Procurement leader Janice Marquardt shares how moderne-auction programs drive clarity, speed, and transparency—without devolving into “race to the bottom” pricing. She lays out the right order of buy-in (executives → procurement → technical teams → suppliers) and how language andexpectations shape outcomes. Janice also walks through a real rollout that delivered $2M in value within 12 weeks across ~60 auctions on ~$58M in spend, plus why municipalities can succeed when quality and safety are front-and-center.

Key Events Timeline

🟣 00:00:00 Janice’s path from engineering to procurement and launching her consultancy
📘00:04:00 E-auctions 101 and why she wrote Transform Procurement: The Value of E-Auctions
🚦00:07:00 Myth-busting: not a race to the bottom—scope clarity, speed, and market transparency
🧭00:11:00 Change management: the exact buy-in sequence that makes programs stick
🚀00:14:00 Fast start: 12-week rollout, ~$2M value, ~60 auctions on ~$58M spend
❓00:19:00 MTMG Questions

Helpful Tip: Secure executive buy-in first, thenalign your procurement team before looping in technical stakeholders and suppliers.

A smart e-auction program begins with executive alignmentand continues by equipping procurement to tell the value story—before engaging technical teams or suppliers. Done this way, e-auctions become a negotiation superpower rather than a blunt cost hammer. Notable ReferencesBooks Mentioned: Transform Procurement: The Value ofE-Auctions — Janice Marquardt (Amazon):https://www.amazon.ie/Transform-Procurement-Auctions-Janice-Marquardt/dp/B0F8BDR69X

Podcasts Mentioned: Dare to Lead — Brené Brown(Spotify): https://open.spotify.com/show/3oEPsPKDhPVoNNL7pH5db6
Dare to Lead — Emily & Amelia Nagoski on Burnout (Spotify episode): https://open.spotify.com/episode/5n3wvqU0Tt9eKWAZZX9Vww

Music/Artists Mentioned: “Into the Unknown” — IdinaMenzel & AURORA (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIOyB9ZXn8s

🔗 Connect with Us:
✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu
✅ Learn more about the amazing software we use to create these podcasts (Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7
✅Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk
📧Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]
💡Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]
🔔Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu

Hospitality and telecom expert Melinda Kinney breaks down how hotels and small businesses can audit their current technology, eliminate waste, and redirect spend into future-proofed solutions. She explains why RFPs must look beyond the next three to five years, how AI is reshaping requirements, and where leaders commonly overspend on legacy services.

With nearly 30 years in telecom, Melinda outlines a simple three-step path: inventory what you have, align to business needs, then source smarter options—delivered with a “heart of hospitality.”

Helpful Tip:

A quick way to unlock savings is to map your invoices to actual usage, retire anything you no longer need, and replace outdated tools with modern equivalents that support where your business is headed.

Start with a line-by-line audit of telecom/IT invoices, cut unused legacy services, and reinvest the savings into future-proofed solutions.

Key Events Timeline🎙️ 00:00:00 Welcome & who Melinda helps (hospitality + small business). 🧭 00:03:00 RFPs and true future-proofing beyond 3–5 years. 🤖 00:05:00 AI’s rapid impact on tech planning and budgets. ✂️ 00:06:30 Immediate wins: cut unused legacy services to reduce spend. 📋 00:08:00 The three-step approach: audit → business needs → market options. ❓ 00:10:00 MTMG Questions

Notable References

Books Mentioned: How to Do the Work by Dr. Nicole LePera — self-help on meaningful change Podcasts Mentioned: Huberman Lab — science-based tools for health & performance Music/Artists Mentioned: “Home” by Michael Bublé — go-to mood boost

Connect with Us✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu✅ Learn more about the amazing software we use to create these podcasts (Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7✅ Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk

📧 Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]

💡 Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]

🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu

Fractional CMO Anne Mitchell breaks down how small andmidsize B2B firms can stop doing random acts of marketing and build a simple, end-to-end system that actually produces pipeline. She explains why only a small slice of your market is ready to buy right now and how a nurturing engineturns the rest into future revenue. You’ll hear a practical framework for sharpening positioning (think: becoming the UCaaS leader in your city), keeping websites aligned to your message, and using AI without sounding like everyoneelse. Real, workable advice—no fluff—plus examples from the channel and growth-stage teams.

