SolarWinds MSP shared business strategy and software product roadmap updates this week during the SolarWinds Empower MSP conference in Atlanta. ChannelE2E was on hand to gather and analyze all the news.
The highlights so far include...
MSPs Partnering with MSSPs
During an interview with ChannelE2E and MSSP Alert, SolarWinds MSP Director of Business Development Marco Muto and Flexis representative Nick Blozan described how and why MSPs should partner with MSSPs for advanced cybersecurity services, threat management and SOC (security operations center) capabilities.
Tim Brown, VP of Security, SolarWinds MSP
During a Thursday morning keynote, Brown conceded that the overall MSP vendor industry needs to "step up" their security efforts a bit. But he pointed out that SolarWinds MSP itself has invested heavily in security -- addressing everything from secure coding and penetration testing to various certifications.
"We’re not perfect but we understand the risks you face," he pointed out. Brown shared a lengthy list of MSP security tips for the industry to follow.
To compete against large MSSPs, Brown recommended that MSPs focus on (A) letting the good guys do their job and (B) keeping the bad guys out. His point: Big MSSPs only focus on item B, but they don't offer the productivity and user experience services that help business employees perform their daily jobs.
We will update this article soon with key takeaways from Brown's keynote soon.
John Pagliuca, executive VP and GM of SolarWinds MSP
Pagliuca described a challenging marketplace for managed IT services providers. According to the company's research:
- North American MSPs lose three customers for every four acquired.
- European MSPs lose four customers for every five acquired.
Amid that reality, Pagliuca described five pillars that can help MSPs grow their businesses -- as shown in the photo below:
1. On the security front, Pagliuca pointed to three opportunities that will help MSPs to secure their own environments along with customer environments. He told attendees to leverage:
- SolarWinds Endpoint Detection and Response (in partnership with SentinelOne). In the first 90 days of partnering, the relationship has grown to protect 50,000 devices and mitigated 85,000 threats for MSPs, he says.
- an Enhanced Threat Monitoring Service Program, including new partner Flexis (ChannelE2E will share more details soon).
- Passportal, a recently acquired password management platform for MSPs. (ChannelE2E will share more details soon).
2. Automation: Pagliuca mentioned multiple opportunities for automation. We'll share more details soon.
3. Monitoring and Management: Keep an eye on SolarWinds' network management portfolio, he asserted. The Netpath, Network Devices, and Network Topology Mapper capabilities are key areas to note. "Our vision is quite simple; we want to monitor everything," he asserted.
4. Customer Choice: SolarWinds has had open ecosystem partnerships for more than a decade, Pagliuca notes. MSPs are at the center of that ecosystem. A SolarWinds Technology Alliance Program (TAP) will seek at least 20 tighter integrations per year, he added.
5. Work On Your Business, Not Just In Your Business: Going to a conference two days per year isn't enough. Plus, it's not just for the MSP owner or the top tech. To expand business education, SolarWinds MSP continues to promote the SolarWinds MSP Institute -- featuring 120 courses for MSPs across sales, marketing, pricing, customer success and more.
Stay tuned for more updates soon.
