We’ve seen this movie before in the small and medium business (SMB) managed service provider (MSP) community: economic anxiety based on emotion. One example? The 2007-2009 Great Recession financial crisis. But here’s the deal, as you will see below, the data doesn’t lie and the short story above the pay line is that MSPs anticipate growth in 2026. We’re essentially a counter cyclical niche in the technology economic segment. Hopefully by the end of this report, rational behaviors will defy those 3am scary panic attacks. 

Survey Data Double Click

In our main three survey categories, growth won out with over 50% positivity each time - a statistically significant number. The insights gleaned from the infographic below bear this out.

• Growth for the 2026 MSP Win! The three survey categories (Growth, Stable, Decline growth) exceeded 50 percent which will win you an election outright without a run off.
• Gap Analysis. Equally interesting is the margin of growth victory ranging from 25 percent to 10 percent depending on the category. That is predictive of the positivity in the MSP ecosystem. As tghe publication Politico says: it's all in the margins! 
• Debbie Downer. In all category cases, the rate of decline was a small number ranging from single digits except for the “economy” question that came in at 22% infering a 2026 decline in economic activity.

What’s Your Side Hustle?

Some of us are loud and proud about having a side hustle. Others are shy and don’t promote this hidden jewel. And finally there are those that are side hustle celibate among us LOL! 

In this goofy economy where opportunities are being reimagined every day for reasons ranging from A.I. to global economic protectionism, it’s prudent to revisit your business portfolio. Should you expand your market participation to incorporate a side-hustle or three?

Harry Brelsford, at Channel con in Nashville, interviews Carrie Erwin, National Sales Manager of ImageStar, a wholesale distributor of IT business hardware, including print consumables, scanning software, AV equipment, and computers. ImageStar, based in Middletown, Connecticut, with a warehouse in Memphis, Tennessee, has been in business for 35 years. Carrie discusses the impact of tariffs on pricing and the shift in the market towards diversification, particularly in the print industry, as businesses adapt to the end of Windows 10 and the rise of Windows 11. She also mentions Dynabook's new channel partner program for MSPs.

To be or not to be an employee or entrepreneur? Admittedly these are goofy times out there in the macro economy! 

Employment

First - a fresh look at those seeking a J O B. Ya’ gotta do what ya gotta do. There was a fantastic LinkedIn news piece late last week called “The Great Freeze” and is that basis for my post up here. Basically the goofy employment market is like an unkind Goldilocks. Employers don’t want to hire but they don’t want to fire. Existing employees are “frozen” and hangin’ in there. This analysis is close to the mark. 

Second - does posting an “Open To Work” logo on your LinkedIn profile hurt or help.

Fall musings here. Penny production is ceasing and it raises the couple questions.

1. Do channel partners (MSPs, VARs, resellers care? 

2. And do the clients of these channel partners care?

 Jim Roddy, President & CEO for the Retail Solution Provider Association (RSPA) weighed in. “Our VAR and ISV members are mostly focused on electronic payments because solution providers receive a slice of that revenue.”

Coinstar - a recent article on the demise of the penny extensively quoted the CEO of Coinstar.

It’s here again. The End-Of-Life (EOL) for a Microsoft desktop operating system. Been there done that, eh? Who can forget the security risk hype of Windows XP in April 2014? Now, Windows 10 is EOL after a ten year life and the messaging is no more security updates (without a support fee). 

A couple of community and SMB ecosystem thoughts. 

Migrations lag. If anything was learned from the Windows XP EOL era,

Harry Brelsford and Howard Cohen discuss the evolving landscape of AI and its impact on managed service providers (MSPs). Howard highlights his Substack, "Agentic MSP," which focuses on AI's practical applications for MSPs, emphasizing the need for MSPs to adapt their pricing strategies to incorporate AI's efficiency. They touch on the challenges of being early adopters, using Nvidia and Intel as examples. Howard plans to cover AI's influence on pricing in his next post, advocating for value-based pricing. Harry suggests the potential for a monthly podcast to delve deeper into these topics, underscoring the importance of personal branding in setting higher prices and delivering greater value.

Harry Brelsford and Tim Golden discuss their experiences at the first official GT iA Channel Con event in Nashville, highlighting the positive feedback about the venue and content. Tim, a former MSP now working as a compliance vendor, shares his career journey and the importance of risk assessments and policy documentation for MSPs. He mentions a recent acquisition that added a Professional Services Division to augment MSPs' capabilities. Tim also outlines upcoming events, including shows in Canada and Tampa, emphasizing the level playing field for vendors at GT iA events.

Houston we have a PROBLEM with the SMB MSP ecosystem.

Last week at NASA Houston the full AI paradigm shift in the MSP community was laid out at the Thread AI Service Unleashed Conference like NASA did eons ago when folks said it couldn’t be done. Thread is arbitraging the opportunity to lean forward into the future for MSPs like NASA did for space travel. FYI - everyone enjoyed the format as a sub-100 attendee gathering that was intellectually intimate. At the same time,