In episode 12, my guest was Josh Weiss the owner of L.A. Creative Technologies, an MSP based in Los Angeles. We chatted about how to move your client from seeing you as a technical doer and fixer to more of a consultant and advisor. It was a great episode. If you haven’t listened to it yet, I encourage you to check it out.
Josh and his team are 100% focused on managed services and project work, but it hasn’t always been that way.
When he first started his company he was doing anything technical that needed to be done from editing podcasts to fixing home PCs. In the last three years, he has made the switch to a professional managed services model.
With this model, he’s more than doubled his revenue last year and is on track for significant growth again this year. At the same time, he’s greatly improved his work-life balance.
Today, Josh shares the keys to the success of his transformation.
Listen here
What’s Going On
[02:27] Richard amd Karl discuss Mary Meeker’s 2018 Internet Trends report. There’s a ton of relevant information in it for managed services providers.
[03:01] Half the world’s population is now on the internet.
[03:43] The growth of technology and the need for electricity to run that technology is going to change the world.
[03:57] American adults are spending more time online thanks to mobile devices: on average, 5.9 hours per day in 2017.
[04:48] People spending too much time on their phones is becoming a problem.
[05:27] Richard is using an app called App Usage to keep track of how he uses his phone.
[06:11] People are shifting their time to mobile faster than mobile ad spending is shifting. Now is the time to consider mobile ads for your MSP, if you’re not already using them.
[06:36] Speech recognition technology has hit 95% accuracy, according to the report. This means voice technology is at an inflection point.
[07:12] Voice will be a big part of the MSP industry.
[07:28] Employees want flexibility and the ability to work from home more than anything else. Freelance work is growing three times faster than total work growth.
[07:59] There’s an entire economy supporting gig workers.
[08:20] Tech investment is at an all-time high. There has never been a better time to work in the tech space.
[09:37] Crypto currency is exploding.
[09:50] Subscription services are growing.
[10:08] People are buying fewer cars and keeping the cars they have for longer periods of time. Transportation spend has been shifting to ride share apps.
[10:41] Google’s Waymo just bought 62,000 minivans. They’re retrofitting drivers cars to be driverless.
[11:43] Eliminating deaths from car accidents has never been the goal—it’s impossible. But we can make driving a lot safer. Most accidents are the fault of a driver.
[12:05] Driverless cars are coming fast than many people expect.
[13:56] Japanese investment bank Softbank is investing $3 billion into self-driving cars with General Motors.
[14:31] Waymo has been working on driverless technology longer than anyone else and they are far ahead of the competition.
[14:58] There is no better example of big data than what’s needed to manage driverless cars.
[15:17] 5G will be needed to cover the bandwidth.
Interview with Josh Weiss – The Key to This Managed Services Transformation Was in the Asking
[16:55] Today’s interview is a mini case study of L.A. Creative Technologies, Josh Weiss’ MSP, and how it transformed from break-fix to managed services.
[17:06] Josh started his business in 2008. He printed out flyers that said he could help with home computer problems, websites, whatever was needed.
[18:33] He slowly started working for businesses and learned how to make the business more sustainable.
[18:52] His business became L.A. Creative Technologies in 2015. This is when he made a real commitment to transform into a real MSP.
[19:38] He hired an executive coach and began to really learn the business. He wanted to build an automated outsourced MSP.
[20:23] The key was understanding ConnectWise, finances, and the processes.
[20:30] Continuum serves as their outsourced help desk.
[20:43] Josh is also one of their 10 members of Continuum’s advisory council.
[21:04] His business is growing very rapidly today. Their niche is working with innovative and creative companies.
[22:44] The decision to make the transition had to do with Josh finding himself. He was learning about business and trying to decide if IT was really what he wanted to do.
[24:16] Josh went from managing himself to having a manager to keep him on track.
[24:32] Writing the process and building out the procedures was important to successfully leveraging outsourcing.
[25:03] Coaching is a combination of people and process components for a business.
[25:47] Having mentors that are generally involved in your success creates the first people component of your business.
[26:28] Keep taking on work until you get some reserves to afford coaching. You can also take a more affordable course.
[27:28] Find people who can keep you accountable and have the same knowledge that a coach has. Use the resources that are out there.
[28:28] There’s so much you can learn from your peers.
[29:28] Having a niche will keep you from competing with the bigger MSP companies out there.
[30:00] People, process, and technology come together for learning how to outsource.
Links from this episode
What’s Going On
- 2018 Internet Trends Report
- App Usage
- As Uber and Tesla Struggle With Driverless Cars, Waymo Moves Forward
- Blind Man Sets Out Alone in Google’s Driverless Car
- GM and Softbank Are Putting $3 Billion Into Self-Driving Cars
The Hosts
- Karl Palachuk: Small Biz Thoughts
- Karl Palachuk (Twitter)
- Richard Tubb: Tubblog
- Richard Tubb (Twitter)
Interview
- The Journey From Technician to Business Advisor – FMSP 012
- L.A. Creative Technologies (Now Logic TCG) – use the contact form on the site to get in touch
- Josh Weiss (LinkedIn)
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