694 MSP Growth Strategies with Dori Spade

[Uncle Marv]
Hello friends, Uncle Marv here with another episode of the IIT Business Podcast coming at you live from Boston. We are here at the ASCII Edge live event here at the Marriott Hotel and we are, I don't know, about halfway through day two. But I have a very interesting guest, one of the, I'm going to call you a keynote speaker.

I don't know if you are or not, but I'll take that. I am joined by Dori Spade with Call to Action and a very interesting group here. So, Dori, welcome to the show.

[Dori Spade]
Thank you very much, Marv.

[Uncle Marv]
All right. So let me first start with the fact that some of the ASCII girls were like, oh, we have someone for you to interview. They were trying to give me all the highlights and stuff.

So I guess one of the first things to chat about and understand is that you exited an MSP last year. So you were in the MSP space. You're still in the MSP space, not in the exact same role.

So real quick, tell me about that.

[Dori Spade]
Yes. So I've been in the MSP space for about 17 years. I've worked at three different MSPs.

My last MSP, we exited last year. I've worked in everything from $8 million MSP up to over $100 million national MSP. So I've really run the gamut of MSPs and I love the space.

[Uncle Marv]
OK. So you want somebody like us who started an MSP. So you got in and worked. What was your actual role in the companies?

[Dori Spade]
Primarily service delivery. But I did have a role as a general manager, which meant that I was also over sales, customer success and services.

[Uncle Marv]
The joyful parts of the business that most techs don't pay attention to.

[Dori Spade]
Well, there's a lot there's a lot they have to worry about, too.

[Uncle Marv]
You're right. OK. So you exited it last year.

So from $8 million to the multi-multi-million. Let me ask just real quick for my own edification. The difference in an $8 million MSP and the big boy MSP.

Is there a huge difference?

[Dori Spade]
You know, the framework still needs to be the same. But obviously you have a lot more resources. You have a lot more customers and quite frankly, have a lot more to worry about.

But you still have to follow the same guiding principles of providing great customer service, you know, great technical support. All of that really stays the same no matter what size MSP you are.

[Uncle Marv]
All right. Did you have kind of like, I guess, like a pillars or tenants of customer success that you, you know, worked by?

[Dori Spade]
Well, we did. We always did have that. I'd say a little later on or further into my career, one thing that was one of our guiding lights was our quarterly business review process.

And we use that not just as a namesake of, yeah, we do QBRs, but we really used it as a way to oversee our customers, provide IT roadmaps, budgets and really look strategically at our clients. And I started that early on. But over the years, really matured that process with my team, with the help of my team.

[Uncle Marv]
All right. We could dive deeper there, but I'm going to try to move on. Yeah.

So your company now called to action. What specifically are you doing with that?

[Dori Spade]
So now I am helping other MSPs with a lot of the challenges that I worked through over my years in the industry. Try to shortcut some of those problems and challenges that they have. And help guide them through to their success.

[Uncle Marv]
Any problems that pop up on a regular basis that you see from people like us?

[Dori Spade]
Yes, I'd say a couple of key ones tend to be lack of clarity in roles and responsibilities is one that I often see from, you know, small organizations on up to larger MSPs. And even if it's only a two or three person MSP, they still have to have those functions. So you might be wearing three or four hats, but you actually have to know what those roles are.

So I'd say that's probably the most common one that I see.

[Uncle Marv]
OK. So let me ask why the pivot? What made you go from, you know, dealing with customer success and general managing of MSPs to actually wanting to help MSPs?

[Dori Spade]
You know, I just love this space. It is an exciting and invigorating space. It's challenging.

No two days are ever alike. But I have all the respect in the world for MSPs, owners and team members. And so I just think my legacy is to go back and give back to, you know, all that I learned and try and help them find their success.

[Uncle Marv]
All right. Were you guys a member of ASPE before?

[Dori Spade]
We were not.

[Uncle Marv]
Oh, OK.

[Dori Spade]
I wish I were, though. In hindsight, I've thought if only I wish that we were a member.

[Uncle Marv]
I mean, did you know about ASPE and just not be members or?

[Dori Spade]
You know, we didn't we didn't engage in a lot of support groups. And again, it was probably if I had it to do over, that would definitely be one of my do overs.

[Uncle Marv]
OK. Well, then let me ask what led you to ASPE here today?

[Dori Spade]
So I actually was inquiring about being able to attend this conference and I spoke to Jesse and we started talking about my background. And she said, hey, I would love to have you guest speak. And so that's how I came to be here.

