ASCII Edge 2025: Insights from Jerry Koutavas (EP 792)

[Uncle Marv]

All right, folks, first up here with the podcast, Jerry Koutavas from ASCII here in Orlando. And a very interesting spot that you guys picked here. Everybody kind of likes the fact that it's at the airport.

[Jerry Koutavas]

Yeah.

[Uncle Marv]

But then again, they're like, but it's at the airport.

[Jerry Koutavas]

Yeah, it is very interesting. So the team picked this spot from a convenience perspective, and it's definitely unique because if someone says they're going to miss a flight, that's on them completely. Right.

Because we are right here in the middle of the airport. We're seeing all the activity, but we have just a great space with the Hyatt. And the setting is unique without a doubt, but obviously the camaraderie we're seeing here never changes.

It's great to see everyone come together and talk and network and learn from each other.

[Uncle Marv]

Great, great. So let's talk about some changes that I noticed the last time I logged into the member portal. First of all, I couldn't get in.

I had to redo something and get in. And then I was looking for something really specific, but the portal looks completely different. So what's going on there?

[Jerry Koutavas]

Yeah, so you know, from a member perspective, we started looking at ways that we can improve how our members interact with each other. And the key thing that we saw that was needed was this instant ability to get things done rather than wait on sort of the staff to handle the requests manually in a sense. So we looked at key functionality of the site and just as much as possible automated.

And I know my team is very much customer focused, so we still have people in the loop if things aren't being responded to. But getting right into it, essentially our members have a great capability of going into the site and using it to find subcontractor work or to actually find other smart hands across North America. So those requests are sent to everybody in the ASCII MSP community.

And it's pretty amazing in terms of the response that people are having with that piece of functionality. And there's a lot more. The one thing that I thought was really interesting that we added was the ability for a member to profile their business that they may be looking to sell their particular company.

We've done it in a manner that protects the confidentiality of the business. But by posting that business, they're getting a lot of response. So it got to the point where the companies that actually did post their business, we had to add additional functionality for them to pause the number of inquiries.

So they were inundated with requests about that particular opportunity. So these are just a couple areas that the members are seeing that are new, that they're leveraging. And there's some additional things that we're doing in the future.

[Uncle Marv]

Nice, nice. So I should go back and let everybody know. So we are here in Orlando.

This is the second stop of the 2025 ASCII Edge. And we just kind of went sideways with the member portal because I am an ASCII member. There are a lot of ASCII members here.

We've got the member meeting that we have. A lot of guests here as well. How are we looking this year with expanding ASCII, getting out there, recruiting new members as I go?

[Jerry Koutavas]

Sure. So for the people that don't know who ASCII is, ASCII is a great network of MSP owners that just look at us as a means to work with other peers across the country. And everybody elevate themselves in terms of their business.

And people rely on each other in a manner that I have not seen before. And this is something that did not happen overnight. ASCII has been around for about 40 years.

So from a membership perspective, people are seeing that the idea of working with the community matters more now than ever. As technology is changing, and it's changing so quickly, people need to realize that there might be opportunities where they're going to miss in the market, where they need to connect with people, see what is actually happening, and what's the reality. But more importantly, making sure that they're relevant and they maintain that relevancy.

Because things are moving at a pretty good clip. So our industry is definitely going to be pivoting again. And I think this pivot is going to be way different than the evolution from Break Fix to managed services.

So that sort of facet, if you will, in terms of this next move our industry is going to undertake, it's a different ball game altogether. And what's great, and I love technology, I'm a geek at heart, and the one thing I am just completely blessed to be in a position with ASCII is the ability to see technology before everybody sees it. And we're seeing it now in so many different ways that it's going to help prepare our group for future services that they're going to absolutely need to provide that they're not providing today.

And so it's a good thing. And again, that's one of the benefits of ASCII is that not only do you get the opportunity to have an extra set of eyes or ears or hands to help your business in terms of listening to what's happening today or seeing what's going on in the future or building a potential opportunity with a partner across state lines, but ASCII corporate is getting access to technology well in advance before people even realize it's available. And with that comes advantages, not only from a competitive standpoint, but from just a general business standpoint to make sure that you are remaining relevant bottom line in terms of where you are today and where you need to be.

[Uncle Marv]

Yeah, I will say definitely between the partnerships that ASCII has with the vendors to be able to get that information and just the member communication itself to whether it's the ASCII forum, these events. A lot of times we hear about stuff from other ASCII members before we hear from the vendors themselves. So it's true.

[Jerry Koutavas]

So true. I know that we have a lot of people on discussion boards. You have Reddit, you have Facebook groups, but there is something to be had when the only people that are discussing a topic are owners and there's no vendors involved.

And those owners are paying a fee that belong to a group. So you're filtering out people that may not completely have the business acumen to even comment on some things. And because of that, you're having a deeper, more relevant conversation.

And that intelligence is so much more valuable, if you will, because the people that are in the group, you know, it's almost like this filtration process where the people that are commenting and participating, that content has much more quality compared to some of the other things that we see out and available for MSPs. So it's an important thing.

[Uncle Marv]

It is. Well, as I mentioned, this is stop two of the ASCII Edge tour. I think we have eight this year.

[Jerry Koutavas]

Correct.

[Uncle Marv]

Anything that we can leak out about the ASCII Cup?

[Jerry Koutavas]

Nothing yet. I know that I can tell you this, though. We're going to be ending the event in October in Philadelphia.

This is our first time going to that particular city. And it's going to be wonderful to serve the members there in that market. So we are our team is working behind the scenes on what the soiree will be in terms of the end of the year party.

You know, I know last year we had a lot of fun in Tampa. We had a whole 80s theme and everybody was dressed up and had the DeLorean out in the hallway. And they had the ruby lighted disco floor.

It was just it was just kind of a comical. But we are going to make it fun. But on the serious side, I can tell you this, though, from event perspective, the content that is being delivered at the event is definitely at the next level.

We had someone talking this morning on mental health, which is a big thing in our history that a lot of people don't want to talk about. We felt it was important because there's so much pressure on our industry to perform in the and just simply, you know, running an MSP is not for the meek. And there's a lot of pressure on owners and their employees.

So having that conversation was really important. So we have that. And then also we have people talking about mergers and acquisitions because a lot of the industry is aging out.

And so we have a member that basically came up with a strategy on how to look at acquisitions. And he goes deep into the topic. And this has been just amazing to hear.

And the members are obviously really accepting the information they share. Which, again, is part of why ASCII is so unique. You have people that are really competitors.

But if you're an ASCII member, they don't look at it that way. They're willing to share. And that's why even though we have roughly twelve to thirteen hundred members, that number it's not a number.

It's sort of like those people matter more. So the strength of the community is not the number of members. It is how that community performs and how people work together.

So it's really important that people recognize that because we see it day in, day out in terms of what people are getting from their peers. It's just amazing.

[Uncle Marv]

Well, Jerry, thank you very much for hopping over to the table first to get us kicked off here for ASCII EDGE Orlando. And thanks for explaining how the Hyatt at the airport turned out to be a great place.

[Jerry Koutavas]

Absolutely. Absolutely. Well, we appreciate it.

And if anyone's interested in looking at our next road show, it's events.ascii.com. And Marvin, we really do appreciate you working with us.

[Uncle Marv]

Thanks for having me. We'll see you soon.

[Jerry Koutavas]

Sorry, I was a little bit off.