Key Events Timeline

🟢 00:00:00 Welcome + why “random acts of marketing” fail
🚀00:01:00 Founding ChannelSpring to serve underserved partners
💼00:03:00 Fractional CMO value: Fortune-100 expertise in ~10 hours/month
🔁00:05:00 Holistic system: 5% in-market, nurture the other 95%; fix the website first
🎯00:09:00 Nail the niche: one offering, multiple buyers; UCaaS-in-St. Louis example
❓00:16:00 MTMG Questions

Notable References

When in doubt, return to the buyer. Anne’s go-to move is the“So what?” test—ask it five times until the benefit is unmistakably clear for each decision-maker (CIO, CFO, CRO).

Books Mentioned: Well-Oiled Operations™: HowBusiness Owners Scale Up While Scaling Back — Stacy Tuschl (Amazon; practical systems for delegating). Amazon

Connect with Us

✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu

✅ Learn more about the amazingsoftware we use to create these podcasts (Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7

✅ Want the same microphones we use?

Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk

📧 Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]

💡 Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]

🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu

MTMG’s leadership looks back on a year of pivots, patience,and momentum—our first-ever year-end special digs into what worked, what didn’t, and how the team plans to scale in 2026.
From “pits & berries” (career transitions, sales slumps that turned into wins, and learning gnarly DNS/DA tooling) to a crisp articulation of what MTMG actually does—“Tinder for business” with eHarmony-level matching—this episodeis packed with practical takeaways.
You’ll hear the team’s one-word summaries—evolving, satisfying, educational, foundation, culture—and why those words matter.
Most importantly, we share a hard call to decline a potential partner who didn’t align with our core values—because putting misaligned vendors in front of clients isn’t an option.

Key Events Timeline

🎬 00:00:00 Kickoff & why a year-end retrospective
🍓00:02:00 “Pits & Berries” — transitions, sales frustration to wins, and DNS/DA lessons
🧭00:08:00 One word for 2025: evolving, satisfying, educational, foundation, culture
🐙00:11:00 If MTMG were an animal: phoenix, octopus, wolf, ant, sea dragon
🧱00:15:00 Core values in action—saying no to a misaligned partner

Notable References

A year that started uneven finished with repeatable momentum by focusing on fit, clarity, and values. The team distilled MTMG’s value prop and doubled down on partner alignment—practical guardrails any MSP or techleader can adopt.

Helpful Tip: Before adding a vendor to your partnerroster, require clear alignment to your core values—otherwise say no, even if the short-term revenue looks tempting.

Connect with Us
✅Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu
✅Learn more about the amazing software we use to create these podcasts(Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7
✅Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk
📧Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]
💡Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]
🔔Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu

Security teams are drowning in alerts — but what if youcould automatically rank every asset by business impact and focus only on what truly matters?

In this episode of Rosie Rewired (MTMG’s Women in Techconversations), host Tara Nelson sits down with Roselle Safran, CEO & Founder of KeyCaliber to unpack the missing link in cybersecurity: bridging “is this a security concern?” with “is this a business concern?” — so teams can ruthlessly prioritize with limited resources.

You’ll hear how KeyCaliber uses common security data sources (like EDR and vulnerability scanning) to discover assets (including shadow IT) and compute an asset criticality / impact score (0–100) using asset behavior analytics — then connect those insights back to business applications so CISOscan communicate risk in terms boards and CFOs actually understand.

In this conversation:

Prioritization driven by business impact, not just severity

Finding coverage gaps fast (and why most orgs don’t reallyknow everything they have)

MSP/MSSP use cases: turning discovery into a strongermanaged security cadence

2026 advice: stop chasing shiny objects — nailIdentify/Protect fundamentals

AI in security: what’s real, what’s hype, and how teams canuse LLMs for reporting

Women in cybersecurity: confidence, representation, and why skills are learnable

Chapters (timestamps approximate):

