The aim of the SBSC North West group, based in Manchester, is to be an independent forum enabling IT Support and Managed Service Providers in the North West to meet one another and share best practice. This sharing of best practice is not limited to Microsoft products, but includes all 3rd party vendor products and services relevant to small and medium sized business environments. Learning from other partners about how they get the most from all their suppliers and having good access to resources in the form of product and technical specialists means we all improve our offering.

The forum is run by Managed Service Providers for themselves, so the agenda is set by the group to reflect both specific and common issues the group are experiencing. As the main conduit through which IT products and services are procured and delivered to small and medium sized businesses, it helps us and providers to engage in discussion. The group discussions are critical and constructive, seeking only to work out what’s the better solution for a given situation, and because of that, the group are allowed more of an influential insight into Microsoft and 3rd party vendor offerings and future plans.

Members can benefit from being part of a community association by being able to call on other resources when stretched, and help business colleagues with referrals for work out of their preferred location or technical skill set.

How this group can help you

• Share ideas and solutions with similarly technical peers
• Discuss product features, current and future, with Microsoft technical and product managers
• Assess 3rd party vendor product and service offerings and their performance
• Help your business contacts by referring business on to colleagues you know

Open to all Managed Service Providers in the North West region who want to help the community progress, and 3rd party solution providers to promote their offering, the group first met in Manchester in March 2008.