A $15.5M MSP in rural Nebraska. No major market. No shortcuts.

Most MSP owners assume scale requires geography, talent density, or luck. This conversation challenges that.

Brian Hoppe sits down with Ed Knott, who built Applied Connective Technologies from 2 people to 68 employees, to unpack what actually drives growth beyond $10M.

This is not a conversation about tactics. It’s about the shift most owners struggle to make.

In this episode:

- What really changes between a $5M and $10M MSP owner

- How to build and retain a team in a constrained market

- Why client experience and retention become the primary growth engine

- The transition from founder-led hustle to leadership-driven scale

- What “financial maturity” actually looks like inside an MSP If you’re thinking about what it takes to build a business that scales beyond you, this is the conversation.

If you want to go deeper on the levers behind growth and valuation, you can get the Value Creation Blueprint here: https://brianhoppe.com/blueprint/

Key Moments

1:06 – The real difference between $5M and $10M MSP owners

7:32 – Building in a rural market and why geography didn’t matter

12:24 – Hiring and retaining talent when your market is constrained

19:05 – The moment an owner has to let go

25:11 – How sales evolves as the business scales

32:58 – Retention as a strategic growth driver

36:35 – Using leading indicators to run the business

45:42 – The biggest mistake Ed made as a leader

Connect

Brian Hoppe

https://brianhoppe.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianhoppe

Ed Knott

Applied Connective Technologies https://appliedconnective.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/ed-knott-a218535/

A $47M MSP with 165 employees. Built from telecom consulting, VoIP, and a founder who had to learn the business as it scaled.

Most MSP owners assume growth breaks because of sales, marketing, or market size. This conversation challenges that.

Brian Hoppe sits down with Shawn Torres, CEO of In-Telecom, to unpack how the company grew from an $8M telecom and networking business into a fast-scaling MSP with offices across Louisiana, Texas, Georgia, and Tennessee.

This is not a conversation about chasing top-line growth. It’s about the discipline, financial maturity, leadership development, and internal infrastructure required to scale without losing control.

In this episode:

- How Shawn grew In-Telecom from $8M to $47M after launching managed services

- Why aggressive targets only work when they are backed by budget, data, and accountability

- How a real CFO changes the way an owner thinks about growth, cash, debt, and forecasting

- What MSP owners underestimate about acquisitions, integration, and culture fit

- Why leadership development, middle management, and internal operations become critical at scale

If you’re trying to build an MSP that can grow past founder-driven hustle, this is the conversation. If you want to go deeper on the levers behind growth and valuation, you can get the Value Creation Blueprint here:

https://brianhoppe.com/blueprint/

Key Moments

1:48 – The leadership lesson Shawn had to learn as the business scaled

7:36 – Why In-Telecom added managed services after building telecom, voice, and networking

11:11 – How EOS, discipline, and target-setting changed the company’s growth path

18:38 – The financial mechanics behind growing from $31M to $47M

23:53 – Building the sales, BDR, client success, and marketing engine

28:09 – Why a real CFO becomes critical around the $8M mark

32:19 – What Shawn learned from acquisitions, integration, and culture fit

38:56 – The non-obvious infrastructure required beyond $30M

44:43 – Why every new stage of growth forces the owner to level up

52:05 – Why coaching and people development matter beyond the leadership team

54:54 – Shawn’s biggest mistakes as a leader

58:39 – Lightning round: work from home, AI, the gym, hunting, and making deposits

Connect

Brian Hoppe

https://brianhoppe.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianhoppe

Shawn Torres

https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawn-torres/

https://www.in-telecom.com/

A Microsoft-first MSP at nearly $12M. 25 years in the industry. A clear bet on AI, Copilot, and modernization.

Most MSPs are still trying to figure out where AI fits. Nabil believes the opportunity is already here. Brian Hoppe sits down with Nabil Aitoumeziane, president of FSI Strategy, to unpack what it means to build a Microsoft-first MSP, modernize clients for the AI era, and move beyond the old model of tools, tickets, and reactive support.

This is a conversation about process, people, delegation, trust, and why MSPs need to start having bigger business conversations with their clients.

In this episode:

- Why FSI chose to become a Microsoft-first MSP

- How Nabil thinks about modernization, security, and AI readiness

- Why process becomes non-negotiable as an MSP grows

- How to delegate without losing visibility or control

- Why MSP owners need to find what they are uniquely good at

- How AI and Copilot are changing internal operations and client strategy

- Why AI agents may become a new managed service opportunity

- The importance of going back to basics with customer relationships

If you’re thinking about how AI changes the role of the MSP, this conversation is a helpful look at where the market is heading and how to prepare for it. If you want to go deeper on the levers behind growth and valuation, you can get the Value Creation Blueprint here:

https://brianhoppe.com/blueprint/

Key Moments

1:07 – Nabil Aitoumeziane joins the show

1:49 – FSI Strategy’s Microsoft-first MSP model

3:22 – Growing FSI to nearly $12M

4:30 – Becoming a Microsoft managed service provider

5:27 – Building modernization into client contracts

6:23 – The biggest leadership lessons Nabil has learned

8:01 – Learning to delegate as the business grows

11:46 – Building leaders internally

13:10 – Finding what you are truly good at as a leader

15:33 – Discipline, peer groups, and asking for help

17:43 – Focusing on Microsoft relationships and customer growth

18:22 – Why MSPs need to be more selective with tools

21:27 – Finding your zone of genius

25:00 – The mistake of doing the same thing over and over

28:40 – Going back to basics with customer service

32:40 – Pushing decision-making down into the organization

36:36 – How AI is helping FSI improve process

41:13 – How FSI uses Copilot internally

42:58 – Why MSPs need to implement AI internally first

44:09 – Data governance, security, and Copilot readiness

46:27 – How MSPs can monetize AI

47:02 – Why AI agents could become a managed service

49:09 – Building and supporting agents for clients

55:36 – Why clients will look elsewhere if MSPs ignore AI

56:39 – AI as a business conversation, not a technical one

58:04 – MSPs becoming strategic consultants

1:01:57 – Nabil’s biggest leadership mistake

1:04:31 – Lightning round

1:09:13 – The book that shaped Nabil’s thinking

Connect

Brian Hoppe

https://brianhoppe.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianhoppe

Nabil Aitoumeziane

https://www.fsistrategies.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nabilaitoumeziane/