TL;DR As a collective, The Tech Tribe – An Awesome Online Community for MSPs, has started hosting local gatherings. The purpose of these groups is for Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to share their thoughts and ideas on how to grow their business. Here is what happened when I attended The Tech Tribe Midlands meeting.
What is The Tech Tribe Midlands Meeting about?
The Tech Tribe Midlands group meet on the second Thursday of each month at the Village Hotel in Walsall, in the West Midlands.
It provides MSP and IT business owners with an opportunity to get together to discuss hot topics, air their frustrations and share their wins with their peers.
Chaired by Gareth Westwood of Quietly Confident Technology Ltd, and supported by Karl Bellingham of 2LOGIC Ltd as Vice Chair.
The UK groups are kindly sponsored by Pax8, who cover the cost of room hire and refreshments. That means there is no charge for any attendees!
The Tech Tribe Midlands group are open to anyone who works in the Managed Service Provider (MSP) industry. You don’t have to be a Tech Tribe member, and there is no obligation to attend them each month. However, you do need to register for each event, because spaces are limited!
What we discussed
Recent Wins
We began with introductions around the table, where normally, those present list their ‘pain points’.
We also gave examples of our recent ‘wins’ — ranging from bringing onboard a new client, to hiring a new member of staff, to firing a troublesome client!
One attendee’s example of a win was that all of their outstanding invoices had been paid on time.
Another attendee‘s ‘win’ was improving automation services to clients.
For another attendee, his win was resolving a troubling Wi-fi conflict at one his client’s sites.
Issues and Concerns
Among all the issues we discussed, there were two that stood out in the meeting:
- The UK’s PSTN network will switch off in 2025 – how it will affect MSPs and their clients?
- New pricing structures for Microsoft 365 for businesses – is it better to provide a full breakdown for clients or impose a blanket uplift to cover costs?
After some discussion, a flat increase to services from March 2022 was the preferred best option.
In conclusion, Gareth summed it up, saying; “It should come as no surprise to clients that most vendors impose an annual price increase.”
Opinion Poll
The group discussed which laptops were the best to supply to their clients.
According to the group, one provider stood out as the best, in terms of value, reliability and customer service, based on collective experience.
As a result, The Tech Tribe Midlands Meeting group gave these providers as their top 3:
Future Tech Tribe Midlands Meetings and Promotion
I asked about promoting future gatherings.
Karl reasoned “smaller groups were better, because it’s easier to participate in the discussion.”
Gareth added, that if there was interest from other local tech businesses, they would be welcome to attend – even if they’re not members of The Tech Tribe!
If you are interested in attending the midlands meetings, you can find out more details via The Tech Tribe Local Meetups page.
In Conclusion
The format of The Tech Tribe Midlands meetup was informal and welcoming, so it appeals to the MSP business owner who wants to share their frustrations, while networking with their local peers.
These meetings can be a very valuable resource for any MSP owner who realises that it’s faster to grow your business through collaboration and learning, than it is to go it alone.
Therefore, do you think that your MSP business could benefit from meetings like this?
I’m intrigued to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment below or get in touch.
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I'm a small business owner, technical writer and blogger, with 15 years experience in corporate IT. I frequently attend MSP peer groups and create content relevant to IT service providers and business owners.
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