MSP Mindset with Damien Stevens
MSP Mindset with Damien Stevens
Damien Stevens
Host Damien Stevens (CEO of Servosity) gives a front-row seat to MSPs who refuse to play small. MSP Mindset dives deep into what truly elevates an MSP—not just technology, but leadership, mindset, and strategy. Through our mission to interview 100 of the world’s top-performing MSPs, we’re uncovering the habits, bold decisions, and mindset shifts that drive real growth—without burnout. No fluff. No theory. Just the stuff that works.
The MSP 3.0 Shift Is Here
Ready to break free from limited vendor connectors? Check out the MSP Skills Repo and connect your entire stack to agentic AI: ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com/youtube The MSP industry is entering a new era. MSP 3.0 is no longer about keeping servers patched, lights blinking, and tickets closed — it is about using AI, automation, and business intelligence to help clients drive real outcomes. In this week's episode, Gerry Miller, CEO of Cloudticity, comes on to unpack what the MSP 3.0 shift really means. He shares how Cloudticity moved from traditional managed services into an AI-powered operating model where QBRs are automated, customer risk signals surface before churn happens, and technology “disappears” so MSPs can focus on helping clients grow, improve margins, and serve their customers better. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 1:22 - What they're doing with AI at his MSP 21:30 - His team's reaction 25:38 - The stages of learning AI 39:38 - What are MSPs missing right now? 50:56 - MSPs have to change culturally Connect more with Damien and Gerry: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens/ Gerry - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gerrymiller/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
Jul 2
1 hr 4 min
From 37 to 24 Staff... And Revenue Doubled
Ready to break free from limited vendor connectors? Check out the MSP Skills Repo and connect your entire stack to agentic AI: ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com Most MSP owners believe growth requires more technicians, more managers, and more overhead. But what if the opposite were true? In this episode, Bryon Beilman (CEO of Iuvo) shares how his company achieved something almost unheard of in the MSP industry: reducing headcount from 37 employees to 24 while doubling revenue. Even more surprising, the team now has more capacity, less stress, and more freedom to focus on strategic work than ever before. And he's sharing the mindset, culture, and AI-driven operational changes that made it possible.  Chapters:  0:00 - Intro  1:17 - Focusing on what strategic for your clients  16:18 - What he's unlocked with AI after "chatting"  20:35 - How do I stay up-to-date?  28:44 - Doubling revenue with less employees  45:44 - How he takes AI to clients  Connect with Damien and Bryon:  Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens Bryon - https://www.linkedin.com/in/bbeilman/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
Jun 25
1 hr 3 min
He Built an AI Business From His MSP
Ready to break free from limited vendor connectors? Check out the MSP Skills Repo and connect your entire stack to agentic AI: ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com/youtube In this week's episode, Shane Naugher, CEO of Innovative Automations, joins the show to unpack how he transformed his MSP experience into a new AI and automation business. He shares the hard lessons learned behind selling AI services, why project-based automation can destroy margins, how scope creep led to a 20x budget overrun, and why MSPs need to think beyond simply reselling vendor AI tools. We also dive into AI governance, recurring revenue models, automation ROI, internal team adoption, and why MSP owners need to lead from the front before their clients fall behind. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 0:57 - Starting an automation company 17:53 - Governance + Assessing what they need 23:52 - Figuring out the ROI 28:57 - How do you keep up? 33:00 - Getting hands on 36:39 - Dealing with AI overwhelm 39:00 - What are clients wanting? 44:16 - What was impossible before? Connect more with Damien and Shane: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens/ Shane - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanenaugher/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
Jun 18
48 min
How a “Non‑Technical” Founder Built World‑Class Agent Tools — with Matt Van Horn
In this week's episode, Matt Van Horn, creator of Last 30 Days, CLI Printing Press, and Agent Cookie, joins the show to unpack how AI agents are changing what non-engineers can build. Matt shares how he went from sales and business development to creating world-class agent tools, why CLIs may be the missing bridge between AI and real business systems, and how MSPs can start using agents to move faster, automate deeper, and build workflows that were previously impossible.  Connect with Damien and Matt:  Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens/  Matt - https://x.com/mvanhorn  🎙 Listen on audio:  Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/msp-mindset-with-damien-stevens/id1669572779  Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5B1k3Z8qXBGBSCJeSScjBE?si=c5d185c306064520 #msp #managedservices #managedserviceprovider 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
Jun 11
53 min
The AI Layer Every MSP Is Missing
Every Thursday, I build AI agents in Claude Code with other MSP owners. It’s live, free, and on screen. Join our next build ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com In this episode, Damien talks with Laith Palawan, CEO of Orange Crew and founder of Bloom Logic, about why AI is becoming the next major differentiator for MSPs. Laith explains how every modern business is drowning in scattered data across email, tickets, phone calls, Teams, Zoom, CRM, QuickBooks, and documents — and why MSPs are uniquely positioned to help clients make sense of it all. Laith shares how he built an AI company alongside his MSP, what he learned from trying to bring AI into the SMB market early, and why the future MSP opportunity may not be just fixing infrastructure, but becoming the trusted partner who connects data, intelligence, and business outcomes. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 2:22 - Getting started as an MSP 12:04 - Differentiating your MSP with AI 38:06 - Ways AI helps him understand business 45:00 - What is down the road?   Connect more with Damien and Laith: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens Laith - https://www.linkedin.com/in/laith-pahlawan-26b93a/   📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
