A two-day thought leadership conference in Austin week exposed something I haven’t seen enough of in the small and medium business (SMB) Managed Services Provider (MSP)niche. It was akin to attending Saturday sessions in grad school as part of an MBA program
(full disclosure I went to night school with weekend sessions when I completed my MBA ‘cause I worked at an S&L during the day). Next+ brought back a flood of happy memories and feelings.
The vibe was executive-level collaboration and ideation. The demographic was MSP practice owners, D&H line cards vendor execs (easily spotable cause they wore the tell-tell suit jackets) and D&H mid-level employees (and above) dressed fancy and ready to dance.
The conversations were high-level by design. Presentations ranged from a Jay McBain-like channel econometrics (although Jay, a chief analyst at Omdia wasn’t there). D&H exec Colin Blair delivered a capable presentation that, after presenting the trillion dollar economic opportunity, was laced with a few salivating nuggets like the inversion of capex versus opexe spending patterns in our space the past several years (this will be featured in an upcoming podcast). I’m STEALING that conversation for my future presentations (which is the strongest form of flattery).
Long-time friend of the SMB Nation family and the channel reseller community, Jason Bystrak had the kick-off keynote and for me it was about D&H internals such as growth from $3.7B to $7B in gross revenue the past several years. That surprised me because I thought “traditional” old school pick-and-pack distis were under extreme economic pressure. But clearly D&H has pivoted and is the subject of a podcast with Bystrak coming shortly.
Other Observations
- World class motivational speaker Eric Qualman, a frequent keynote at tech events, was good for a giggle taking at least one thang away.
- Didn’t hear the “T” words like tariffs and the T-in-DC.
- Overheard numerous conversations about shipping delays, price increases (a big part of some vendor keynotes)
- The fluidity of pronoun role definition and how there is an emerging non-binary blurring between MSP, Value-added Reseller (VAR), System integrator (SI) and ye olde break-fix “computer guy” lol.
- No trade show floor or display booths - THANK GOD!
- It was a small show format between 200-and-300 highly qualified attendees.
What it wasn’t?
- The following event formats, which I respect, weren’t present at Next+
- Hands-on Labs (HOLs)
- Technical training sessions
- Six Pack Joe’s and Blue Collar Bob’s. For many years in the 2009-2014 time frame, SMB Nation participated in the one-day D&H trade show in Hershey PA that was for the hard and honest working man. This wasn’t the same format and that was interesting to me upon my arrival.
"Through our Experience Centers, Success Path training programs, and a variety of partner-focused events throughout the year, D&H provides hands-on technical education and solution enablement to help partners build expertise and grow their practices. NEXT+ complements those efforts by creating a forum for executives and business leaders to focus on leadership, market trends, business strategy, and the opportunities shaping the future of the channel.” shared Bystrak.
Final musings
Is Next+ our Jackson Hole retreat or Sun Valley Summer camp for Billionaires but without the private jets?