Education Lineup Announced For Channel Transitions Orlando Conference

Four managed services experts will share their insights at the Channel Transitions VAR/MSP Executive Conference, powered by Business Solutions, on November 5 at the DoubleTree Orlando Airport. These experts are eager to help their fellow VARs, MSPs, and ISVs learn more about transitioning to the as-a-Service business model.

The morning session will be highlighted by a keynote address from David Wilkeson, a former solutions provider owner, COO, and CIO who is now a consultant for MSPs. He has 25+ years of experience building profitable technology services companies, the latest being an 85-employee managed services and cloud company.

“David gave one of the best analogies I’ve heard about recurring revenue when he spoke at our October 2014 Channel Transitions conference in Chicago,” said Jim Roddy, president of Business Solutions. “He said, ‘Do you want to slaughter the cow or do you want to milk the cow?  If you slaughter the cow every month, you have to try to find a cow to replace it.’ I’m delighted that solutions providers have the opportunity to hear David speak in Orlando.”

More about Wilkeson’s advice at the 2014 Channel Transitions conference can be found online:

• Channel Transitions Midwest Panel: Find The Pain
• Channel Transitions Midwest Panel: What You Need To Know About The MSP-Customer Relationship

The afternoon session will be highlighted by panel of VARs-turned-MSPs:

• Greg Zolkos is the CEO of Atlas Professional Services in Tampa, FL. He has earned 40% revenue growth two years in a row, and Atlas was named to the Tampa Fast 50, Florida Fast 100, and the Inc. 5000 list of fastest growing companies in America. You can read more about Zolkos in the “Confessions Of A Managed Services Convert” article from the July 2015 issue of BSM.
   
• Jason Etheridge is the President & CEO of Logic Speak in Atlanta, GA. Logic Speak had 15% revenue growth in 2013 and a 40% growth in 2014. He has 18+ years of IT management and consulting experience and was featured in the September 2014 issue of BSM in the article “Find Your Cloud Services Niche.”
   
• Tom Clancy, Co-Founder of Valiant Technology, has been selling managed services since 2007 and had revenue growth range between 14%-30% annually. In addition to speaking at Channel Transitions conferences in Boston and Newark, he was also featured in the September 2015 BSM article “Now Is The Time To Make The IT Services Sales Shift.”

The education at Channel Transitions will address real-world issues such as cash flow, funding the as-a-Service transition, hiring and training sales reps, compensation models, pricing and bundling services, marketing, automation tools and choosing partners, service level agreements, and overcoming objections. Attendees are encouraged to bring their questions to the conference and network with these speakers and other solutions providers.

The panels and Q&A sessions will be moderated by Business Solutions magazine editor-in-chief Mike Monocello, a former IT reseller who has 14 years of channel experience interacting with hundreds of VARs, MSPs, and ISVs, and Business Solutions president Jim Roddy who has 17 years of channel experience.

There will also be product breakout sessions in the afternoon, along with a networking lunch with product demos, and a networking reception.

For more information on the Channel Transitions VAR/MSP Executive Conference, visit www.ChannelTransitions.com or email Abby.Sorensen@BSMinfo.com.

Active VARs, MSPs, and ISVs can redeem a complimentary registration online by using the promo code BSM01.

Channel Transitions is sponsored by MAXfocus, Worldpay, Mercury, GreatAmerica, Moneris, SYNNEX, and Webroot along with industry association partners CompTIA, The ASCII Group, and the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA).

Business Solutions is the channel leader in educating VARs, MSPs, and ISVs on the transition to the as-a-Service business model and establishing a recurring revenue stream. Business Solutions has published several feature stories, case studies, opinion columns, and special guides on this important topic. BSM subscribers said they wanted even more information — including the opportunity to network with other channel partners who are focused on this transition and services-oriented vendors. From that, the Channel Transitions VAR/MSP Executive Conferences were born.