Your MSP business is constantly changing. When it started out, there might have just been three of you working in a garage offering specific services to a handful of clients. As you became more successful and expanded outward, you had to bring on new employees.
What happened to the original three tech whizzes in the garage? Well, one became the Chief Executive Officer, another became the Chief Information Officer, and the third became the Chief Technology Officer.
Keeping Everybody on the Same Page
Perhaps this isn’t your precise trajectory, but it is something many tech companies go through. The thing is, as you transition from hands-on tech to management, you’ve got different “hats” that change not only how you do your job, but how you interact with some of your oldest colleagues. In fact, you might have to hire management specifically after a while. How do you keep everybody on the same page? Consider the following:
CEOs: Remember that CIOs and CTOs Are Your Partners
Don’t let “rank” cloud judgment. If, as a CEO, you domineer over CIOs, that will impact your total technology profile, as well as the ability of employees using associated tech to function. CTOs similarly help manage technology.
You might think of CIOs as the software and CTOs as the hardware of your business. You’re the user of both the software and hardware. Push either too hard, and you’ll lose functionality, and potentially “crash” the “operating system” of your MSP. Balance is key, as is seeking harmonious functionality between them and you.
Clearly Identify Separate Responsibilities
One issue with many an MSP business is that the owner/CEO of the business incidentally ends up micromanaging things in a way that produces more static than operational clarity.
A better idea is compartmentalizing responsibilities separately. Define what you do, what CTOs do, and what CIOs do. From there, stick to your primary tasks in said positions.
Collaboration and Transparency
Don’t be “oblique” or “opaque”. You need to be transparent. Be see-through. CIOs and CTOs need to know what you’re doing and why. You need to know what they’re doing and why.
There is information that, perhaps, a new-hire working as a glorified “gopher” may not need to know. Perhaps custodial staff don’t need to know the details of your merger with a Japanese MSP that’s new to your locality. But in management, you need to collaborate with other leaders and be transparent about not just what you’re doing, but why.
Optimizing MSP Effectiveness from the Top Down
When you encourage clear partnership between managerial staff, that helps everybody get on the same page in a more productive way. Be sure everybody knows their separate responsibilities. Also, be sure to encourage collaboration and transparency. These things should help you more effectively enhance your MSP business.
