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ConnectWise Automation Nation 2018: Craig Fulton’s Complete Keynote

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ConnectWise Chief Product Officer Craig Fulton addressed more than 1,300 technology solutions providers and MSPs this week during Automation Nation 2018. His complete keynote, featured above, further explains key "ecosystem" themes that CEO Arnie Bellini raised during IT Nation 2017 back in November. But that's not all.

ConnectWise is developing a new portal for partners to offer to their customers. The portal, which will surface around IT Nation 2018 in November, will allow partners to select the types of reports and other information they'd like to share with customers, Fulton says.

Fulton also pointed to key ecosystem components that will help partners and teams drive customer outcomes. And in a Tech Tank competition, ConnectWise honored startup developers that are adding additional value to the ecosystem.

Keynote: Key Moments In Time

LinkedIn: ConnectWise’s Craig Fulton
ConnectWise Chief Product Officer Craig Fulton

Here's a breakdown of the keynote:

  1. The ecosystem (00:00 to 13:30): Fulton describes key pieces of the ConnectWise ecosystem buildout -- which includes Customers, Solutions, Teams and Services. Fulton shares examples for each area, and the implications for attendees.
  2. Customer needs in the connected world (13:30 to 19:00): The most successful technology teams now focus on the customer first, and the technology second.
  3. The changes in your business (19:00 - 28:00): The shift from systems integration to managed services and now everything as a managed service.
  4. A platform for the entire customer journey (28:00 - 53:23): ConnectWise product demonstrations for ConnectWise Sell (29:00), ConnectWise Manage (36:40), ConnectWise Automate (43:45).
  5. Ecosystem Solutions (53:23 - 101:10): ConnectWise offers roughly 26 third-party solutions to partners. ConnectWise is next developing technology that will allow partners to automatically provision and gain licenses for those solutions. Also, ConnectWise is developing a new portal "for the people" -- which will allow partners to display selected information to customers. The first version will surface at IT Nation 2018, Fulton asserts.
  6. New Ecosystem Connections & Additions (101:10 - 104:54): The Tech Tank competition (for developers) honors three emerging solutions in the ecosystem.

In a follow-up interview with ChannelE2E, Fulton offered this succinct conclusion: "We're moving to everything as a managed service. Whoever connects everything first wins."

The ConnectWise ecosystem, he asserts, is where partners can make those best-in-class connections.

Joe Panettieri

Joe Panettieri is co-founder & editorial director of MSSP Alert and ChannelE2E, the two leading news & analysis sites for managed service providers in the cybersecurity market.