00:00 – Welcome to Rosy Rewired

02:00 – Security vs. business risk: why prioritizationbreaks

05:00 – Data-driven “crown jewels” + impact scoring

08:00 – Translating cyber risk for boards & execs

10:00 – MSP/MSSP playbook: discovery → coverage gaps →ongoing cadence

14:00 – 2026 focus: fundamentals over shiny objects

20:00 – AI in security: attacker + defender realities

24:00 – Women in cyber: confidence, pathways, andrepresentation

31:00 – Wrap-up

Links & resources

KeyCaliber: https://www.keycaliber.com/

Roselle Safran: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rosellesafran/

MTMG: https://mtmg.eu/

Tara Nelson:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/tara-nelson-220a62208/

Contact us for comments and suggestions:  [email protected]

#Cybersecurity #CISO #RiskManagement #WomenInTech #MSP #MSSP#NIST #AISecurity

What’s the real impact of Broadcom’s VMware acquisition onyour IT strategy—and what can you do about it? In this episode of MTMG’s IT Roundtable, infrastructure expert Dan Wakefield breaks down what IT leaders must consider before jumping into new hypervisors or container strategies.You’ll hear how one client faced a $400K renewal decision, why support ecosystems collapsed overnight, and how a practical framework can help teams assess risk, retraining, and cost. If you’re navigating virtualization shifts,this is your roadmap to doing it right.

⏱️ Key Events Timeline

🎯 00:00 Welcome & Guest Intro: Meet Dan Wakefield, MTMG’s infrastructure guru
💰01:00 VMware Pricing Shock: Why support bills skyrocketed by 400%
🔁06:45 VMware Partner Cuts: How Broadcom broke customer trust
📦07:50 Containers & Kubernetes: Should your org go all-in?
🧠13:00 TCO & Skills Gaps: How to actually calculate the cost of change
❓20:15 Real-world frameworks and “What should I do next?”

📚 Notable References

📘 OpenStack – Discussed as a community-supported platform for organizations needing Kubernetes orchestration
📘OpenShift – Mentioned as a common Kubernetes engine paired with OpenStack
📘VCF (VMware Cloud Foundation) – Broadcom’s bundled offering for hybrid cloud environments
🧠Tanzu – VMware’s Kubernetes platform that impacts licensing bundles
💻Docker – Referenced as the base container tech leading to Kubernetes adoption
🔗 Connect with Us:

✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu

✅ Learn more about the amazing software we use to create these podcasts (Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7

✅ Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk

📧 Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]

💡 Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]

🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu

In this refreshingly human conversation, Eric Davies ofDoodlyDog explores what AI can and can’t do for web development, diving deep into the emotional and practical reasons clients still crave relationships—not bots. From wild camping in the Welsh mountains to saving client sites fromsudden crashes, Eric brings personal stories and sharp insight into why AI should support—not replace—real-world expertise. You’ll walk away understanding the hidden risks of DIY websites and the irreplaceable value of human-firstdesign.

⏱️ Key Events Timeline

🎯 00:00 Meet Eric Davies & Intro Banter🚧08:45 From Legal Publishing to DoodlyDog – Eric’s Origin Story🤖26:45 AI Tools vs. Human Support in Web Development🧠30:39 MTMG Lightning Round: Passion Projects, Books, and Springsteen

📚 Notable References

📘 Becoming by Michelle Obama – An inspiring memoir Eric unexpectedly loved. Available on Amazon📘Nesting by C.J. Cooke – A haunting story about coercive abuse that moved Eric deeply. Availableon Amazon🎵Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen – Eric’s go-to pick-me-up and future funeral anthem. Listen on YouTube | Spotify

🔗 Connect with Us:

✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu

✅ Learn more about the amazing software we use to create these podcasts (Descript): Descript ReferralLink

✅ Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): Maono

📧 Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]

💡 Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]

🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!MTMG LinkedIn

In this episode of MTMG’s IT Roundtable, former ZTE CTO John Frieslaar joins the team to unpack the seismic shifts happening in telecom and IT infrastructure. From the challenges of geopolitical disruption to the rise of AI-driven networks and open RAN, John shares real stories—includingbillion-pound deals and innovation born from crisis. Listeners will walk away with actionable insights on sustainable infrastructure, private 5G networks, and how to overcome vendor lock-in. If you're an IT or municipal leader rethinking your digital foundation, this episode is your blueprint.

