ARTICLES BY JIM RODDY

• “Who are the New Solution Providers?” And More From RSPA Inspire 2020

  One question hanging over our channel has been “Who are the new solution providers?” that will backfill for retail IT resellers who are retiring, merging, or selling. The answer to that question could be found in the Inspire audience – the new faces that are engaging with the retail IT channel.

• 2020 RSPA VAR Sales Compensation Study

  To help retail IT VARs understand sales compensation best practices in a SaaS world, the RSPA commissioned the 2020 VAR Sales Compensation Study. This first-of-its-kind survey reveals reseller compensation structures for SaaS sales vs. traditional sales, what VARs’ top sales reps earn, how they track salesperson performance, and more.

• COVID-19 Crisis: Key Points from RSPA Communication Guidelines Webinar

  To help retail IT VARs and ISVs effectively deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, the RSPA has produced several pieces of channel-focused content including a webinar on Communication Guidelines with Employees and Customers during this crisis. The 57-minute session featured insights from RSPA Legal Counsel Bob Goldberg and RSPA Board Chairperson Chelsey Paulson, who works full-time as the Human Resources Director at VAR North Country Business Products.

• COVID-19 Crisis: How VARs Are Communicating With Employees, Merchants

  RSPA members Brett Bennett, the President of VAR POSitive Technology and ISV OpSuite, and Chris Rumpf, the owner of VAR/ISV Flyght, provide examples of COVID-related messages they delivered to their employees and their merchants.

• COVID-19 Crisis: ISVs Focus On Rescuing Merchants, Protecting Staff, Stimulating Creativity

  In this article, software developer executives from the RSPA Niche & Startup ISV Community offer guidance for addressing customer issues, VAR issues, staff issues, and general business issues during the pandemic.

• COVID-19 Crisis: Leading VARs And ISVs Are Taking Action – Today

  To help retail IT VARs and ISVs effectively deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, the RSPA reached out to several members asking them for ideas and business best practices related to this crisis. Our community has responded generously with several executives sharing helpful information. Our first RSPA Blog post shared examples of how two VAR/ISV hybrids are communicating with their constituents.

• Winning Recruiting Strategies For 2020 – And Beyond

  Remember the #1 employee recruiting tool 10 years ago? Newspapers. Today print classified ads are about as effective as inserting a floppy disk into an iPad. So, what is working in 2020? Successful VARs and ISVs are implementing these five recruiting strategies. 

• Retail Tech Resellers: Where Will Your Customers Invest In 2017?

  Innovative Retail Technologies magazine has published its annual Retail Tech Spending Report for 2017 and it’s must-read content for anyone in the retail IT industry — especially retail resellers who want to see what’s around the corner in their vertical. This special issue arrived on my desk just hours ago and I’ve already underlined several key passages.

• Warning: Headache-Inducing Hiring Advice Ahead

  When an article is headlined 5 Interview Questions Every Recruiter Should Ask, it’s pretty much a guarantee I’m setting aside the next several minutes to read it. But before you click on this link to read the article I’m referencing, I implore you to not ask these five questions. Do not accept this article as a best practice — unless you want candidates to recreate the scene in the photo that accompanied the article. The candidate looks like she’s thinking, “Are you people kidding me?”

• 5 Words Most Heard At NRF 2016

  NRF 2016 was in my rear view mirror when I caught a late shuttle bus Jan. 19, but it’s taken me a full week to assemble and analyze my copious notes from the event. I just quickly searched what I jotted down, and these five words appeared the most often.

• RSPA RetailNOW 2015 Preview: Best Quotes From Gerber’s “E-Myth”

  The RSPA (Retail Solutions Providers Association) has long been known as the leading association in the retail IT channel, and this year they’re gaining a reputation as the place to meet America’s top business authors.

• Best Quotes From The Day 3 Reseller Forum At RSPA INSPIRE 2015

  Day 3 at the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA) INSPIRE 2015 Conference in Maui kicked off with an open-forum discussion among the nearly 100 retail IT channel executives in attendance. Led by RSPA solutions provider board members Mike Seymour, COO at Postec in Atlanta, and Bob Bauer, president at BMC POS in Michigan, the half-hour session produced some memorable insights.

• Heath, INSPIRE 2015 Attendees Discuss VAR Salesperson Challenges

  I was fortunate to participate in a very interesting exercise this morning at the RSPA INSPIRE 2015 Conference. Chip Heath, the event’s featured presenter, facilitated a workshop among the 100+ channel executives in attendance focusing on how solutions providers must train their salespeople to become consultative partners, not just hardware pushers.

• Heath Answers Questions From Channel Execs At RSPA INSPIRE 2015

  Acclaimed business author Chip Heath (pictured, right) isn’t just speaking at the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA) INSPIRE 2015 Conference — he’s carving out significant time to engage with retail IT channel executives in the audience. Here’s a portion of the Q&A from Heath’s January 26 discussion.

• Fast Receipt Printer Demo By CognitiveTPG At NRF 2015

  One of the products at the 2015 NRF show that caught my eye – though my eyes couldn’t quite catch up to it – was the A799II thermal receipt printer by CognitiveTPG. Promoted as the “fastest receipt printer,” the A799 shows in this video it can print the over 4,500-word United States Constitution in about 9 seconds. Cognitive executives told me the demonstration was inspired by French artist/engineer Thibault Brevet who presented at the SXSW Conference in 2014.