Here Are The Biggest Moves 20 MSP 500 Executives Made In The Last Year To Drive Success

As part of the CRN MSP 500 we asked top executives to describe the biggest, most significant change their managed service provider company made in the last year to drive success. Here’s what 20 had to say.

Changing With The Times

To effectively meet the rapidly changing IT needs of their clients, MSPs and MSSPs themselves must be constantly changing, adopting new technologies and business processes to stay at the top of their game.

Over the last year managed service providers have been developing expertise and services around AI for their clients – even as they figure out how to adopt AI tools and automation internally to improve their own operations and services delivery.

MSPs have also made strategic acquisitions to expand their technology and service portfolios and extend their geographic reach. And they have worked to infuse a “customer first” culture throughout their organizations amid ongoing consolidation and commoditization in the managed services space.

As part of the CRN 2025 Managed Service Provider 500 project, we asked executives at the MSPs on this year’s list the question: What is the single biggest/most significant change your company has made in the past year to drive success?

Here’s what 20 MSP and MSSP executives had to say. (The complete profiles of the MSP 500, including their answers to this and other questions, can be found here.)

ABM Technology Group

Abby Hanson, Vice President, Microsoft and AI

Fargo, N.D.

The development of an AI business unit to drive foundational security, data governance and a path to responsible AI.

Acuative

Vince Sciarra, CEO

Fairfield, N.J.

We’ve restructured our sales and operations teams to prioritize a “customer first” approach and ensure the delivery of high-quality solutions. As part of this transformation, we've also adopted Salesforce as our CRM tool, enabling us to better serve our customers and enhance team collaboration.

Advizex Technologies

CR Howdyshell, CEO

Independence, Ohio

We have added on two new practices. A vertical practice, focusing on SLED, healthcare, retail and manufacturing. These have always been our largest verticals and now we are doubled down on them by building out a team that is 100-percent focused on growing sales in those spaces. We have also added a vertical practice in AI that is leading our focus and go-to-market in AI, strategically aligning us with the appropriate partners, getting us out in front of customers and prospects, and positioning us as the AI leader.

Alcott Enterprises

Jordan Alcott, Founder and CEO

Torrance, Calif.

We have continued to focus on working with emerging industry sectors and underserved industries. For example, we continue leveraging our deep knowledge and connections in the cannabis, veterinary, and medspa industries. Our focus and expertise in these emerging industries have set us apart from the many other MSPs out there.

AllSafe IT

Bones Ijeoma, CEO

Pasadena, Calif.

The most significant change we've made in the past year is expanding our focus on co-managed IT services, empowering businesses to seamlessly integrate their in-house IT teams with our expertise. We've emphasized next-level services such as automation, AI-driven optimization, business process management, and strategic IT leadership to deliver transformative solutions. This approach enhances efficiency, scalability, and security while aligning IT with long-term business goals, positioning our clients – and us – for sustained success.

Blue Mantis

Joshua Dinneen, CEO

Portsmouth, N.H.

In September, we recapitalized under Recognize, a premier private equity firm focused on investing in technology services businesses, which became the majority investor in Blue Mantis. This partnership has paid immediate dividends via their keen industry knowledge, expert guidance and financial resources. It has propelled Blue Mantis to further accelerate into high-growth mode through both organic growth and purposeful, strategic acquisitions for both near and long-term growth. Proof points are our U.S. expansion and the growth of our Global Delivery Center in Bangalore and Toronto, plus recent acquisitions of SME Solutions (business enablement and analytics) and Colligio (unified communications).

CDW

Chris Leahy, CEO

Vernon Hills, Ill.

CDW has invested considerably in reducing its tech debt, upgrading multiple platforms to best-in-class solutions, including order management systems and professional services automation software.

Critical Start

Scott White, CEO

Plano, Texas

Launching managed XDR - an offering that is back-ended by Sumo Logic. It has allowed us to capture market share [among] customers that do not want or need a fully managed SIEM tool.

DigitalEra Group

Patrick Dyer, President and CEO

Dorla, Florida

Expanding into a new office, new hire of cybersecurity veterans, and new brand refresh launch, as well as refocusing our demand generation marketing.

Enitech

Antwine Jackson, President

Raleigh, N.C.

