Brian Sherman Posts

The big problem for IT security providers is that their tools no longer differentiate their businesses. The real value is ensuring that end users have the knowledge, skills and training to protect their organizations.

Today’s tech entrepreneurs need to change their habits. The best and brightest job candidates often focus as much on the work environment and flex-time as they do salary and benefits. With IT talent in high demand, channel firms must be aware of the interests and needs of millennials and a cross-generational workforce if they hope to compete.

Every vertical offers opportunities and challenges for IT services firms, and the retail market is a great example.What are the best prospects and the biggest obstacles?

The MSP evolution is still underway. And business continuity (back-up and disaster recovery) is one of the most crucial building blocks for an IT services business today. Those who look beyond the tools and gain a real understanding of the impact these programs can have on their clients are better positioned to grow their own opportunities...and profitability.

The business and technology lessons this 30-plus year member of CompTIA has to share are as relevant today as they were in the early 1980s. John Rice, Army veteran and longtime advocate of the IT channel remains a driving force behind industry initiatives and training.

CompTIA’s new Business Application Advisory Council (BAAC) is a prime example of the association's forward-thinking philosophy. Tasked with examining and creating initiatives around the complex and rapidly evolving business arena for technology, the group tackled channel transformation and a host of other related topics at this years's Annual Member Meeting. What should IT vendors and providers expect in the future?

As members of the CompTIA End User Commission emphasized during their open forum discussion with the joint CompTIA Councils and Communities at AMM, IT providers need to engage in deeper, broader conversations with their business customers. The most successful VARs and MSPs are those who are truly enlightened on the unique needs of their clients.How do they do it? Read on...

How can the IT industry reduce its growth limiting skills gap? By encouraging and empowering members of the black and Hispanic communities, and that's a key goal of the new Advancing Diversity in Technology (ADIT) Community. How will they do it? The details (and options) were major topics during the CompTIA Annual Member meeting in Chicago.

Who are the new competitors to traditional IT channel companies? They may come from adjacent industries or alternate channels using cloud and vertical relationships to expand their presence. The Power Talk panel session, 'Who are Your New Competitors?' addressed the challenges and opportunities these organizations present to the IT services community. .

The role of IT in business transformation was a major topic in the ITSS (IT Services and Support) Community session at the CompTIA Annual Member Meeting in Chicago this week. A panel of channel professionals with intimate knowledge of the subject shared their insight and recommendations to a packed house. What did they have to say?