In this episode, Richard Tubb speaks to Dave Tilly, CEO of DaaS Portal.
Dave is revolutionising the way DaaS (device as a service) is delivered in the MSP space, and he tells Richard how he’s going about it.
Dave shares his background and experience in the tech and MSP space, and explains why his DaaS solution came about because of both an obvious need, and through conversations with Pax8.
An Interview with Dave Tilly
What is Device as a Service?
There’s an assumption at the moment that any service described as an ‘aaS’ involves a monthly subscription, which is happening with DaaS. However, those offering Device as a Service in that way is buying hardware and paring it with a licence.
Dave says that in the beginning that’s not so bad. But you have to sort out the lease paperwork and all the other admin. And over time, your clients start adding hardware. Then you have to sort out more lease contracts until it becomes unmanageable. That’s the conventional DaaS offering.
How DaaS Portal Help MSPs to Manage Hardware
Most MSPs will be familiar with the struggle of trying to source hardware for clients. They make a request and you have to go back to them for more details. Then it’s sent to procurement who get a price from distributors. And that’s not all!
The information needs to go to the salesperson, entered into the quoting tool and await customer approval. There could be some haggling or chasing, then the hardware is ordered and shipped. This all takes a really long time.
So, DaaS Portal turn that entire process into an under-a-minute web form for the customer. They ask for a device, the MSP chooses the right hardware from a list, choose a bundle and give the customer address. And we do the rest.
The DaaS Portal Experience for MSPs
The process described above can sometimes take so long that the client goes elsewhere and manages to find the same device at a cheaper price. This causes a headache for the MSP, because there’s a cost to all of these interactions and product searches.
Dave explains: “We wanted to bring a truly zero-touch experience to the MSP. They’re completely abstract and don’t deal with the devices, the peripherals and so on.
“Because let’s be honest – you don’t want your highly-skilled engineers opening boxes, faffing with cables and plugging things in. That’s a waste of resources. So we’ve come up with the simplest, cleanest solution that’s cost-effective.”
Client Self-Service on DaaS Portal
Dave said that they’ll be offering this as an option soon. “It needs to be easy for the customer to say: “HR says we’ve got a new starter and they need some equipment”, and for them to order what they need.
“They can either log on and do it themselves, or the MSP can do it for them in less than a minute. The main thing is that the process is quick, easy and painless for all involved.”
He adds that the ideal situation for the MSPs is to have standardisation across the board. “So the exact same laptop and so on. They’d normally have the job of finding the hardware each time a request comes in, but we’ll do it for them. And that way they don’t even have to think about which pieces of equipment are needed for each role.”
What Happens if a Client Defaults on Their DaaS Agreement
Surprisingly, defaults aren’t a big concern for DaaS Portal. Dave explains: “The biggest challenge we set out to solve was the lease agreement. So when people sign up, the MSP’s clients come into the portal and we log all of their information. Job roles, hardware requirements etc.
“But they only sign once. They don’t have to keep generating leases for every single order. Because we do some clever stuff at the back end. There’s a legal framework in place so lenders are happy with what we do. So fundamentally it’s a lease type product at the back end. If the client defaults, the MSP and DaaS still get paid.”
How DaaS Portal Help MSPs to Explain DaaS to Clients
Dave acknowledges that DaaS might be hard for some MSP clients to understand. So, DaaS Portal provide co-branded marketing material. And the MSP can share it with their customers.
“We have some core messages there. For instance, we talk about culture. You wouldn’t hire someone in a senior role and give them a second-hand laptop. That would damage the client company’s reputation.
“And the other thing we help with is show why holding on to hardware for too long is a false economy. We use simple maths to show that waiting until it’s broken will lead to downtime and loss of income.
“We can also break it down to show the compounding impact over time of an older laptop taking longer to boot up. 30 seconds a day over two years, for instance, really mounts up. Explaining all of this means that DaaS suddenly makes more sense.”
How to Connect With Dave Tilly
- DaaS Portal
- Follow DaaS Portal on LinkedIn
- Connect with Dave Tilley on LinkedIn
- Email the Head of Business Development, James Hughes
How to Connect With Me
- Subscribe to TubbTalk RSS feed
- Subscribe, rate and review TubbTalk in iTunes
- Subscribe and rate TubbTalk on Spotify
- Follow TubbTalk on iHeartRadio
- Follow @tubblog on Twitter
Mentioned in This Episode
- Pax8
- Microsoft InTune
- Cloud Nexus
- Podcast (with Scott Riley): How to Build a Successful Cloud Solution Provider
- Podcast (with Scott Riley): Microsoft Stack and Why MSPs May Consider an Alt Service Desk
- Book: Simon Sinek: Start With Why
- Ecologi
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Richard Tubb is one of the best-known experts within the global IT Managed Service Provider (MSP) community. He launched and sold his own MSP business before creating a leading MSP media and consultancy practice. Richard helps IT business owner’s take back control by freeing up their time and building a business that can run without them. He’s the author of the book “The IT Business Owner’s Survival Guide” and writer of the award-winning blog www.tubblog.co.uk
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