The ASCII Edge MSP event series stopped in Chicago this week, hosting managed service and IT solution providers at the Hyatt Regency Schaumburg on September 20-21. It was the eighth stop on The ASCII Group’s 2023 two-day, multicity conference tour, which 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 building a profitable cloud practice, why hacking is a fast-growing industry, the secret to recruiting, hiring, and training techs, and more. The day also featured two peer presentations by Ken Wong, founder and CEO of DragonTek International, on “Hacker’s Perspective: Is Your MSP Ready for Me?”; and David Stinner, founder and CEO of US itek, on solving talent and hiring challenges at 25% of the salaries your competitors are paying.
In addition, there was a panel discussion on “Quiet Quitting: How to Inspire, Motivate, and Keep Staff,” with executives from Binox MSP, Devolutions, and Virtue.
The day ended with an evening networking reception.
Day two opened with a welcome from Jerry Koutavas, ASCII Group president, followed by keynote speaker Brittany Hodak, who discussed how to turn customers into lifelong partners. Hokak shared the proprietary five-step SUPER Fan System she developed running successful campaigns and products for globally known brands.
There were sessions throughout the day on growing cloud MRR with managed desktop, leveraging risk assessments for lead gen, and more, plus a thought leadership panel on security with experts from DataStream Cyber Insurance, HacWare, and OpenText. Brian Johnson, CEO of AVC Technology, delivered the peer session on “Building Blocks MSPs Need to Achieve Repeatable Growth YoY.”
Wrapping up the day was keynoter 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: Solutions Granted
- Best Keynote Day 2: US Signal
- Best Market Opportunity Day 1: Galactic Advisors
- Best Market Opportunity Day 2: ScalePad
- Best Education Day 1: HelpDesk.tech
- Best Education Day 2: CyberQP
- Best Presentation Day 1: Solutions Granted
- Best Presentation Day 2: Kaseya
- Best Partner Incentives: Solutions Granted
- Best Partner Support: Pax8
- Best Revenue Generator: CyberGuard360
- Best Channel Program: Solutions Granted
- Most Innovative Solution: CyberGuard360
- Best Newcomer: AlertOps
- Best Featured Educational Session: Ken Wong
- Best in Show: Solutions Granted
- Best Partner Involvement: Barracuda, Pax8, QuoteWerks
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 the Washington, D.C., metro area on October 18-19. For more info go here.
