CompTIA puts Ferrum Technology Services "Minds in Motion" at ChannelCon 2015

Chicago, IL -  August 5, 2015 - The first two days of CompTIA’s “Minds in Motion” CompTIA ChannelCon 2015 stirred up lively discussions around the past, present and future of the information technology (IT) industry, as well as what channel partners need to do to slowly transform their business models, as well as the IT environments of the customers’ they serve.

Ferrum Technology Services participated in a number of collaborative sessions with colleagues and peers disccusing best practices and solutions to strengthen their knowledge on the even changing IT landscape.

Chicago, August 5, 2015 - The first two days of CompTIA’s “Minds in Motion” CompTIA ChannelCon 2015 stirred up lively discussions around the past, present and future of the information technology (IT) industry, as well as what channel partners need to do to slowly transform their business models, as well as the IT environments of the customers’ they serve.

“Transformation does not happen overnight,” said CompTIA CEO Todd Thibodeaux during his keynote address to more than 1,000 ChannelCon attendees. “The idea that you can get people (and businesses) to go from 0 to 60 in one step is a fantasy. Transformation is a continuum, not a final destination.”

To reiterate the point, Thibodeaux welcomed Andrew McIntyre, senior director of IT for the Chicago Cubs’, as well as four association members to the stage, including Chris Johnson, president of Untangled Solutions; MJ Shoer, president of Jenaly Technology Group Inc.; Mont Phelps, president and CEO of NWN Corp.; and Tracy Pound, managing director at Maximity. Each shared their own story on how they are successfully transforming their businesses over time to embrace the digital era. CompTIA members also discussed how they were helping customers do the same with both existing and new technologies.

“Your clients (or prospects) may have the right technology and simply don’t know how to use it,” explained Pound. To solve for the best business outcome, the CompTIA Board Members agreed that IT professionals must first assess the client’s environment before making sweeping decisions about how to fix it and what technologies to use.

Addressing the audience at the inaugural CompTIA Vendor Summit, Gartner vice president and distinguished analyst Tiffani Bova challenged the audience to “re-imagine their channel programs” and take note of the “cloud investments” and “cloud-first business decisions” being made by small and mid-size businesses.

Author of Drunk Tank Pink Adam Alter took the event theme “Minds in Motion” to the next level, delivering a thought-provoking keynote on how to make people “feel you are both effective and on their side.” Channel partners need to “understand the incentives, the needs, that are driving business decisions,” said Alter.

“You have to mine your own gold,” Thibodeaux concluded. “Channel partners must be prospecting customers all the time, finding their pain points and getting them on a path to transformation.”

Highlights from each session, including CompTIA’s community meetings, are on the CompTIA blog. Real-time excerpts from attendees at CompTIA ChannelCon 2015 are available on Twitter and Facebook with the hashtag #ChannelCon15. The[MER1] conference continues through Aug. 5.