Tag: IT MSP

  • My First Convention Experience: A Memorable Time at ScaleCon 2024

    My First Convention Experience: A Memorable Time at ScaleCon 2024

    Today’s blog was written by our employee Ashton Fortuna who recently attended his first convention, Scalecon 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

    This year, I had the incredible opportunity to attend ScaleCon 2024, the very first of its kind, hosted in Las Vegas. As someone relatively new to the convention scene, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I can confidently say that ScaleCon exceeded every expectation and left me eager for next year’s event.

    An Event Worth the Hype

    Right from the moment I arrived, I knew I was going to benefit from this event. Everything was meticulously planned, from the opening keynote to the breakout sessions and networking events. The organizers of ScaleCon put in a tremendous amount of effort to ensure that every aspect of the event was seamless. The attention to detail was evident, making navigating the convention an absolute breeze.

    Top-Notch Speakers and Content

    One of the standout features of ScaleCon 2024 was the lineup of speakers. From industry veterans to my peers, every presentation I attended left me with new insights and practical takeaways. Whether you’re in tech, marketing, or ownership, the sessions were packed with content tailored to help businesses scale. I particularly appreciated how each session balanced high- level strategy with actionable tips I could take back to my work. And the best part is no pitching. Not a single speaker spot was purchased and no sales pitches from the stage.

    My Favorite Moments

    One of the event’s highlights for me was Paul Green’s, from MSP Marketing Edge, closing keynote on Friday. Paul reminded business owners to “pay their staff way above what they’re worth” (wink wink). It was a lighthearted yet powerful statement, emphasizing the importance of valuing your team. He also delivered an inspiring message on how it’s the small, consistent actions we take daily that will shape the future we want. That reminder stuck with me and is something I’ve been thinking about since.

    Brian Gillette from Feel Good MSP also shared some simple yet profound advice during his session: before helping a prospective client, we must first ask three critical questions. What do they need? Why do they need it? Why don’t they have it yet? These questions resonated with me as a reminder that understanding our client’s motivations and obstacles is key to offering real value

    Tech Tribe owner and resident chief motivational speaker Nigel Moore on stage at ScaleCon 2024.

    One saying from the event that will stick with me not just in my position at work but with life came from Harrison Baron of Growth Generators: “Don’t smoke Hopium.” Harrison’s message was a powerful reminder that while being in sales is about helping others see the value of your product, hoping they will see it is not enough. Relying on hope alone holds us back. As Harrison put it, “Hoping it works out isn’t going to make it work out.” Action is what moves things forward.

    And finally, Nigel Moore’s closing speech for the entire event struck a deeply personal chord. He reminded us to take care of ourselves, knowing that we can’t take care of other people’s tech unless we’re also taking care of the “grey squishy tech” between our ears. This was a perfect close to a week of intense learning and networking, reinforcing the importance of mental well-being for success.

    Unmatched Networking Opportunities

    Networking at ScaleCon was an experience in itself. With so many professionals gathered in one place, it was a prime opportunity to make new connections. The event organizers did an amazing job creating spaces for people to interact, whether it was through structured round tables or more informal happy hours. I walked away with a fresh perspective  and  valuable relationships I’m excited to nurture.

    Guest speakers at Scalecon 2024
    There was no shortage of speakers offering advice on sales, marketing and life in general.

    A Special Thanks to Taher and Nigel Moore

    I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to Taher Hamid and Nigel Moore (and their teams of course) for organizing such an amazing event. Their vision and leadership brought ScaleCon 2024 to life, and it was evident in every aspect of the convention. Their efforts created an environment where learning and connection could thrive, and I’m truly thankful for the experience they provided.

    We were impressed with the variety of swag found at the event.

    Looking Ahead to ScaleCon 2025

    Attending ScaleCon 2024 wasn’t just about the sessions and networking; it was about being part of something new and exciting. It’s rare to attend the first of anything, but ScaleCon truly set a high bar. I’m already counting down the days to next year’s event, and if you haven’t attended yet, make sure to put ScaleCon 2025 on your calendar. You won’t want to miss it.

    Our employee Ashton with ScaleCon co-creator Nigel Moore.

    Looking for more to read? We suggest these other articles from our site.

    This article was powered by Valley Techlogic, leading provider of trouble free IT services for businesses in California including Merced, Fresno, Stockton & More. You can find more information at https://www.valleytechlogic.com/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/valleytechlogic/ . Follow us on Twitter at https://x.com/valleytechlogic and LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/valley-techlogic-inc/.

  • Hiring a tech vs outsourcing, a cost breakdown

    Hiring a tech vs outsourcing, a cost breakdown

    If you’ve realized you need additional IT support for your business but are on the fence about which route to take, hiring IT staff or outsourcing your needs to an IT service provider the choice can be difficult.

    Many of our clients reach us because they have been using an unreliable IT support service, their existing IT staff left, or sometimes because they’ve somehow gotten by with no IT at all but realize that needs to change.

    We also frequently have clients who are utilizing a person in their office who is “tech savvy” but is not IT, it can be quite expensive to hire an IT professional with the experience needed to perform the variety of duties needed work on items such as cybersecurity improvements, hardware upgrades, software deployments and more.

    Here are some benefits of hiring in house IT staff:

    1. They’re already at your office so there’s no waiting for IT support to show up.
    2. They will be well versed on your systems since in many cases they will be the one who set them up in the first place.
    3. They should be pre-emptively taking care of updates that will keep your business more secure.

    On the other hand, here are the benefits of outsourcing your IT:

    1. The cost is usually much lower than hiring personnel.
    2. You get many experts for one price, no matter how well versed your IT person is they can’t be an expert in everything.
    3. You get software tools that may be otherwise unavailable to a single business or not cost effective to purchase.
    4. Round the clock service and monitoring, many IT service providers including us offer 24/7 support.
    5. You will have an agreement with them that spells out the level of service you’re supposed to receive.

    It’s a difficult choice and only you know whether your business would greatly benefit from having in-house staff or whether outsourcing your IT is your best option. As you weigh your options we created this chart with the average baseline cost for an in-house IT person vs. an IT service plan with us.

    However, as we mentioned many of our clients are utilizing an in-house resource already, these tech savvy staff are usually performing the day-to-day activities such as patching and password resets but may be missing crucial items such as cybersecurity prevention or maintaining (or even starting) backups.

    For clients like these we recommend our co-managed plan option. With our co-managed plan we work directly with the staff already performing your IT duties, if there’s an issue they call us directly and we pass on a cost savings to you.

    We do that because usually by working with a staff member that already knows your systems we can bypass a lot of the early troubleshooting that occurs, and that staff member usually still handles minor day to day tech related activities.

    If you would like to learn more about our co-managed plan options just reach out today for a consultation.

    Looking for more to read? We suggest these other articles from our site.

    This article was powered by Valley Techlogic, an IT service provider in Atwater, CA. You can find more information at https://www.valleytechlogic.com/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/valleytechlogic/ . Follow us on Twitter at https://x.com/valleytechlogic.