IT Business Podcast Episodes

Recurring revenue is nice. Recurring profitability is what pays the bills. I sat down with Augie Staub, Director of MSP Sales at TD SYNNEX, at Inspire in Greenville, South Carolina, to talk about the difference. We dug into cybersecurity stack standardization, what makes a vendor offering truly useful to MSPs, and why letting every customer pick a different tool can undermine your business. Augie also explained how TD SYNNEX’s dedicated MSP sales team and new MSP ARC program aim to help partners...

Using fewer AI tokens doesn’t automatically mean you’re saving money. I sat down with Andre Van der Post, Vice President of Cloud Solutions at TD SYNNEX, at Inspire in Greenville, South Carolina, to talk about FinOps Fusion and what it takes to manage AI spending beyond the token count. We get into infrastructure costs, poorly written prompts, governance, and the opportunity for MSPs to help clients make smarter decisions. Andre also gets honest about what’s still being built. The takeaway: m...

Dr. Lorne Lavine, better known as The Digital Dentist, joined me to talk about building an IT business that serves one vertical and serves it well. Before becoming an MSP owner, Lorne practiced periodontics, which gave him a real advantage when he started helping dental offices with technology, software decisions, networks, HIPAA, and cybersecurity. We talked about how he grew through credibility, referrals, writing, speaking, and staying focused on dentists instead of trying to support every k...

Charlotte Conroy from Recent Communications joins me for a straight conversation about UCaaS, cloud communications, and why MSPs should stop treating phones like the thing they would rather avoid. Her company works alongside MSPs to help clients move from aging phone systems to supported, reliable communications without turning every phone issue into an internal help desk problem. We talk about competing on value instead of price, the reality of copper-line shutdowns, legacy phone systems tha...

Lucas Dowd and Kevin Townsend, co-founders of Catalyst Shift, join me to talk about a problem just about every MSP knows too well: the data you need to run the business is scattered across your PSA, RMM, CRM, email, accounting, and other tools. The result is too much manual digging, too many disconnected reports, and not enough time in front of the customer having the conversations that actually matter. We talk about their idea of a business operating layer that brings those systems together, l...

I sat down with Andy Syrewicze from Proofpoint MSP Platform to talk about a problem every MSP runs into: Microsoft 365 security looks simple until you start managing it across real client environments. Andy explains how Proofpoint 365 Total Protection, the MSP platform formerly known as Hornetsecurity, brings together email security, Microsoft 365 backup, security awareness training, permission management, DMARC, and tenant standardization. The big takeaway is that security cannot stop at ema...

I sat down with Dave Sobel to talk about why too many MSPs are leaving AI out of their websites, client conversations, and service offerings. We dig into AI governance, shadow AI, Microsoft Copilot, and why simply asking better questions can create real business opportunities. AI is everywhere. It is at every conference, in every vendor presentation, and in every customer conversation. Yet Dave’s research found that 68% of roughly 3,600 MSP websites do not mention AI at all. That means a lot ...

I had a great conversation with Alex and Mariana of MyPCFriends Cybersecurity, a husband-and-wife MSP team based in Kissimmee, Florida. Their story starts with Alex’s computer engineering and break-fix work in Venezuela, continues through the challenges of rebuilding in the United States, and arrives at a business that is more intentional about managed services, cybersecurity, compliance, and serving the right clients. They are now focused on financial services and insurance organizations, with ...

Tom Bull of Two River Computer joins me for a practical conversation about building an MSP around trust, community, and the work clients actually need. Tom shares how his business grew from computer repair and consulting into managed IT, residential technology, Wi-Fi, smart-home projects, and cybersecurity, all while serving smaller businesses that larger MSPs often overlook. We talk about referral relationships, local visibility, Google reviews, and why listening to the customer can matter more...

Sean Lardo, better known around the channel as Mr. IT Nation, joined me for a special conversation following the announcement of the IT Nation PitchIT 2026 finalists: Lemhi, Synthreo, and Blacksmith InfoSec. After a 16-week competitive cohort built around coaching, refinement, and practice, these three companies are now preparing to take the stage at IT Nation Connect Global in Orlando. === Chapters 00:23 PitchIT 2026 Finalists Announcement 01:47 Meet Sean Lardo of IT Nation 03:07 Behind the...

I am catching up on the latest NSITSP activity from August, and there was a lot worth paying attention to. From election and governance updates to advocacy around AI, cybersecurity, right-to-repair, and data centers, I wanted to bring these conversations to the podcast because they affect the business environment MSPs are working in every day. What stood out most to me is that the IT industry needs more than good technicians and great tools. We need people who are willing to get involved, educa...

