Our Latest Channel Standard Raises the Bar for MSPs
It’s certainly a great time to be an MSP. When you consider all the great tools at your disposal, the robust support network and vast amount of information available to help you build a successful business, the opportunity has never been better. There is literally a mountain of material for virtually anything an MSP needs.
Of course, too much of anything can actually be more detrimental than helpful. How do you find exactly what you need to address a particular issue or make the most of a new opportunity? You could easily spend more time researching and vetting options than running your business. The catalog of best practices, tools, training programs and knowledge within CompTIA alone could keep you busy for years…and we continue to add and refresh content constantly. That’s the only way to keep pace with all the changes.
It’s also a reason why we recently introduced the CompTIA Channel Standards for Managed IT Solution Providers. These are the industry best practices and baseline business measures designed in great part by your peers; those who have built successful managed services practices. Along with a number of other subject matter experts (SMEs), they compiled a list of essential business activities, tools and customer-oriented practices. Working as a team, we ranked issues and opportunities for providers based on their unique perspective and experience. Then we documented each step and process that would help both new and established providers attain their wildest MSP ambitions. That may be a stretch, but it speaks to the value of the CompTIA Channel Standards.
Build a Business Playbook
Even if you consider yourself a well-established, successful MSP, there are numerous benefits to the program. These industry standards allow, and actually encourage continual improvement. After all, no channel organization can remain stagnant if the owners want it to succeed. Technology and customers’ needs change almost every day. Your clients constantly encounter new innovations in their specific industries, and they typically deal with myriad regulations and rule changes every year that affect their businesses (not to mention all the new ones).
MSPs need to alter their offerings and support services to address those issues. You simply have to keep ahead of the game to win today. Think of your business as a sports team. Maybe you’re at the top of your game, like the New England Patriots. Or maybe you’re an upstart, shocking the world like Leicester City. They didn’t get to their respective places by smashing the same strategy against the wall. If they did, chances are their rivals would eat their lunch, studying their habits and figuring out how to counter every play and player. Fans would likely get bored, causing attendance numbers to take a hit. Not a good outcome.
That’s why coaches create new options for their playbooks and draft and trade for higher caliber players as often as possible. They focus on continual improvement not just for the sake of change, but to move forward and instill a winning attitude throughout the organizations. And, while there may be times when that those improvements have to slow down a bit, like when you can’t hire quality people fast enough, good businesses find a way to push ahead and build the momentum.
That’s where CompTIA Channel Standards come into play. The foundational version (for IT Solution Providers) was released earlier this year for those looking to advance their general business acumen and instill sound channel-proven processes into their organization. We’ll also be introducing two other versions by ChannelCon 2016 that set the bar for those delivering managed print services and IT security solutions and support. Together with the Channel Standards for Managed IT Solution Providers, they form a formidable portfolio for those looking to make a good business better (or start an entirely new practice).
They can help you build and adapt your game plan based on proven industry standards. You just need to download and review these documents (one outlining the purpose and controls, the other a workbook to chart your adherence) and start working through the details. The standards provide intelligent business practices for the core operational, management, and delivery functions of a managed IT services firm. Together, these documents can serve as a purpose built “business playbook” for MSPs, a reference and guidebook to help your team identify current or future organizational gaps (skills, tools, operational). The workbook is a great place to document the standard you meet and need, and detail the improvements you make along the way.
By pairing the Managed Services Channel Standard with the CompTIA Channel Standard for IT Solution Providers, you can get a full picture of your organization’s functional best practices in several key categories, including:
- Business Generation
- Delivery & Operations
- Customer Relations
- Business Management
- Business Direction
Are you sure your managed services organization will remain competitive in the future? Need a more structured process for improving your service capabilities to meet the challenges ahead? Then download and review all the current CompTIA Channel Standards today, and check back in the next few weeks for the latest additions.
Miles Jobgen is director of education at CompTIA
