Every time I attend my mastermind group, I leave the two-hour session enlightened on something and a bunch of notes and to-do’s digitally sticky-noted to my desktop. Yesterday’s meeting was no different. Yesterday, I learned that there’s an assumption that MSP’s that choose not to use an RMM do so because they don’t want the expense. That’s not the reason at all. There are so many reasons but the reason I chose to explain was this: It’s about priorities.
Adopting an ERP system
An IT services firm chooses which foot to put forward. Any time you purchase a tool, the tool defines how you do your work. In the case of an RMM suite, it’s a type of ERP solution for MSP’s. The definition of ERP, is this:
ERP is a type of software system that helps organizations automate and manage core business processes for optimal performance.
What Is Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)?
Anytime a firm purchases an ERP solution, the design of that product defines how the business operates. If you don’t comply then, you will fail to implement the processes necessary to be successful with that tool, and then you’ll be in a failed state. In my MSP, we’ve helped many firms adopt and implement ERP solutions. It’s an arduous task of process change, and employee training and it does define the business operations. Often there are hundreds of thousands of dollars at state if the employees aren’t willing to change their business processes to match the ERP solution. For a budding MSP, if you early-on purchase an RMM tool, because that is what MSP’s are supposed to do, then you are organizing your business operations in a particular way to comply with how the RMM believes you should run your business. There’s nothing wrong with that provided if what the RMM provides as your business process is the foot that you want to put forward.
The definition of RMM is this:
Remote monitoring and management (RMM) is a process designed to help managed IT service providers (MSPs) remotely and proactively monitor client endpoints, networks, and computers.
Remote Monitoring & Management Definition | ConnectWise
The RMM’s in today’s market and as we’ve known them for the last 20 years are very hardware forward by definition. That the basis and the primary function that they assume your MSP has and they help you be efficient at delivering those services. Everything else is plugged in around the basics. That is the foot that you’re putting forward. The one that your business takes every first step with. The foundation of your business is then remote management of client endpoints, networks and computers.
But what happens if you want the foundation of your business and the foot you step forward with in the world, to be something else? What if you founded your business on a different idea? What if your idea was:
We are a consulting firm using technology to help our clients be more successful.
In this case, the foundation of our business is using technology to help our client be more successful. Everything else is plugged in around this. We will still build other services around our foundation and some of those will be similar to other MSPs who have an RMM foundation. The difference between us is which foot we move forward with into the world.
I’m a consulting firm using technology to help you be more successful.
Oh, and we will also keep your computers running smoothly and securely.
I’m a remote management firm here to help your computers run smoothly and securely.
Oh, and we also will help you be more successful.
This is why it matters which foot you put forward when going to market. Both of these firms might be doing very similar things, but their founding principles are different. How your potential customers perceive you is important. You might not think that purchasing an RMM tool makes a customer perceive you in a particular way, but it does. It does so because RMM is ERP and ERP shapes your business. The customer may not know the particular tool you use but they know which foot your step out into the world with.
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