I know you've heard of the "Great Resignation." People are quitting their jobs - and the workforce - in record numbers. You may have been affected by this. It's not just in IT but many industries.

I've heard tales from IT consultants about people who simply don't show up for interviews. And in a few cases, people accepted jobs but never showed up for work. I have to say, after more than two decades in the business, I've seen both of those happen. But only once each. This behavior used to be rare. Now it's common.

I have been trying to hire a new administrative assistant for more than two months. Finally, I believe I have a great one starting tomorrow . . . if she shows up!

Granted: I have an odd hiring process, designed to scare away people who don't want to work, don't have a sense of humor, and wouldn't fit the culture I want to create. But this is the first time I've had to put out an ad three times to get good candidates.

I interviewed four people and would be happy to hire three of them. Luckily, my first choice said yes. With luck, you'll get to know her as she begins supporting our clients.

The really good news: I'll begin to catch up on the work that's been piling up for months while I look for help. :-)

-----

Also: Heads up!

Killing IT Live Returns January 19th. This is a Zoom meeting, so the "tech" side will be much improved. And we have chat enabled so you can heckle us.

Details and registration are at http://killingitlive.com/

Register free at http://killingitlive.com/

Please Join Us!

Register for Free:  https://bit.ly/nsitsp-feb9

We have a very active Board of Directors and five very active committees. In this meeting we will give an update on our progress.

A major highlight will be the presentation of the organization's Mission, Vision, and Values. The Board met in special session every other week for two months to settle on these simple but powerful statements.

As always, the NSITSP is committed to transparency. We want to present what the Board has come up with and get your feedback/discussion. It is our belief that these statements will help people who are "on the fence" to commit to our group and join as Professional members.

Join us - and give us your feedback.

Big calendar update: Comptia Communities and Councils Forum will be live, in-person in Chicago. March 14-16. I've already registered, bought the airfare, and got my hotel room.

I've added it to the calendar below. Join me there! More Info Here.

-- -- --

That's about it.

New Community Members: Read the news below so you don't miss this week's great meeting!

Have a great week. Happy New Year.

- Karl P.

:-)

I forgot one prediction: Michigan will win the Rose Bowl in 2023. Write that down.

Please check it out. And I'll take any feedback you have.

You only missed on week. Register today, catch up, and join her live tomorrow.

Taught By: Lori Hardtke, Community Leader and Coach

- Five Tuesdays - January 11 - February 8, 2022

- All classes start a 9:00 AM Pacific

Features

1. A different, simplified approach to packaging your Managed Services

2. How to grow revenue and net income without hiring any full-time staff

3. A quick start guide to Profit First and establishing quarterly bonuses

4. Tactics on utilizing engagement letters, pre-paid support agreements & raising rates

5. Automating your business to run like clockwork

If you prefer to run a very small managed service business, you can be extremely successful – but you have to create excellent processes to make that happen. Multi-state MSP owner Lori Hardtke shows you how to grow your business to $350K and beyond without any additional full-time staff on your payroll.

Lots more details and information on the IT Service Provider University site:

- David Streit, Stephill Associates, LLC

Here's what you will learn:

Delivered by Lori Hardtke, MSP and Peer Advisor. Lori has been an MSP (managed service provider) for many years and runs a two-state business with no employees.

Includes five weeks of Zoom webinar classes with related handouts, assignments, and "office hours" with the instructor.

This course is intended for business owners and managers. It is particularly useful for the Service Manager or Operations Manager. This course has an associated professional certification exam and may be applied to specialist certifications in Management, Sales & Marketing, Service Manager, or Front Office.

Class Content

Unit 1: Vendors/Affiliations/Peer Groups

Unit 2: Sales Process for Services That Are Pure Profit

Unit 3: Plans, Pricing & Agreements

Unit 4: Finances – Increasing Cash Flow with Profit First

Unit 5: Automating Your Business to Run Like Clockwork

Note: * Member of the Small Biz Thoughts Technology Community attend at no additional charge.

SMB Community Podcast - New episodes drop every Thursday

The Killing IT Podcast - New episodes drop every Tuesday

My 13th Annual State of the Nation Address for SMB IT

You can always check out my YouTube Channel and subscribe at https://www.youtube.com/smallbizthoughts

OR my Relax-Focus-Succeed Channel at https://www.youtube.com/relaxfocussucceed

The January Newsletter and video are out. If you joined after the newsletter went out, send me an email and I'll get you a copy.

