Keeping the momentum going…
The UK & Irish community has been in full swing for nearly two years now. Before that, we had Scott McKenzie and Ian Watkins leading the pack with the Edinburgh and London SBS Groups respectively. But it was only when a few guys from Microsoft and enthused partners (including Scott and Ian) got together at one or two of Harry’s events that more groups started to kick in. Since then, the community has grown from strength to strength and we are looking at over 15 groups which operate both on a local and nationwide basis. We now have over 600 voluntary members of our community and it’s still growing…
The rapid growth of our community has started to slow down slightly; the summer is coming along and community members are busy concentrating on their businesses. A slow in growth is okay though, it gives us time to take stock of where we are and where we want to go. Even if we can’t get to every meeting, the online community gives us the presence and connection we need to keep the momentum ticking along.
No matter where you live in the World, if you are new to the community (and I’m talking about the voluntary community and not a particular vendor partner programme) and reading this then have a look to the right of this page. You will see all the groups and sites you can visit to get a good idea and feel for what and why we are about.
For those who will be attending the Microsoft World Partner Conference in July then please come and say ‘hello!’. I’ll also be at SMB Nation in Redmond in September and I would love to hear how the community has benefited you.
If you want to start or join a local group, then visit www.sbsgroups.com or if you want to pick up a few gems of information whilst you’re travelling to your next client then be sure to download one or all of the podcasts you can find at www.sbsshow.com.
The community is here to help you and as I recently heard from Susan Bradley on a video interview, it’s all about ‘paying it forward’ - and of course she’s right! If you get involved and don’t force friendships just to get business then you will set yourself up well for the long haul and reap bigger benefits as a result of your patience.
Get enthused, get involved, get IT!
I hope to meet you soon and I hope in the meantime you find help in our worldwide community.