Jun 4
53 min
AI Agents Are Replacing MSP Busywork
Every Thursday, I build AI agents in Claude Code with other MSP owners. It’s live, free, and on screen. Join our next build ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com/ In this week's episode, Damien sits down with Robert Burke, CEO of Core12 and founder of Sobo, to discuss how AI agents are changing the future of MSP operations. He shares how Core12 grew 62% last year and is trending above 68% this year by using AI agents to handle repetitive internal work that once required manual effort. He shares their shift from traditional managed services to becoming a Managed Intelligence Provider — combining IT support, cybersecurity, compliance, and AI automation. For MSP owners who want better margins, less operational chaos, and a smarter way to scale, this episode shows where the industry is heading. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 01:11 - Results with AI and Soho 10:02 - What is managed intelligence 23:48 - What does MIP mean to him 32:32 - Where do I start with AI? (Culture first) Connect more with Damien and Robert: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens Robert - https://www.linkedin.com/in/robburkejr/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
May 28
49 min
What 20 Years of AI Taught This MSP
Ready to build agents in your MSP? Join our build sessions todady ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com In this week's episode, Damien sits down with Jon Salisbury, CEO at Nexigen, to talk about what 20 years of AI experimentation has taught him as an MSP leader. Jon explains why MSPs should stop thinking only in terms of tools and start focusing on use cases, governance, literacy, data quality, and culture. He also breaks down why “locking down” AI is not enough, and why creating a safe “Golden Road” may be the best way to reduce shadow AI and help clients adopt AI responsibly. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 1:41 - Getting started with AI 9:40 - Working on himself around AI 22:20 - How does this inform his MSP 29:53 - How do you help people with AI 36:10 - What he's excited about now 41:11 - How he leads his team Connect more with Damien and Ben: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens Jon - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonsalisbury/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
May 21
47 min
Customer Zero: Why this MSP Dogfoods AI Before Selling It
Ready to build agents in your MSP? Join our build sessions today ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com In this episode of MSP Mindset, we're joined by Ben Smoker, CEO of Sota, a top 10 MSP in the UK, about why Sota chose to dogfood AI internally before selling it to customers. Instead of leading with tools or rushing a new offer to market, Sota spent months testing AI across finance, HR, compliance, sales, service, and back-office workflows to understand what actually saves time, where governance matters, and how MSPs can create meaningful client outcomes with AI. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 2:43 - How they're thinking about AI 30:03 - AI shaming 44:58 - Culture around AI Connect more with Damien and Ben: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens Ben - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-smoker-a01b6389/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
May 14
1 hr 6 min
He Used AI to Close 20% More Deals + Get Clients Excited for QBRs
Ready to build agents in your MSP? Join our build sessions today ➡️ https://compoundingteams.com In this week's episode, Damien sits down with John Snyder, CEO of Net Friends, to unpack how he used AI to improve client reporting, reduce wasted scoping time, and increase project win rates from 47% to 65%. He shares how his team moved from reports nobody read to QBR-style insights that got clients responding within minutes, asking better questions, and requesting follow-up meetings. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 1:38 - What they're doing with AI currently 14:04 - His AI QBR reports that get real results 43:27 - AI and Security Connect with Damien and John: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens John - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnsnyder-netfriends/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset
May 7
1 hr 18 min
AI + Automation = 10X Capacity for Your MSP
What happens when an MSP goes all-in on automation first—and then layers in AI the right way? In this episode, Brian Luckey (CIO of Integris) reveals how his team scaled capacity exponentially, saving tens of thousands of hours, increasing profitability, and transforming how work gets done across the organization. If you’re still relying on traditional service models, this conversation will show you why the future belongs to MSPs who combine automation, clean data, and AI-driven workflows to do more with less. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 0:56 - Saving 35,000 hours 17:55 - Changes to the L1, L2, L3 model 29:22 - Why we need to be the enablers with AI 38:33 - Fear around AI 42:17 - Start with yourself first 52:28 - Future business models 57:15 - How do I move the needle? 59:37 - Where would he start today? 1:04:55 - Where is this going? Connect with Damien and Brian: Damien - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstevens Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-luckey/ 📺 Watch on YT: https://www.youtube.com/@mspmindset #msp #managedservices #managedserviceprovider
Apr 30
1 hr 13 min
Load more