[Uncle Marv]
So apparently she's like, no, no, you don't need to be a member. You need to be a teacher.

[Dori Spade]
Right. Well, I couldn't be a member while I could be a vendor.

[Uncle Marv]
Right.

[Dori Spade]
Right. So.

[Uncle Marv]
OK. So is it something where you like saw an advertisement for the event and wanted to come by? Because obviously you're close by.

[Dori Spade]
I am close by, but I also work with other MSPs that are ASPE members.

[Uncle Marv]
OK.

[Dori Spade]
And so they really talk highly about the organization. I'm like, that would probably be a good space for me to go and meet other MSPs and talk about their challenges and their goals. And maybe I can help them.

[Uncle Marv]
All right. So I'm going to I'm going to turn left on you here. So you are talking with MSP.

So is this as part of your consulting company where you met some of these MSPs and they said, oh, yeah, we're members of ASPE?

[Dori Spade]
That's exactly right.

[Uncle Marv]
So I'm going to ask the question and hopefully I won't throw any of them under the bus. But I'm going to say if they're members of ASPE and they're talking to you. I mean, ASPE should help them already have some of that stuff in place.

[Dori Spade]
It does. It definitely does. But there are always, you know, the one on one coaching that sometimes they're looking for.

And I work with some of the folks, Sean, we've mentioned from Encore, Sean and Dave, that are big, you know, ASCII folks. So, yeah, that's it was just a way that they wanted to continue the conversation.

[Uncle Marv]
OK, so kind of pivoting back to a question I asked you earlier and what you're seeing in some of the members. I guess one of the things that always gets MSPs stuck is this idea of scaling.

[Dori Spade]
Yes.

[Uncle Marv]
And since you're focusing on that, I did ask you, what are some of the things that you normally see? But is there a level of MSP that you see when it's right for them to scale or there, you know, they want to scale, but they're stuck?

[Dori Spade]
I think there is not a specific level. I think scaling starts from being a one man show or a two man show and how you grow from there and what your growth goals are. So it really can apply to any size of an organization.

But there's more moving parts the bigger that you get. OK, so you may need a little bit more help as you get a little bit bigger. You might be stuck in your own way.

Even actually smaller MSPs can get stuck, as you as you probably know.

[Uncle Marv]
I'm stuck.

[Dori Spade]
Hey, I can help you with that.

[Uncle Marv]
Segway noted. Yeah, it is interesting because people get stuck at different parts of the journey.

[Dori Spade]
Yes.

[Uncle Marv]
And very interesting. So did we just steal some of the material that you're going to be sharing on stage later?

[Dori Spade]
No, not really, because the material that I'm going to be sharing is specifically towards how do you increase your wins on new business sales? And but it's not a sales focused presentation, if you will. It's really about bringing down the silos between services and sales in order to be more successful.

So a little bit of a different angle on it, I guess.

[Uncle Marv]
Well, I look forward to that. And very nice to meet you. And glad to glad to see that your inquiry turned out to be, I'm assuming, a lot more beneficial than what you thought it was going to be.

[Dori Spade]
Very much so. And very exciting. And I'm super impressed by ASCII and the job that they've done in this conference.

And like I said, my only regret is that I didn't get involved sooner.

[Uncle Marv]
All right.

[Dori Spade]
It's a great organization.

[Uncle Marv]
So now that you have been here, I'm sure you'll have a much different perspective once you've gone on stage, once people have reached out to you afterwards. But any plans to attend any more of these?

[Dori Spade]
Yes, absolutely.

[Uncle Marv]
Specifically the ASCII Cup in Tampa?

[Dori Spade]
Well, I don't know about that yet, but I'm glad you mentioned it. I'm going to be looking at all the I have the app now. So I'm going to look at all the different upcoming events and see where we go from there.

[Uncle Marv]
All right. Well, there's a little party that happens there at the last one. That's why I mentioned that.

I mean, you look like you're going to enjoy a party with us.

[Dori Spade]
So at least a glass of wine. All right.

[Uncle Marv]
Well, Dori, thank you very much for stopping by. And I'll be looking forward to your presentation. And thank you for finally reaching out to ASCII.

[Dori Spade]
Thank you, Marv. Thank you so much. It's a pleasure meeting you.

And thank you for having me on your podcast.

[Uncle Marv]
It was a pleasure. Now, hopefully we'll talk again.

[Dori Spade]
Sounds great.

[Uncle Marv]
All right, folks. There you have it. Dori Spade. Call to Action. She can help you grow and scale your MSP. We'll talk to you later.

Holla.