SMB Community Podcast

Topic 1: Chat GPT 1 year later.

AI Article Summary: Elon Musk creates his own AI company called X.AI, while Satya Nadella of Microsoft invests in OpenAI and accelerates plans to incorporate AI into Microsoft's products. OpenAI releases ChatGPT as a "low key research preview," which becomes a hit. Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, faces challenges with its own chatbot and struggles with the decision to go open-source. Microsoft introduces its own chatbot in Bing, surpassing Google's efforts. Geoffrey Hinton, a prominent AI scientist at Google, decides to quit and reflects on the rapid advancements in AI technology.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/05/technology/ai-chatgpt-google-meta.html

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Topic 2: Robots Multiplying by Thousands!

AI Article Summary: Agility Robotics plans to open a factory in Oregon to mass-produce humanoid robots, starting with their bot named Digit. The factory aims to produce 10,000 robots per year and will assist companies like Amazon with tasks such as hauling and lifting. The production of bipedal robots that are nimbler and more versatile than existing industrial counterparts presents engineering challenges, but Agility Robotics aims to make general-purpose humanoids available as soon as possible. 

Other competitors in this space include Tesla, Boston Dynamics, Sanctuary AI, Figure, and Apptronik. Amazon has invested in Agility Robotics and is testing Digit in a laboratory. The concern about robots taking jobs from humans has prompted Amazon to partner with MIT to study automation's impact on work. While there is momentum behind humanoid robots, there is still more testing to be done. In a separate article, it is highlighted that America's military needs to embrace artificial intelligence and robotics to maintain its competitive advantage in future wars, but congressional and bureaucratic restraints hinder rapid mobilization and investment in these technologies.

https://www.axios.com/newsletters/axios-whats-next-d504c6f4-c6d1-4979-ae67-72f5bfaff090.html

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Topic 3: Will Private Equity Destroy Our Industry?

Karl speculates that private funding and private equity will be looking for serious payouts starting in 2024. With a 4-6 year window, the clock is ticking. Some companies will have an identity crisis in the years ahead, and that will become visible in 2024. 

Higher interest rates will force companies to decide, “Do we want to run this company like an adult, or take our money and leave?” Those who stay will either get loans - at higher rates than we’ve seen in twelve years - or take companies private so they don’t rely on outside financing.

Investors who were promised a straight 40-50% return per year were disappointed in 2023 and that disappointment will grow in 2024. These people care nothing for the businesses they buy or the end clients of those businesses.

Our industry cannot escape the effects of this unknown element of chaos.

 

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Sponsor Memo: IT Service Provider University 

This episode is Sponsored by Dave’s January class at ITSPU.com.

Dave is teaching a brand new class in January: navigating emerging technologies for MSPs. This is a five week class, which will walk through the methodology Dave uses for analyzing technologies and how you can apply that in your business to find trends and be effective in your service provider business. More info at 

https://www.itspu.com/all-classes/classes/navigating-emerging-technologies-for-msps/

 

:-)

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Host James sits down with Venvito's Founder Rob Fegan on partnering with Microsoft.

Venvito was formed to teach other Microsoft partners how to harness the scale and reach of Microsoft's field teams. Sharing with other owners, founders, and leaders the messaging, the mechanics, and the mindset necessary to partner with Microsoft, growing your Microsoft practice through mutually beneficial relationships at all levels within Microsoft.

Learn more:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robfegan/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/venvito/

https://www.venvito.net/?r_done=1

Our upcoming events:

Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364 Contact James for a $500 discount code!

Our Social Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kernan-varcoach/

https://www.facebook.com/james.kernan

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https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybabinchak/

https://www.facebook.com/amy.babinchak/

Check out the latest episode!

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Today the SMBCP is whole again: Karl is back! 1.) MSP Question of The Week What is the best commission plan for salespeople? --- 2.) What's New in the News OPEN AI – blew up! And ransomware attacks are on the RISE! Ransomware attacks have surged in recent years; this has led to significant financial losses, data breaches and operational disruptions across various sectors. As of 2023, over 72% of organizations worldwide were affected by ransomware attacks, according to Statista. That raises a question as to how malicious actors are able to successfully carry out these attacks on the majority of organizations. And one industry that is struggling to handle ransomware attacks is...healthcare. In fact, Sophos revealed in its "The State of Ransomware in Healthcare 2023" report that cybercriminals successfully encrypted data in nearly 75% of ransomware attacks. This is the highest rate of encryption in the past three years and a significant increase from the 61% of healthcare organizations that reported having their data encrypted last year. ---

Our upcoming events:

Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364 Contact James for a $500 discount code!

Our Social Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kernan-varcoach/

https://www.facebook.com/james.kernan

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In this week's edition of SMBCP, we sit down with the Chief Information Officer of TS Banking Group, Julian Caldwell.

We discussed how to get into the door with executives--What are they looking for in MSPs? And hpw to become "Sticky" Long Term strategic partners with your customers?

Listen today to see why most MSP's fall short of these expectations...

Our upcoming events:

Kernan Mastermind Roadshow Dec 7-8th, 2023 in Newport Beach CA – http://bit.ly/kernanmastermind https://kernanconsulting-mastermind.mykajabi.com/mastermind-event Use code: EARLYBIRD Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364 Contact James for a $500 discount code!

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Host Karl goes down under for the SMB IT Pro Con!

In this episode, Karl captures bite-sized interviews with the best in the industry.

