Articles By Jim Roddy

31. INSPIRE Speaker Shows Our Channel Needs More Creativity 2/1/2016

    I will have deathbed regrets. There are a few things I wish I never said, several missed opportunities I wish I’d taken advantage of, and many, many shots I missed back in my basketball playing days.

32. RSPA INSPIRE 2016: First Impressions From San Diego 2/1/2016

    RSPA INSPIRE is one of my favorite events of the year because of the relaxed and candid atmosphere. Leading executives in the retail IT channel gather in a gorgeous locale (this year at the Park Hyatt Aviara Resort in San Diego Jan. 31 to Feb. 3) and engage with each other across four days of education, networking, and excursions.

33. 6 Words Most Heard At NRF 2016 1/26/2016

    NRF 2016 was in my rear view mirror when I caught a late shuttle bus Jan. 19, but it’s taken me a full week to assemble and analyze my copious notes from the event. I just quickly searched what I jotted down, and these six words appeared the most often.

34. Michael Gerber, Business Solutions Announce Webinar Series For VARs And MSPs 12/10/2015

    Business Solutions and renowned small business author Michael Gerber have formed an educational partnership designed to benefit the entire channel. Beginning in December, Gerber will co-produce with Business Solutions a series of free webinars designed for VAR, MSP, and ISV executives.

35. BSM Is Giving Away $10,175 Marketing Toolkits To ISVs. For Real. 11/19/2015

    Business Solutions is thrilled to introduce a unique event exclusively for ISV (Independent Software Vendor) executives -- ISV IQ Live! ISVs will learn how to distribute their software more widely through expert discussions about raising capital, partnering, and ISV marketing. Scheduled for Feb. 24 in Santa Ana and Oct. 6 in Philadelphia, ISV IQ Live! isn't a hackathon and ISVs won’t be doing any coding at our conference. Instead, they'll spend a full day learning from and networking with forward-thinking, growth-oriented software executives. ISV companies will attend the event for free and will receive at no charge a Business Solutions marketing toolkit valued at $10,175. The toolkit will help ISVs reach both the Business Solutions channel audience and end user decision makers from our sister publications in the healthcare, field technologies, and retail verticals.

36. VARTECH 2015 Keynote Asks, “What's Your 13th Donut?” 11/17/2015

    VARTECH 2015 keynote speaker Mark Scharenbroich's message to several hundred channel executives Sept. 15 was filled with feelings of humility, gratefulness, and the power of a kind word. Following are golden nuggets and top quotes from Scharenbroich’s moving welcome to BlueStar’s annual partner conference:

37. VARTECH 2015 Media Panel: “Dandelion Marketing” And Other Terms VARs Need To Know 11/17/2015

    The media panel discussion at VARTECH 2015 was a learning experience for the hundreds of channel executives in attendance. Following are three terms that played a role in our conversation that I wanted to share with you. It will behoove VARs to understand and master these.

38. Fast Facts (Plus Opinions) From VARTECH 2015 11/17/2015

    Here are stories, quotes, and notes from the first full day of VARTECH 2015 —  written from the docks at CocoCay, The Bahamas. The day was intriguing, interesting, and gratifying at different times. Here are some of the stories, quotes, and notes I jotted while traversing from deck-to-deck.

39. RetailNOW 2015: Distributors Focus On Managed Services, So Should You 9/3/2015

    When BlueStar and ScanSource, the two most powerful distributors in the point of sale and data collection space, commit significant resources to an initiative, everyone in the channel better pay attention or risk falling behind.

40. RetailNOW 2015 Panel Details How To “Compete In Changing Times” 8/24/2015

    Change was not only in the air at RetailNOW 2015, it was on the agenda, the stage, the literature, the signage, and it boomed across the sound system in the general session and in seemingly every breakout room. One education session that laser-focused on this topic was “Creating The Right Business Model to Compete in Changing Times,” held Tuesday, Aug. 4.