Kandji Sees Growth Surge For Apple Enterprise Management Solution With Help Of MSPs

The startup, which launched its automation-focused solution just over a year ago, reports strong early traction through working with MSPs.

Apple device management software startup Kandji is gaining major momentum for its automation-driven solution, thanks in part to working with a growing number of MSPs, the company’s CEO told CRN.

Founded in 2018, San Diego-based Kandji only launched its solution into the market in October 2019. But the startup has gone on to see rapid adoption by customers and MSPs, and is expecting as much as 10X revenue growth in 2021, said Kandji founder and CEO Adam Pettit.

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“We’re expecting to grow an incredible amount [this year]. We’re seeing growth from all sides,” Pettit said. “And I think the channel in general is a big opportunity, and it’s something we’re really excited about.”

Kandji’s solution differs from others on the market by focusing on automating many of the time-consuming tasks involved with managing Apple devices, particularly when it comes to Macs, he said.

The solution currently provides a library of more than 200 prebuilt automations that IT administrators can leverage—which range from automations for security and compliance requirements to automations for mundane tasks such as renaming devices.

“When we think about automation, we really focus on cutting down time—the initial time investment and the ongoing investment of time that’s required by organizations and their IT teams,” Pettit said.

Kandji reports having hundreds of paying customers as well as several dozen partnerships with MSPs. In October, the company raised $21 million in a Series A round led by Greycroft to further accelerate its growth. The company’s solution can be used for managing Macs, iPhones, iPads and Apple TV devices.

Among the early MSPs to work with Kandji is San Francisco-based Jones IT, which has appreciated the automation capabilities of the Kandji solution, said the MSP’s founder and president, Evan Jones.

For instance, Jones IT has been using Kandji’s automations to eliminate nuisances such as having to rename Macs every time they are reassigned, he said. The MSP has also used Kandji to automate some of the technical aspects involved with gaining certain accreditations, as well as to bolster security with automated measures such as disabling password hints, Jones said.

Jones IT has also found it very simple to get up and running with Kandji, he said.

“You can get your fleet on Kandji in a couple of hours or less,” Jones said. “It’s just kind of ready to roll out, right out of the box.”

Kandji is seeking to expand in the Apple enterprise management software market at a time when Apple is increasing the emphasis on its Mac business.

In November, Apple unveiled details on its in-house Arm-based processor for the Mac, the M1, which promises massive performance and battery life gains. Apple announced three initial Mac models—the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and Mac Mini—featuring the M1.

Apple Wednesday reported that its Mac business grew 21 percent to $8.68 billion year over year during its latest quarter--which was the company’s first quarter to include sales of the M1-powered Mac lineup.

“The better Apple does, the better we do,” Pettit said. “Apple has continued to grow at a record pace in the enterprise. These organizations need to secure and manage their fleet of Apple tech. And we really are a modern and unique solution that makes sense for a lot of customers.”