We have implemented vendor consolidation as a key change to enhance response times and increase profit margins on the solutions we deliver to our end customers.

Heiden Technology Solutions

Carl Heiden, CEO and CIO

Saginaw, Mich.

Integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation have been a game changer for us. We have developed many policies and procedures and made changes to the way we operate through the suggestions and input from large language models. It has helped us solve problems faster and develop more content. It has been like adding three people to the team without adding them to the payroll.

I-M Technology

Stuart Bryan, President

Norwich, Conn.

In January I launched Project Zero, a thorough rethink of IMT as a company, questioning everything. Who we are, who we serve and how we serve them. It involved staff roles, vendor partners and delivery areas. It involved all departments. It touched finance, service, sales and marketing, literally everything. No sacred cows except our company core values. We narrowed our focus, reshuffled roles and responsibilities, implemented AI tools and services strategically, sharpened our delivery, improved client experience and left no stone unturned. It's been transformative and it's not over.

Iron Bow Technologies

Rene Lavigne, President and CEO

Herndon, Va.

The most significant change Iron Bow made this past year was accelerating our adoption of "as-a-service" consumption models, enabling clients to maximize flexibility and reduce technical debt. Specifically, we pioneered new solutions including Software-Defined Unified Transport Network (SD-UTN) and Commercial Solutions for Classified Program (CSfC). Our groundbreaking partnership with AEG expanded our footprint into the sports and entertainment industry, marking our entry into nearly 30 new markets and showcasing our commitment to growth across commercial, state, and local sectors. These initiatives have solidified our position as a leader in delivering innovative solutions to both public and private sectors.

Pioneer-360

Joe McCartney, President and CEO

New Philadelphia, Ohio

The single biggest/most significant change our company has made in the past year to drive success is to our help desk. We originally had our lower-level technicians answering calls and fielding help desk questions, and then we implemented a huge change, to where we now have our high-level engineers on our help desk team. This gets calls answered quickly, keeps customers happy, and allows our lower-level/newest technicians to grow and learn at a pace they're comfortable with.

R&D Industries

Don Van Oort

Milford, Iowa

To further enhance our service delivery and customer satisfaction, we've significantly invested in our ongoing infrastructure for core services like our data center. We've researched and expanded our high-value security services and added advanced automation tools and AI-powered solutions. By automating routine tasks like patch management, software updates, and help desk ticket routing, we've freed up our technicians to focus on strategic initiatives and providing more proactive support. Additionally, AI-driven analytics enables us to predict potential issues, optimize resource allocation, and deliver a more personalized and efficient service experience to our clients.

Solvere One

Reagan Roney, Chief Experience Officer

Dulles, Va.

We implemented the Entrepreneur Operating System (EOS) that changed everything for our company. We have complete buy in from everyone in the company.

Sterling

Brad Moore, CEO

North Sioux City, S.D.

We have had several significant initiatives in the company this year that has driven our continued success. First, we have driven accountability throughout the company by focusing on key performance metrics (KPIs) for each role in the company. This has and will continue to drive quality, efficiency, and productivity for our business. Second, we have invested heavily in AI through building strong relationships with the OEMs, adding sales and technical expertise and developing solutions that can help customers start their AI journey. Our ability to help customers solve business issues will allow us to continue the growth path we have been on for several years.

Tanches Global Management

Tanaz Choudhury, President and CEO

Houston

Signed an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the Houston Community College System to create a workforce-ready pipeline.

Uprise Partners

Malinda Gagnon, CEO

Bethel, Maine

In the past year, Uprise Partners has integrated advanced remote monitoring and management (RMM) tools, including HaloRMM and NinjaOne, to enhance service delivery. These platforms provide comprehensive endpoint management, automation and security features, enabling Uprise to proactively monitor client systems, swiftly address issues, and ensure robust cybersecurity measures. This strategic adoption has significantly improved operational efficiency and client satisfaction.

VistaVu Solutions

Jory Lamb, CEO

Houston

Our company recently expanded our offered services to include SAP S/4HANA, which has been beneficial for our customers who are on the verge of outgrowing their existing system. S/4HANA has also broadened the range of prospective clients we can take on, which has been a fantastic growth opportunity for us. Expanding our product line and support staff, we also became “Grow with SAP” certified this year. Now we are certified to support our clients as their companies grow and system demands increase.