Build IT LIVE 2025 opened with energy, clarity, and a very loud message for the MSP world: the next wave of growth won’t be won by those who chase trends. It’ll be won by those who lead better, think bigger, and move faster, with the right people beside them.
Set against the backdrop of the NYC Metro skyline at the Hyatt on the Hudson, Day 1 brought together MSP leaders from across the country for three days of strategy, innovation, and no-vague conversations.
From transformative keynotes to tactical panels, Day 1 gave attendees a playbook not just for better service delivery, but for smarter leadership, sustainable growth, and real team-driven innovation.
Here’s what stood out and what every MSP leader should be thinking about now.
Leadership isn’t something you wing. It’s something you build
One of the biggest blind spots for MSPs? Leadership. Too often, great techs and dependable team players are promoted to management roles without structure, training, or support. And then, everyone is surprised when things stall out.
Kam Kaila opened the day by naming that exact gap. Her point wasn’t just about leadership theory. It was about systems. She laid out why MSPs can’t keep treating leadership like a personality trait. It’s a process that needs to be learned, reinforced, and scaled.
As AI accelerates everything around us, Kam’s message was a timely one. If you can’t lead while you scale, you won’t scale at all.
Platforms can help, but people still follow people
As the tools MSPs use become more advanced, it’s easy to forget a simple truth. Growth is still powered by people. And leadership still comes down to influence, trust, and connection.
That’s exactly what John C. Maxwell brought to the stage. No buzzwords. No overproduced slides. Just real talk about what it takes to lead when everything feels like it’s shifting under your feet.
He reminded everyone in the room that while the mechanics of business may change, the heart of leadership never does. And in a landscape where everyone’s chasing efficiency, those who can build strong, trust-first cultures will always stay ahead.
The MSP model is outgrowing itself
There was a moment, right before Sunny Kaila spoke, when the room felt tense in the best way. You could tell people knew something bold was coming. And they were right.
Sunny didn’t mince words. He told MSPs to stop thinking like service providers and start acting like intelligence providers.
The idea was simple but transformative: being an MSP isn’t enough anymore. Not when your clients expect insight, agility, and outcomes, not just uptime. He laid out a clear vision for what MSPs will need to become over the next 2, 5, and 10 years. It wasn’t hype. It was a blueprint.
This was the shift, from reactive to proactive, from operations to intelligence. The kind of shift that defines whether you evolve or fade out.
Tools aren’t the problem. Tool fatigue is
There’s no shortage of platforms in the MSP world. If anything, there are too many. Tim Barton-Wines pulled no punches when he addressed what most leaders feel but rarely say out loud: the tech stack is overloaded.
MSPs are automating out of panic, not purpose. And it’s burning teams out.
Drawing on real data from Halo users, Tim showed how top-performing MSPs simplify, not complicate. They use automation with intention. They tie every tool to a business outcome. And most importantly, they design workflows that enhance teams, not replace them.
Cybersecurity doesn’t need fear. It needs better habits
Ryan Bowman brought a much-needed breath of fresh air to the conversation on cybersecurity. Instead of doom, he delivered discipline.
He reminded attendees that the biggest risks often come from overlooked basics. Things like weak passwords, skipped patches, or poor endpoint practices. Nothing flashy. Just the everyday stuff that builds or breaks client trust.
His message was practical and clear. Cybersecurity doesn’t start with high-end tools. It starts with a culture of responsibility.
Time isn’t a tool. It’s a strategic asset
Dan Sullivan took the stage in the afternoon and flipped the entire conversation around time on its head. Most people expected productivity hacks. What they got was a complete reframe.
Dan spoke about time not as something to manage, but as something to design. He challenged MSPs to treat time like the most valuable resource in the business, not just a calendar to fill. The most successful leaders, he said, don’t just delegate. They architect their days to free up thinking space. Space that leads to clarity, action, and momentum.
It wasn’t about getting more done. It was about doing what actually moves the business forward.
AI isn’t the threat. Ignoring it is
By the time the panel with Brad Schow, Chris Day, and Bruce McCully started, AI had already been the undercurrent of the entire day. But this panel didn’t speculate. It clarified. The group made one thing clear: AI won’t replace your team. But it will force you to redefine it.
They talked about how roles are changing. How AI is being baked into service desks, client reporting, and even security. And how the most successful MSPs are embracing it not as a shortcut, but as an opportunity to build smarter, leaner, more strategic teams.
It’s not about doing more with less. It’s about doing better with the different.
Bonus Highlight: Unveiling Borderless Life
Attendees were treated to the official unveiling of Borderless Life, the new book by Sunny Kaila.
More than a memoir, it’s a guide to breaking through the real barriers: fear, self-doubt, and limiting beliefs. From reclaiming your energy to leading with purpose, Borderless Life offers a practical path to scaling your impact without losing yourself.
Attendees left with more than a book, they left with a mindset shift.
Get your copy: https://hubs.ly/Q03zpjrP0
And that’s just Day 1.
Day 2? It’s all about action.
From marketing moves MSPs can actually pull off to AI strategies that drive real results: this is where leadership, growth, and innovation collide.
Think sharper takes on M&A, smarter automation, and sessions built to help you scale, delegate, and reclaim your time.
Mindset shifted. Now, we execute. Let’s go!
