MSPmentor 501: 2014 Webcast Presentation
Did you miss the MSPmentor 501 webcast on Feb. 27, 2014? Here's the PowerPoint presentation featuring managed services provider (MSP) research, highlights, trends and the Top 100 portion of our MSPmentor 501 list.
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The MSPmentor 501 is an annual, global research report tracking the managed services provider (MSP) market. The research is independent. ConnectWise sponsored the webcast and shared some trend data from its own partner community as well.
MSPmentor Co-Founder Joe Panettieri (that’s me, before I lost my hair and gained 20 pounds) hosted the event. Managing Editor Jessica Davis ([email protected]) played a key role in pulling together the research results, too.
A big thank you to the MSP community for sharing financial and business data — annually — since Q4 2007. This is our seventh-annual report.
The MSPmentor 501 results are like a decathlon — multiple, equally-weighted metrics generate our results. MSPs are evaluated in such areas as recurring revenue, devices managed, percentage growth rates, dollar growth rates, revenue per employee and more.
The MSPmentor 501 includes the global list plus regional lists such as the MSPmentor 501: Small Business 100 Edition (for MSPs with 10 or fewer employees); MSPmentor 501: AANZ 25 Edition (Asia, Australia, New Zealand); MSPmentor 501: EMEA 50 Edition (Europe, Middle East, Africa); and MSPmentor 501: North America 200 Edition.
During the webcast, TekLinks VP David Powell and ConnectWise Senior VP of Sales Adam Slutskin weighed in with color commentary. TekLinks is the rare IT service provider that is thriving across the VAR, MSP and CSP landscape — landing on the Solution Provider 500, MSPmentor 501 and Top 100 Cloud Services Providers list from Talkin’ Cloud. Meanwhile, roughly 60 percent of MSPmentor 501 companies run ConnectWise.
TekLinks added roughly 65 employees in 2013, and the company’s business performance ranked it among the top 20 MSPs in the world. Among the key factors for success: Branded IT services rather than merely reselling third-party cloud offerings.
SlutSkin, meanwhile, pointed to ConnectWise’s role as an overall partner champion — pushing beyond software to educate MSPs and IT services providers about recurring revenue models, marketing, sales and more.
Now, on to the data. For the world’s top 501 MSPs, combined recurring revenues rose 28 percent to $2.61 billion — a healthy showing. Even as the PC market tanked in 2013, MSPs were busy adding more recurring revenue from managed desktops — where units managed grew a combined 33 percent. Also, MSPs opened their arms wider to server and network infrastructure — managing nearly 750,000 combined devices.
MSPs are getting savvy to mobile device management (MDM) and the BYOD wave. Overall smartphone and tablet management rose 72 percent — but many MSPs told us they’re still struggling to monetize their mobile management services. Many MSPs are simply lumping tablet and smartphone management in with their PC management services — without adding any new fees. Managed Print Services, meanwhile, continue to grow. And it looks like even small MSPs are now getting into virtualization management — especially as workloads move from Microsoft Small Business Server (a dead product) to the cloud.
ConnectWise’s Slutskin did a few shout-outs to MSPs that landed on the MSPmentor 501. Meanwhile, Panettieri (that’s me, writing in the third-person again) mentioned a few MSPs by name here. Chief among them: IT Authorities ranked at No. 99. Co-CEOs Jason Caras and Jason Poller have built a range of branded managed services while also successfully promoting the company through timely, engaging blogs and short video testimonials. Also, SL Powers at No. 95 seems to be succeeding with BYOD and MDM where others have failed — promoting full life-cycle management for mobile devices.
Generally speaking, top MSPs are now cloud veterans. The cloud “land grab” or cloud “debate” is over. Adoption of IaaS, PaaS and SaaS among MSPs has remained high and relatively steady the past year. The more interesting trend involves MSPs consolidating onto fewer, more strategic cloud partner platforms. Among those gaining serious momentum: Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Office 365 and Windows Azure, and Google Apps.
Most MSPs got their start managing PCs and servers. But now the world is shifting to “end user experience.” Toss in the mobile wave, and MSPs increasingly offer “per user” pricing for all-in IT services. But as TekLinks’ Powell pointed out: Don’t forget to blend consumption-based pricing (cloud storage, etc.) with your per-user model.