⏱️ Key Events Timeline

🎯 00:00 Welcome & Guest Intro – Meet John Frieslaar, MTMG’s new infrastructure strategist and former ZTE CTO
🌐06:35 Lessons from Failure – Project stalls, political curveballs, and how they built the first global cybersecurity lab
📶12:40 The Shift to Open RAN & AI Networks – Solving vendor diversity and automating the future
♻️18:55 Making Infrastructure Sustainable – Fiber, edge compute, and circular economics
💡26:12 Incentivizing Green Tech – The role of banks, carbon credits, and changing accounting practices
🧭31:45 MTMG Questions – John's favorite podcast, book, and how Queen keeps him moving

📚 Notable References

🎧 The Rest is Politics– John’s favorite podcast for staying sharp on global dynamics
🔗Spotify

📖 The Four by Scott Galloway – Referenced when discussing market control and vendor influencein the infrastructure world
🔗Amazon

🎵 Queen – "Don’t Stop Me Now" – John's motivational pick for staying resilient through chaos
🔗YouTube

🔗 Connect with Us:

✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu
✅Learn more about the amazing software we use to create these podcasts (Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7
✅Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk
📧Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]
💡Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]
🔔Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu

What really separates thriving MSPs from those that stall out? In this episode, David Campbell—former COO of Optimal Networks and now MTMG’s MSP Optimization Consultant—shares the hard lessons, turning points, and culture-building wins that shaped his leadership approach. From dealing with client exits to scaling MSPs through repeatable systems, David reveals how intentional culture, clear growth vision, and smart tech adoption (like AI) create lasting advantage. Whether you're running an MSP or managing one, this conversation offers invaluable takeaways.

________________________________________

⏱️ Key Events Timeline

🎯 00:00 Welcome & Guest Intro – From COO to MTMG’s growth expert

⚙️ 02:00 Learning from losing clients – A wake-up call on experience gaps

🚀 15:00 Scaling smart – Repeatable systems, role clarity, and why growth starts with "why"

🤖 26:00 AI as the new game-changer – But not for the reasons you think

🏆 33:00 Leadership & culture – How intentional values shaped award-winning teams

❓ 36:00 MTMG Questions – Books, mentors, hidden talents, and favorite superhero moments

________________________________________

📚 Notable References

📘 Animal Farm – A timeless classic that shaped David's perspective on power and systems. Discussed in relation to leadership reflection and modern parallels.

________________________________________

🔗 Connect with Us:

✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu

✅ Learn more about the amazing software we use to create these podcasts (Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7

✅ Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk

📧 Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]

💡 Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]

🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!

https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu

What’s holding women back in tech leadership—and how do we fix it? In this powerful roundtable, Michelle Pope, Cait Espe, Melinda Kinney, and Catherine Hemingray explore equity in the C-suite, challenges of tokenism, and the striking tenure gap between male and female executives. Hear how these seasoned leaders are breaking barriers, creating pathways for future talent, and reshaping boardroom inclusion worldwide. If you care about representation,leadership, or organizational transformation, this episode delivers both perspective and practical next steps.

⏱️ Key Events Timeline

🎯 00:00 Welcome & Guest Introductions
💡05:00 Empowering Women in Africa Through Tech Education
📊14:00 Boardroom Tokenism vs True Inclusion
🌍20:00 Global Workplace Trends and Flexibility Demands
⚖️40:00 Call to Action: Allyship, Equity & Representation
❓44:20 How Can Leaders Create Real Change?

📚 Notable References

📘 Max Za – Nonprofit providing IT skills to African women via women-only residential programs
🎓Lean In (referenced conceptually around women’s leadership struggles) – Amazon link
👩‍🎓STEM Initiatives in Education – Programs mentioned by Michelle Pope encouraging girls to consider tech careers

🔗 Connect with Us:

✅ Check out our website: www.mtmg.eu

✅ Learn more about the amazingsoftware we use to create these podcasts (Descript): https://get.descript.com/mtu0tl2zr3g7

✅ Want the same microphones we use? Get a discount (use coupon code “MTMG” for 10% off): https://www.maono.com/?ref=ulcbmcjk

📧 Suggestions or want to appear on a future episode? Email: [email protected]

💡 Need expert help to maximize your IT investments? Reach out: [email protected]

🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe to the Podcast and follow us on LinkedIn!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/mtmg-eu