I talk about why every business owner should be able to access the technology their IT company manages, even if they change providers tomorrow. If they cannot access it, do not know who owns it, or cannot recover it, that is more than an IT problem. It is a business-continuity problem.

I’m talking with Christopher Miller of ATB Technologies about what happens when a major client walks out the door, and why the recovery starts with honest numbers, stronger client relationships, and a real plan. For MSP owners, this is a practical reminder that growth is not just about winning new business. It is about keeping the right clients, protecting your team, and knowing where your business is too exposed.

Chris Miller’s path from sales outsider to MSP co-owner is a real reminder that growth takes more than referrals and good intentions. We talk about building a repeatable sales process, getting clear on your ideal customer, and learning enough about each other’s worlds for sales and technical teams to work together.

I sat down with Brian Weiss from iTech to talk about the messy parts of running an MSP right now: vendor dependency, overlapping tools, AI adoption, and customers who expect us to have every answer. This is a practical conversation about protecting your roadmap while helping clients move forward responsibly.

Not every new tool deserves a migration, and not every prospect is the right client. Cameron shares how SquarePlanIT is weighing AI, PSA and RMM changes, community marketing, and client fit without losing focus on what already works.

Mike Glasman built his MSP while keeping his day job, then designed the business from day one so clients would rely on a help desk and team instead of one owner’s cell phone. We talk about using enterprise experience to stand out, choosing tools based on the real problem, and protecting both your clients and your lifestyle.

Matt Forman from The Local Circuit and I sit down for a good old-fashioned MSP catch-up, covering his steady growth, a changing vendor stack, and why automation is helping his team do more without hiring faster than they need to. We also get into practical AI guardrails, ticket triage, and the tools that save real time in the field. We talk through some decisions MSP owners deal with every day: changing cloud-distribution partners because of payment-processing costs, moving from Synchro to Halo...

Tyler Smith, CEO and Co-Founder of TechAlign, joins the IT Business Podcast to discuss a platform built by MSP professionals to streamline technical alignment reviews and QBRs. TechAlign combines assessments with PSA/RMM data to help IT providers identify client gaps, present recommendations, track remediation, and turn review findings into roadmap and project opportunities. Guest: Tyler Smith Website: https://techalign.app LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-smith-5956b8ba/ === Chapt...

Michelle Coombs, founder of Oprising, joins the IT Business Podcast as a member of the 2026 IT Nation/ConnectWise PitchIT cohort. Oprising is a service optimisation platform that helps MSPs turn continual service improvement into structured, visible work—assessing operational capability, prioritising actions, assigning accountability, and tracking progress across people, process, technology, and customer experience. Guest: Michelle Coombs Website: https://www.oprising.com LinkedIn: https://www...

Steve Martin, CEO of FrictionlessIT, joins the IT Business Podcast to discuss FITware, a profit-intelligence platform built for MSPs. FITware brings together operational, financial, service-delivery, capacity, and client-experience data to help providers spot profit leaks, reinforce accountable behaviors, and make more informed growth decisions. Guest: Steve Martin Website: https://frictionlessit.net LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevemartin10/ === Chapters 00:00 Introducing Steve Ma...

Saurabh Sandhir, CEO and Co-Founder of Kipling Secure, joins the IT Business Podcast to discuss AI Detection & Response (AIDR) for MSPs and MSSPs. Kipling Secure helps providers discover shadow AI, monitor AI usage and data exposure, apply governance guardrails, and turn AI security into a recurring managed service. Guest: Saurabh Sandhir Website: https://kiplingsecure.ai/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssandhir/ === Chapters 00:24 Welcome to PitchIT 2026 00:50 Meet Saurabh Sandhir a...

Clayton Mouney, founder of MSP Report Card and a PitchIT 2026 participant, joins the show to discuss a strategic client-management platform for MSP account managers, vCIOs, and CSMs. MSP Report Card helps providers create consistent client-meeting cadences, capture business goals, prepare client-facing reports, and turn conversations into roadmaps rather than purely technical QBRs. Guest: Clayton Mouney, Founder Website: https://www.mspreportcard.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clayt...

Susan Nemeth, Co-Founder and COO of Aportio, joins the IT Business Podcast to discuss AI-powered email and conversation automation built for MSP service desks. Aportio helps IT providers reduce inbox backlog, classify and route incoming work, and improve shared-inbox workflows—while also supporting more consistent discovery and pricing for complex customer solutions. Guest: Susan Nemeth Website: https://www.aportio.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-nemeth-93518222/ === Chapters...