Most of the juicy good news is in the Video, available by clicking the thumbnail on the right.

-- -- --

We have lots of great stuff going on in January. Contact us if you need a tour or need help finding anything.

Thank you!

:-)

A friend came to my house and asked me if I paid someone to clean my house. I said yes, why?

She just said I have very professional vacuuming.

This calendar lists two kinds of things: LIVE in-person events from any organization that focuses on the SMB consulting community; and MY events, whether live, webinar, etc.

Of course: Everything here is subject to change based on Covid. Click the links for the latest details. Please send updates so we can post them.

Jan. 16-18

New York, NY

More Info: https://nrfbigshow.nrf.com/

January 20

Anaheim, CA

More Info: https://www.smbtechfest.com/karl

Jan. 27 - Feb. 5

Bethesda, MD

More Info: https://www.sans.org/cyber-security-training-events/cyber-threat-intelligence-summit-2022-bethesda-md/

We return for a great live event.

January 19th

9:00 AM Pacific / Noon Eastern

Register Now: https://killingit.smallbizthoughts.com/killing-it-live/ (scroll down to register)

FREE, of course.

Feb. 7-11

Amsterdam

More Info: https://www.ciscolive.com/emea.html

Feb. 8-11, 2022

Ft. Lauderdale, FL

More Info: https://www.cannatechexpo.com/

February 16-17

Houston, TX

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

February 17 - 18, 2022

Singapore, Singapore

More Info: https://promo.acronis.com/Summit2021.html

February 21-23

Cancun, Mexico

More Info: https://www.nerdiocon.com/

February 27 - March 1, 2022

Dallas, TX

More Info: https://events.thechannelco.com/events

March 2-3, 2022

London, UK

More Info: https://www.cloudexpoeurope.com/

New Jersey

March 9th

More Info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/

March 14-16

Chicago, IL

More Info: https://www.comptia.org/events/all-events/comptia-communities-councils-forum-(ccf)-2022

March 23-24

Kansan City, MO

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

April 11-14, 2022

Las Vegas

More Info: https://www.channelpartnersconference.com/

April 14

Anaheim, CA

More Info: https://www.smbtechfest.com/karl

April 20-22, 2022

Orlando, FL

More Info: https://www.knowbe4.com/kb4-con

April 20-21

Chicago, IL

Moe Info: https://asciievents.com/

More Info: https://acesconf.com/

Chicago

May 5th

More Info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/

May 17-19

Miami Beach, FL

More Info: https://www.ingrammicrocloudsummit.com/

May 24-25

Boston, MA

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

June 6-9

San Francisco, CA

More Info: https://www.rsaconference.com/usa

Texas

June 7th

More Info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/

June 7-9

Location TBD

More Info: https://www.womentech.net/women-tech-conference

June 12-16

Las Vegas

More Info: https://www.ciscolive.com/us.html

June 14-15

London

More Info: https://www.channelevolutioneurope.com/

June 15-16

Long Beach, CA

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

July 21

Anaheim, CA

More Info: https://www.smbtechfest.com/karl

July 27-28

Toronto, ON

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

August 1-3, 2022

Houston, TX

More Info: Coming after ChennelCon 2021 ;-)

Charlotte NC

Aug 9

More Info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/

August 21-23

Denver, CO

More Info: https://event.thechannelco.com/xchange-plus-august

August 23-24

Miami, FL

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

Sept. 12-15, Orlando

More Info: https://www.themspsummit.com/

Baltimore

Sept 13th

More Info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/

Sept. 14-15 --> was January 18 - 20, 2022

Phoenix

More Info: https://www.iotssa.com/cybersecurity-expo-phoenix/

September 28-29

Parsippany, NJ

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

October 4-5

Dallas, TX

More Info: https://asciievents.com/

October 20

Anaheim, CA

More Info: https://www.smbtechfest.com/karl

So Calif

Nov 3rd

More Info: https://events.channelpronetwork.com/

November 9 - 11

More Info: https://www.connectwise.com/theitnation/connect-na