Brian Sherman Posts

With the exception of utility companies and a limited number of monopolies, few businesses are able to turn almost every one of their prospects into paying clients. The optimal business deal is one where both parties get a fair value. Both the buyer and seller should be pleased with the results of the transaction, with no lingering issues that could prevent future sales. Though that scenario may seem straightforward, many companies lose that perspective over time. The sales team may fall into a ...

Just a few years ago, I was looking at a booth filled with the latest “consumer-oriented” products from Apple and several other manufacturers, when a solution provider friend of mine noted how odd it was that this company was displaying at an IT distributor event. While iPods and similar devices seemed out of place at a conference filled with IT resellers, the traffic through the booth was strong and the sales team seemed to be deeply engaged in discussions with attendees all day long.So why wou ...

Almost all businesses go through periods of stagnation. That doesn’t mean the companies become unprofitable or experience sales declines, but less emphasis seems to be placed on new organizational activities. It’s a natural occurrence, as owners and managers struggle to keep up with the needs of their growing clientele, there often isn’t enough time (or the urgency) to focus on the future.After several years of rapid expansion, a number of managed services professionals are experiencing similar ...

Can you imagine how hard it would be for a farmer to till a field without a plow or for a pilot to circumnavigate the world without a navigation unit? Sure, they could find other ways to accomplish the same goals, but the complexity and effort required would be significantly greater. When you have the right tools for the job, it makes the process a lot simpler.The same rules apply to IT services businesses: with the proper tools, the path to building a successful organization is a lot smoother. ...

Is yours a recession-based business, able to maintain profitability or survive longer-term economic downturns?  The topic was brought up by Karl Palachuk in his State of the Nation Address webinar earlier this week as he discussed some of the things solution providers can do to strengthen their organization. Without a firm handle on the IT business metrics and processes (such as cash flow and automated systems), it’s easy for MSPs and VARs to find themselves in financial trouble when the economi ...

For most, the year has either wrapped up or is just hours from completion. Whether the last 12 months were prosperous or challenging for your business, it’s time to close the books on 2011 and build on the things that went right. What lies ahead for your business in the next year? While the areas of opportunity for solution providers aren’t expected to change considerably, the focus will surely continue to shift in the coming months.The drivers that created project and service revenue for VARs a ...

It seems like every couple of years the hot topic in the IT channel changes. Recently, the largest focus has been on the opportunities in cloud computing, with all eyes (and the industry attention) on enabling end-users with these services. There’s good reason for solution providers to adopt and emphasize this thriving technology delivery system: they are in a race for control of their business accounts, offering a portfolio that meets their clients’ needs before direct sales organiz ...

With two weeks left in the 2011 sales season, most solution providers have their plans in place for the first quarter of the New Year—if not for the next twelve months. Since it’s difficult to make a hard close to December business with the holidays, many are already shifting their focus to 2012—and looking for ways to improve their organization.This time of year business is typically a little slower, allowing the management team to reflect on past success and challenges before moving into the n ...

Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the pleasure of diving deep into the history of the computer industry while researching previous inductees of the IT Industry Hall of Fame. This research is part of the process CompTIA is undertaking to pay proper tribute to those who created and made significant contributions to computer science and the IT channel.  The deeper I dug into the stories, the more amazed I was by adversity and challenges faced by many of these individuals and organizations. Despite ...

Among the top “buzz” words in the IT community are “cloud” and “SMB,” which is seen as no coincidence by those in the IT channel. These two terms are closely tied and both highlight key areas of opportunity for solution providers. Time has demonstrated how cloud benefits extend to businesses of every size, in every industry, but the model has been especially beneficial to small and mid-sized companies.SMB organizations often find themselves battling much larger competitors, businesses that typic ...