Featuring (In Order):

Dean Calvert of Calvert Technologies

Elias Mansour of N-Able

Matt Koenig of Nodeware

Pablo Munoz of Ninja One

Peter Ward of Dijital Team

Shaun Witherden of Kaseya

Shaun Capps of Pax8

Ted Deane 2Excel

Tim Lippa Halo PSA

Will Parker HP Elite

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Our upcoming events:

Kernan Mastermind Roadshow Dec 7-8th, 2023 in Newport Beach CA – http://bit.ly/kernanmastermind https://kernanconsulting-mastermind.mykajabi.com/mastermind-event Use code: EARLYBIRD Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364 Contact James for a $500 discount code!

Our Social Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kernan-varcoach/

https://www.facebook.com/james.kernan

https://www.facebook.com/karlpalachuk/

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https://www.facebook.com/amy.babinchak/

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Happy Thanksgiving!

In this turkey day edition of SMBCP, we have Chip Reaves in the studio!

Chip's expertise is in Microsoft software, teaching courses on a variety of apps and iterations from 2010 to the most current Microsoft 365.

He has been interviewed on TV and other major media on topics related to small business technology and entrepreneurship, including ABC News, BusinessWeek TV, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times, and is a member of Jim Blasingame's "Brain Trust" on www.SmallBusinessAdvocate.com and has taught a variety of courses both live and recorded.

[email protected]

www.BiggerMSP.com

www.BiggerBrains.com

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Our upcoming events:

Kernan Mastermind Roadshow Dec 7-8th, 2023 in Newport Beach CA – http://bit.ly/kernanmastermind https://kernanconsulting-mastermind.mykajabi.com/mastermind-event Use code: EARLYBIRD Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364 Contact James for a $500 discount code!

Our Social Links:

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For this week's episode, we are joined by our co-host Amy Babinchak!

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1.) The MSP Question of the Week

What can you do NOW to increase the value of your business BEFORE you sell?

Host James and Host Amy break it down.

1. Business Plan 2. Written Agreements both customer and employee 3. Focus on Core Service 4. Unique Assets 5. Clean Books and record keeping 6. Business Process Bible 7. Diverse Customer-base 8. Strong People

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Our upcoming events:

Kernan Mastermind Roadshow Dec 7-8th, 2023 in Newport Beach CA – http://bit.ly/kernanmastermind https://kernanconsulting-mastermind.mykajabi.com/mastermind-event Use code: EARLYBIRD Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364 Contact James for a $500 discount code!

Our Social Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kernan-varcoach/

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https://www.facebook.com/amy.babinchak/

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1.) MSP Question of The Week What do you do when your customer hires one of your employees? Have you prepared with a non-solicitation in your agreement? Did they let you know in advance or hire behind your back? Do you contact them? All the questions answered with Host James! 2.) Five Minutes with a Smart person – Steven Frank of TDSynnex TDSynnex is MUCH MORE than a distributor, they are a partner We discussed resources that my customers use to grow and scale their business - real world success stories shared 3.) Notes on the News Topic Host James addresses the most recent burning topics: 1. The 23andMe Breach – what should you do? 2. Scalepad acquires QUOTER 3. When do you hire someone BETTER than you? https://www.msptechnews.com/msp-news/hire/ ---

Our upcoming events:

Kernan Mastermind Roadshow Dec 7-8th, 2023 in Newport Beach CA – http://bit.ly/kernanmastermind https://kernanconsulting-mastermind.mykajabi.com/mastermind-event Use code: EARLYBIRD Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364

Our Social Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kernan-varcoach/

https://www.facebook.com/james.kernan

https://www.facebook.com/karlpalachuk/

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https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybabinchak/

https://www.facebook.com/amy.babinchak/

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In this episode of the SMBC podcast, we have three special cohost! Host James sits with Alex Farling, Wes Spencer and Kyle Christensen of Empath. https://www.empathmsp.com/ Tune in as we discuss the next big moves for Empath. ---

Our upcoming events:

Kernan Mastermind Roadshow Dec 7-8th, 2023 in Newport Beach CA – http://bit.ly/kernanmastermind https://kernanconsulting-mastermind.mykajabi.com/mastermind-event Use code: EARLYBIRD Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364

Our Social Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kernan-varcoach/

https://www.facebook.com/james.kernan

https://www.facebook.com/karlpalachuk/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/karlpalachuk/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybabinchak/

https://www.facebook.com/amy.babinchak/

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1.) The MSP Question of the Week What is your unique selling proposition? Or your "superpower"? --- 2.) Notes on the News Understanding Your Competitors – SWOT Analysis on your business. https://www.msptechnews.com/business-news/evaluating-business-rivals/ We discuss: - Understanding your competitors is crucial for staying competitive in today's business landscape. - A successful competitor comparison involves evaluating various aspects, such as service offerings, marketing strategies, and operational structures. - Identifying patterns, trends, and vulnerabilities within your competitors' businesses can provide valuable insights for your growth and success. --- 3.) Questions From You Do you use IT Staffing firms to help find talent? ---

Our upcoming events:

Kernan Mastermind Roadshow Dec 7-8th, 2023 in Newport Beach CA – http://bit.ly/kernanmastermind https://kernanconsulting-mastermind.mykajabi.com/mastermind-event Use code: EARLYBIRD Jan 16-18th in Honolulu HI – MSSP Sales/Marketing workshop https://conference.fornixmarketing.com/hawaii-conference-3364

Our Social Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kernan-varcoach/

https://www.facebook.com/james.kernan

https://www.facebook.com/karlpalachuk/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/karlpalachuk/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybabinchak/

https://www.facebook.com/amy.babinchak/

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