Now, back to the MSPmentor 501 countdown. Slutskin delivered more shout-outs to MSPs across the 501 list. And Panettieri (me again…) offered some color commentary on the following list members: TUC Managed IT Solutions (No. 50) is a Canadian MSP launched by Mark Scott — the former CEO of N-able Technologies (now owned by SolarWinds). Instead of hanging out with geeks all day, TUC also works closely with vertical market experts — joining associations like the Canadian Medical Association, Chartered Accountants of Canada and the Canadian Bar Association. Meanwhile Thrive Networks (No. 44) has continued to thrive (pun intended) under Staples’ ownership. Former Thrive CEO Jim Lippie is now president of independenceIT, a DaaS provider to MSPs.
Sure, basic remote monitoring and management remains the bread-and-butter for many MSPs. But two services really jumped significantly in 2013 — File Sync and Sharing services as well as Managed Compliance services. Many MSPs are seeking corporate alternatives to consumer file sync options. And on the compliance front, mandates like HIPAA omnibus forced MSPs to really tighten up their offerings.
Building on the HIPAA theme from our previous slide, Healthcare is now the top vertical for MSPs. It’s sort of ironic: Businesses in many of the most regulated industries (healthcare, financial services, etc.) used to worry about having “outsiders” manage their systems. Now, those same regulated businesses are desperate for guidance from MSPs, perhaps because internal IT can’t keep pace with all the regulatory issues.
The MSPmentor 501 survey tracked 2013 results. But what about 2014 and beyond? That’s where ConnectWise’s own research comes into the picture. Slutskin pointed out that 91 percent of ConnectWise’s partner base — VARs, MSPs, IT services providers — expects to grow in 2014.
And similar to MSPmentor’s own survey, ConnectWise found the following managed services to rank among the most popular for MSPs.
Back to the survey, guest speaker David Powell finally spotted his company — TekLinks — in the results at No. 18. Panettieri (yours truly) also pointed to No. 17. Enterprise Integration, which has successfully leveraged ITIL to sharpen its IT services focus.
For 2013, TekLinks’ big move involved recruiting a dedicated sales team that has both managed and cloud services expertise.
TekLinks’ Powell can talk technology all day — and we pick his brain all the time. But he’s more than a techie. When asked about his top priorities for 2014, much of the focus involves the business side of the house — including a blended hunter/farmer sales approach to find and nurture customers along.
Instead of looking for huge wins, TekLinks has adopted an “MVP” (minimally viable product) approach that seeks small, fast wins that may transform into big market changes. And if the launch fails? That’s fine. Move on fast to the next MVP effort.
Before we unveiled the top 10 portion of our list, we gave attendees a reminder: Find everything online right here: www.MSPmentor.net/top501.
And don’t forget to participate in our sister survey: Top 100 Cloud Services Providers from Talkin’ Cloud.
Oh, and one more thing before we get to the top 10 MSPs. ConnectWise was kind enough to offer MSPs a free kit for targeting the retail vertical.
Finally, on to our top 10 MSPs. Panettieri (me again) pointed to several players on the list — including No. 9 Eze Castle, which offers managed services to hedge funds; All Covered (No. 6), which continues to grow under Konica’s ownership; No. 4. mindSHIFT, which is growing amid the recent sale from Best Buy to Ricoh; and No. 1 EarthLink, which recently expanded its cloud managed services to on-premises managed services.
A special thanks to MSPs that participated in the survey, and to ConnectWise for sponsoring the webcast. Need to reach somebody at MSPmentor or our parent (Nine Lives Media, a division of Penton)? Here’s our editorial and sales team.
If you’d like to participate in future MSPmentor 501 surveys, just keep an eye on MSPmentor.net/top501 for future survey information. The survey typically runs October through December, with results each February.
If you’d like to participate in future MSPmentor 501 surveys, just keep an eye on MSPmentor.net/top501 for future survey information. The survey typically runs October through December, with results each February.
Did you miss the MSPmentor 501 webcast on Feb. 27, 2014? Here’s the PowerPoint presentation featuring managed services provider (MSP) research, highlights, trends and the Top 100 portion of our MSPmentor 501 list. You can also view the archived webcast in its entirety starting March 3. Just visit www.MSPmentor.net/events for a link to the archive. Or you can download the presentation here.
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