Predictive monitoring platforms have proved difficult to develop but John Pepper, Managing Director at Managed 24/7, claims to have innovated an industry breakthrough.
Despite the hype not a single application has hitherto delivered the level of predictive monitoring that a next generation MSP needs, according to Pepper, but following a six year period of working on the problem he claims to have developed a 'special recipe' consisting of six networks and application monitoring systems, layered with one of the most advanced Business Intelligence tools available. And as someone who does not ever sit on his hands, Pepper's efforts to build on this innovation mean it will continue to evolve.
"I have always been passionate about technology and business," he said. "It all started as a boy when I was given a Spectrum 48k for Christmas and a book on how to create games. From that moment I was struck. I attended business college and always wanted to own my own company. The passion started early and I love the daily changes that happen in the IT industry."
He founded Managed 24/7 in 2009 after working for and owning a VAR. "I bought into the idea of creating a managed services provider that had predictive monitoring at its heart," he explained. "This is different from traditional MSPs who see an alert when something goes down. Achieving our goal took a lot of personal investment, commitment and time, but those foundations and our passion have remained resolute. Our aim is to improve on our core services while evaluating the latest trends and working closely with partners such as Cisco, Microsoft, VMWare, HP, Nimble Storage and many more. No day is ever the same and we will never stand still - a week on holiday and you come back to see the world has moved on a year."
Managed 24/7 covers traditional IT, cloud, collaboration, Internet provisioning and disaster recovery for many household name brands. The company has doubled year-on-year in revenue, profits and staff numbers. "We now have a great portfolio of fantastic clients that we work closely with and our attrition rate is low," added Pepper. "We gain more business from referrals than we do from any marketing campaigns, something I could have only dreamed about when setting up the business."
On founding the company Pepper aspired to owning one or two of his own data centres, but the demise of 2e2 changed all that. "To have a service provider that is offering both the managed service and the data centre doesn't make sense to end users any more," he stated. "If the service provider goes they lose everything. Customers are wise to this and keen to separate the service from the ownership of data centres. I'm pleased we didn't commit to anything."
Customers are choosing long-term partners who understand them and can become part of their growth strategy. Managed service providers offer this, and the VAR model is dead in Pepper's opinion. "To shift tin, then send an engineer to install it and wait for the next order goes against anything 'value added'," he said. "Next generation MSPs are working with their customers to identify, budget and plan IT and communications procurement years in advance if you are a predictive MSP, or weeks in advance if you are pro-active.
"The role of the VAR is becoming irrelevant as customers become more technically aware. You only have to look at the number of VARs and SIs that are attempting to become MSPs. The problem is they have a five or six year journey and even then may end up becoming only pro-active MSPs, which by that time will also have become irrelevant. The message is simple: Transform and be relevant or stay where you are and become irrelevant."
That's why Pepper always looks a couple of years ahead of the market. In 2009 he invested in predictive monitoring using Big Data concepts and trend modelling, and in two-to-three years time he has no doubt that this will become the norm for traditional MSPs. "We have to keep ahead of the curve so we invest our profits back into the business to continually evolve," added Pepper. "This year we have committed over £1.5 million into a new predictive monitoring operations centre in Milton Keynes. There will be over 16, 4K projectors seamlessly working to deliver at a glance next generation predictive monitoring.
"Why? Because we believe our customers are tired of proactive managed services. They don't want to be told when they are down for an engineer to go out. Customers expect IT and communications to just work. The new centre will allow us to spot the smallest of trends a year to six months before an issue occurs. Significantly, the planning processes for the next stages of this are already on the drafting board."
Key to all this is getting the right people on board. "When I come up with zany ideas it's great to have a team that works out if the ideas can be put into action," said Pepper. "This is key for any business owner. We were committed to providing 24x7x365 predictive support from day one - with no outsourced option. Therefore, I've spent my fare share of time working through the night building the teams and building the processes to allow us to do this. Managed 24/7 is a community of like-minded individuals from many different backgrounds that come together to work towards a common goal. We all own the company and strive to work harder for our customers and be a leader within the industry."
Finding the talent to grow is a core priority and Pepper believes this issue will be just as hot in 2020. "We offer competitive salaries and a generous benefits package, including EMI schemes and private healthcare. But it doesn't stop there. We have invested heavily in on-demand training platforms to nurture talent and have an incredible atmosphere across all of our offices. Investment in people will always be top priority for us and our responses to date have always paid off."
Pepper acknowledges that developments in communications and IT are changing at a more rapid pace than at any other time in his career history. Companies are consuming IT and communications in new ways and using innovative strategies to deliver. "There will, therefore, always be areas in our portfolio that we can expand, but it's important not to believe the hype," he stated. "We always look for vendors and exciting opportunities, but they have to be stable, proven and better than any existing technology we have. You can never stand still in IT."
One area of developing interest that fits this outlook is the Internet of Things which applied correctly, is 'incredibly exciting', enthused Pepper. "When I say applied correctly I mean there has to be a need for it," he explained. "What use is a toaster reporting to my smartphone how many slices of bread it has toasted in the last month?
"But a Rolls Royce engine being predictively monitored for vibrations 24x7 enables parts to be shipped to the aircraft's destination prior to the aircraft landing. This is preventive, intelligent and exciting. IoT is something to watch as it starts applying to businesses, and we will be ready when it arrives."
In October 2016 Pepper will officially own Managed 24/7 longer than any other business he has founded. "We have a strong set of people, systems and strategies to execute and these are great foundations," he said. "I am more excited about the next 10 years than I have been about any business at any point in my career. I truly believe that my biggest achievement to date is creating a relevant proposition and company before the curve with Managed 24/7, and putting my heart and soul into it."
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