NinjaRMM is gaining MSP partner momentum in the data protection, backup and disaster recovery (BDR) market. The evidence: Roughly 500 MSP partners now run Ninja Data Protection, a cloud-based BDR platform that launched in August 2020.
In fact, the Ninja Data Protection platform now protects 1.5 petabytes of business data on over 7,500 workstations and 1,200 servers, NinjaRMM revealed in a March 2021 blog.
NinjaRMM, founded in 2013, is better known for its cloud-based remote monitoring and management (RMM) platform. The overall NinjaRMM ecosystem now spans about 5000+ partners -- a significant figure, though admittedly smaller than rivals such as Datto (17,000) and N-able (25,000).
Still, NinjaRMM is quietly expanding its MSP software platform and market footprint -- generally through R&D rather than acquisitions.
NinjaRMM's Long-term Strategy: Harness Internal, Organic R&D
Private equity firm Summit Partners led a $30 million investment in NinjaRMM in 2020. Take a closer look, and you'll notice that the Summit Partners investment came from the firm's venture capital arm rather than private equity operations.
Why does that matter? The short answer involves NinjaRMM maintaining majority control of its business while hiring more engineers to drive R&D in existing and new areas.
Keep in mind: NinjaRMM CEO Sal Sferlazza and peers previously built PacketTrap (a network-centric RMM platform) and Anchor (file sync and sharing for MSPs). Those companies were ultimately acquired by Quest Software in 2009 and Axcient (formerly eFolder) in 2013, respectfully.
Fast forward to present day. Call it an educated hunch: I sense that Sferlazza and the NinjaRMM team are thinking much longer-term with the current company -- quietly writing new code instead of scouring the market for a potential exit, and avoiding the temptation to make pricy acquisitions.
Publicly, the company emphasizes its expanding RMM and BDR capabilities. Privately, it's a safe bet NinjaRMM is preparing additional applications/capabilities that run on the cloud-based platform. If/when NinjaRMM launches that "next" service, it will surface as a "point-click-activate" option in NinjaRMM's existing MSP dashboards -- rather than requiring post-launch integration add-ons, ChannelE2E believes.
Meanwhile, reinforcements have arrived on the sales and marketing front. Recent hires include Duo Security veteran Dean Yeck as chief revenue officer.
NinjaRMM: Core R&D Also Continues
Moreover, work continues on the company's core RMM software capabilities. For instance, the latest NinjaRMM 5.1 release supports:
- a new native Apple iPad app;
- reporting enhancements and tighter integrations with Datto’s Autotask PSA (professional services automation) software;
- improved security for Splashtop remote control sessions; and
- various user interface enhancements.
No doubt, NinjaRMM needs to stay nimble. In addition to facing traditional rivals like ConnectWise, Datto, Kaseya and N-able, the company must also fend off competition from upstarts such as the newly funded Atera and Synchro; network-centric RMM such as Auvik Networks; and numerous BDR companies that increasingly pursue MSPs as partners and customers.
Where might NinjaRMM head next? That's a blog for another time...
