2021 was a RIDE! We started off very apprehensive, then we saw the economy start to pick up in 2nd quarter. THEN everything threatened to go south again...and the economy picked up steam again to a crazy level where we are hurting for employees! Once thing is for certain, 2022 wont be just another normal year. We are seeing issues with supply chain still and companies are looking for ways to grow in spite of this.
What do we know?
We are kicking off a year where businesses are feeling much more confident and are more likely to commit to bigger purchases that were skipped over the last few years. Thigs like employee traning, travel, and new product launches to hit the shifting buyers market. Things that are still iffy....supply chains...we cannot predict when those will stabilize.
With MSPs revving up to deliver on 2022 they should keep all of this in mind, we can push as hard as we want on hardware purchases but with the supply chain still unstable we need to push on things we can deliver now rather than rely on Just in Time inventory.
What can we do?
It is also time to think about investing in our employees: can we get them more training, or coaching, or even send them on a vacation? All these see a rise in productivity and employee satisfaction. Empowering employees is always a good choice and should be at the top of your list for strengthing your company's forcast.
Another thing to look at is training your clients. CyberSecurity threats have been crazy during the lockdown and people are wanting confidence that they are doing everything they can. There are also great opportunities to train staff on using the cloud better or even a fun VR workshop where you bring in an Oculus Quest and show staff how to use the business functions of VR!
Even better if you have schools as clients, run them through educational resources in VR such as "Wander", Ocean Rift" or "The body VR" there are a ton more and this is definately a hook you can use to get schools interested in your services!
Final Thoughts
As an MSP you have so much more to deliver than hardware. Sure it is easy to sell hardware then the services to support it. Many of you have fallen into that rut. Now is your chance to implement change, it wont be the same for all of us, but we all must adapt if we want to move forward with confidence.
Whichever way you go to bolster your 2022 roadmap, just give it thought. Don't treat this like just another operational year. Think it through and watch your MSP bloom!