The ASCII Edge MSP event series touched down in Dallas this week, hosting managed service and IT solution providers at the Grand Hyatt DFW on April 19-20. It was the third stop on The ASCII Group’s 2023 two-day, multicity conference tour. ASCII Edge is an evolution of the company’s flagship conferences, formerly called ASCII Success Summits, and includes more than 20 strategy sessions covering operations, technical, leadership, marketing, and sales topics.
On day one, Jessie Devine, vice president of channel development for ASCII, welcomed attendees, who heard sessions on security, organizational maturity, marketing, cloud, hiring and retention, sales, and more. The day also featured two peer presentations by Jeffrey Loy, president, I.T. Worx; and Brian Johnson, CEO, of AVC Technology.
In addition, there was a panel discussion on “Quiet Quitting – How to Inspire, Motivate and Keep Staff,” with with executives from Infrassist, Axcient, and Nodeware discussing real-world strategies.
The day ended with an evening networking reception.
In addition to sessions on sales, automation, security, and the state of MSPs, a panel of executives from Data Stream Cyber Insurance, OpenText, Zyxel discussed security issues.
The peer session on solving talent and hiring challenges at 25% the salaries your competitors are paying was delivered by David Stinner, founder and CEO of US itek.
Wrapping up the day was keynote speaker Blake Lemoine, an ex-Google engineer who saw first-hand the cutting edge of artificial intelligence and where it will lead. Lemoine separated fact from fiction about AI, highlighting advances and how they will disrupt industries, and examining how MSPs can leverage these technologies to grow their businesses.
In addition, attendees voted to award the following:
- Best Keynote Day 1 – CyberGuard360
- Best Keynote Day 2 – Pia
- Best Market Opportunity Day 1 – CyberGuard360
- Best Market Opportunity Day 2 – Security Studio
- Best Education Day 1 – Solutions Granted
- Best Education Day 2 – Security Studio
- Best Presentation Day 1 – Solutions Granted
- Best Presentation Day 2 – ScalePad
- Best Partner Incentives – Pax8
- Best Partner Support – Pax8
- Best Revenue Generator – US Signal
- Best Channel Program – Pax8
- Most Innovative Solution – Pia
- Best Newcomer – Humanize IT
- Best Featured Educational Session – David Stinner
- Best in Show – Solutions Granted
- Best Partner Involvement – Pax8, Zorus, Calyptix
The ASCII Group is a membership-based community of independent North American MSPs, MSSPs, and solution providers. Next up on the ASCII Edge tour is Newark, N.J. on May 24-25. For more info go here.
