWRCON
June 3-7
Seattle, WA
More Info: https://pwrcon.com/
Infosecurity Europe
June 4-6
London, England
More Info: https://www.infosecurityeurope.com/
ChannelPro LIVE
Jun. 5-6, 2024
Columbus, OH
More info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/
Databricks Data + AI Summit
June 10-13
San Francisco, CA
More Info: https://www.databricks.com/dataaisummit/
European Power Platform Conference
June 11-13
Brussels, Belgium
More Info: https://www.sharepointeurope.com/european-power-platform-conference/
North American Information Security Summit
June 16-18
Denver, CO
More Info: https://infosecurity-summit.com/
Commsverse
June 26-27
Weybridge, England
More Info: https://www.commsverse.com/
ASCII Edge 2024
June 26 & 27
Chicago, IL
More Info: https://events.ascii.com/
XChange Best of Breed
June 2024
East Essex, England
More Info: https://www.thechannelco.com/xchange
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Note: If you know of any in-person event for SMB Consultants, please send info to karlp@greatlittlebook.com. | |
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Small Biz Thoughts is a subsidiary of Great Little Book Publishing Co., Inc. | |
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AI Transparency Statement
We do not use artificial intelligence apps in the writing of any content for this newsletter. Some of our royalty-free paid graphics might use AI-generated images. But all of the writing is by Karl W. Palachuk, or others as noted.
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