In this episode, we sit down with Charlene Ignacio, CEO of Fornix Marketing, to uncover her journey from high school entrepreneurship to becoming a leader in the channel marketing space. Charlene shares how her upbringing in Hawaii inspired her community-first approach to leadership, and why she’s determined to help Managed Service Providers (MSPs) navigate the evolving cybersecurity landscape. Learn how Charlene is helping MSPs embrace security and become Managed Security Service Providers (MSSPs) through actionable insights and community-driven strategies.

Key Events Timeline:

[00:00:00] - Introduction and Charlene’s energetic opening.

[00:01:00] - Charlene’s early entrepreneurial ventures and her core values.

[00:04:00] - Common challenges for vendors in the MSP channel.

[00:06:30] - Importance of community in building successful channel strategies.

[00:09:00] - Key mistakes vendors make when working with MSPs.

[00:13:00] - How to make solution stacks profitable for MSPs.

[00:17:00] - Helping MSPs transition to MSSPs: Embracing security, understanding frameworks, and becoming compliant.

[00:18:00] - Tools and strategies for seamless communication between vendors and MSPs.

[00:23:00] - Charlene’s role as CMO of the Managed Service Providers Association of America and the current challenges for MSPs, including compliance and liability.

[00:33:00] - The impact of M&A on MSPs and best practices for acquisition-readiness.

[00:39:00] - Personal passions: Charlene’s love for food, the outdoors, and trying new experiences.

[00:45:00] - Favorite book: Good to Great and the importance of adapting your purpose over time.

[00:49:00] - Final thoughts on community building as the core of Charlene's mission.

Notable References:

Books Mentioned:

Good to Great by Jim Collins - Charlene shares how this book has shaped her approach to entrepreneurship and team-building.

The Purpose Factor - Discussed as a guide to checking in with evolving life purposes and maintaining a clear mission.

Profit First for Cybersecurity and MSPs - Co-authored by Charlene, highlighting the importance of profitability in growth and M&A readiness.

Music Mentioned:

Journey - Charlene mentioned her love for the band Journey, especially as a go-to for stress relief and motivation.

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