Kiandra’s Cameron Brookes Says Automation, My Dear Watson

Cameron Brookes has experience spanning more than two decades in the IT industry. Co-founding Kiandra IT at just 21 years of age with two friends (in a basement, because of course), this ambitious Aussie has helped drive efficiency and helped the company evolve and grow into a wildly innovative and successful business.

Brookes sat down with us this week to share a few simple tips for if he were starting an MSP today, drawing from his extensive and varied background.

1. Let’s start at the very … end.

Kiandra IT’s Cameron Brookes

It may seem counterintuitive, but seriously, start at the end. Project forward and figure out where you want to end up, and work backward.

If you hope to scale and create a solid base of recurring revenue, look at all services and add-ons and make it easy to manage and bill. Set it up right from the start.

2. Automation, my dear Watson.

Investing in the right tools and processes upfront will pay back in spades. While technology changes all the time, there are basics that always, always remain the same.

Be able to proactively monitor and alert across all critical parts of the environment. Be able to efficiently patch and update; have tight asset and user management processes. Make backups and disaster recovery efficient and bulletproof.

3. Don’t be basic, but also do.

Let’s tackle the “don’t” first. Look beyond the basics. “It is about so much more than solving desktop issues,” says Brookes. Security needs to underpin everything, change management needs to drive adoption and strategy needs to add value.

Differentiate yourself.

On the flip side, do be basic — at least in the sense of sticking to what you know. Resist the urge to try and do and be all things to all customers. True success lies in the ability to stick to your core capabilities.

With experience spanning more than two decades in the IT industry, Cameron is a co-founder and the managing director of Kiandra IT. He has been responsible for the overarching strategic direction of the organization, and managing the execution of those strategies since co-founding the company.