Setbacks, Perseverance And Success: One MSP’s Story

‘It’s about finding purpose in what we do, sharing our scars and learning from each other,’ says Ted Garner, co-founder of IT Weapons.

In the fast-paced world of technology startups, success can often come down to resilience and the ability to adapt in the face of adversity. For Ted Garner, his journey was a testament to the power of loyalty, trust and the willingness to take risks, even when it seemed like the world was against him.

Garner, who co-founded Ontario, Canada-based MSP IT Weapons, spoke at CRN parent company The Channel Company’s XChange March event in Orlando, Fla., this week about his journey of building a company, the pitfalls he faced and the lessons he learned along the way.

Garner said he left his job in the early 2000s due to his previous business partner’s increasingly cutthroat approach to managing employees. “I felt a little bit hit in the heart that they violated my loyalty,” he said.

Instead of staying in a place that no longer aligned with his values, he joined a friend who owned a computer company and helped grow it from $11 million to $35 million in just three years.

But as the company expanded, so did egos. Garner’s friend, once a trusted partner, began offering questionable advice on how to manage people.

“He said, You’ve got to burn them in, and you’ve got to burn them out.’ I didn’t love it. One piece of advice from him was that people were like spaghetti. You’ve got to throw them against the wall and see if they stick.”

Garner stayed with the company but said his loyalty to his friend was tested when he learned that the company was being sold without any written assurance of his role in the future.

“I said to my friend, ‘Just do me a favor, write something down for me. My wife doesn’t trust this, and I just need something in writing,’” he said.

The response was not what he expected: His friend became cold, dismissive and acted like Garner had no idea what he was talking about, he said.

That’s when he and a business partner, with their “Let’s show them” attitude, founded IT Weapons.

Their approach was simple but effective: Do a good job and they’ll call you back. They embraced a consultative approach, focusing on solutions that worked rather than just selling products.

“We didn’t want to be the typical sales-driven company. We wanted to make technology work for people,” he said.

Amid other obstacles, the company soon was not only thriving but won several industry awards, including recognition as one of the top Citrix partners in North America.

“It was a huge win for us,” he said. “But more than that, it was a reminder of why we started the company in the first place: to do things the right way.”

In the end, IT Weapons was acquired by Japanese print manufacturer Konica Minolta in 2022. Garner stayed on in the business and became chief strategy officer of Konica’s Australia business until 2024, when he created his own consulting business.

“It’s about finding purpose in what we do, sharing our scars and learning from each other,” he said.

Ali Kamara, CTO of Glen Burnie, Md.-based AmaraTech IT Solutions, said Garner’s talk resonated with him because as a leader, it’s important to push forward in the face of adversity.

“Being a leader, you always have to persevere and try to push things as well,” he told CRN. “I believe success in the MSP world comes down to how you perceive and progress with your goals. It requires a lot of courage but also involves facing disappointment. As a leader, perseverance is key—you have to keep pushing forward even when faced with challenges.”