The Business Solutions Network

While at the Fall ONE Ingram Micro conference in Las Vegas Jeff Yelton, executive director and GM DC/POS for the distributor, gave a presentation on electronic payments and EMV. I wrote a little about it in last Thursday’s blog. One thing I didn’t detail was Yelton’s seven steps to EMV compliance. Without further ado, here they are, short, concise, and to the point…  Continue Reading..

A lot had been written about EMV. Indeed, earlier this year, Business Solutions published an entire guide on the topic. Still, there’s a lot to learn and consider if you’re a solutions provider.  During a session on the topic at the Fall ONE Ingram Micro conference in Las Vegas Jeff Yelton, executive director and GM DC/POS, spoke to a packed room about the trends leading up to EMV and the importance of compliance...  Continue Reading..

Yesterday kicked off the Fall ONE Ingram Micro conference in Las Vegas. Upon arrival, I had the opportunity to catch up with Ingram’s new DC/POS leader, Jeff Yelton. You might recall a recent interview I had with Yelton where he highlighted a handful of technology areas he thought solutions providers should focus to have success. During this conversation, we didn’t talk technology as we did business acumen.  Continue Reading..

I love coming across quick, easy-to-follow advice for solutions providers. During a short presentation at the recently-held GFI MAX Customer Conference in Orlando, Tony Hayden, president of Sabre Networks, shared his thoughts on why an MSP should adopt many of the practices of restaurant chain Chick-fil-A. He believes the result would be a highly successful business. Here's what the restaurant does that can be applied to your business.  Continue Reading..

The managed services model is all about efficiency. If you’re currently on a break-fix model or not yet fully embracing services, an important step is going to be getting your business in order. At the recently-held GFI MAX Customer Conference in Orlando, Karl Palachuk, MSP and author, Small Biz Thoughts, talked about how standard operating procedures can help MSPs get organized, save time, and make more money.   Continue Reading..

It’s easy for solutions providers to get caught thinking they’re smarter and better than their customers. However, just because you have more IT knowledge than your customers, doesn’t mean you’re better. Have some humility. That was the advice of Jason Etheridge, president and CEO of Logic Speak, who spoke at the recently held GFI MAX Customer Conference in Orlando. During his presentation on technology humility, he...  Continue Reading..

Day one of GFI's annual partner conference kicked off today in Orlando. Approximately 400 partners are in attendance, making this GFI's largest conference to date. Not only are there more people, but the education agenda appears to be hitting new heights as well. Following are my notes from the first part of the day. Notes from the breakout sessions will follow in the coming days.  Continue Reading..