Question: How do you succeed as a global managed services software company? Answer: You localize and open international offices. In the age of software as a service (SaaS), some people debate me on that answer. Specifically, some experts believe SaaS and cloud computing allow North American companies to go global.

I respectfully disagree. At the end of the day, you still need a local presence in each of the regions you serve. This is increasingly clear to me as Kaseya and N-able (among other software companies) open offices across the globe and sign up managed service providers outside of North America — including new partners in the Middle East.

The latest example: Kaseya’s European office says the company has signed up CNS, a systems integrator with offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Al Ain. Initially, CNS is using Kaseya to support more than 500 desktops and 100 servers, according to a Kaseya press release.

In recent months, Kaseya has also opened offices or expanded its presence in India and Australia. During my October 2008 trip to Australia, I heard from a variety of MSPs who said they will only work with North American companies that have a local presence in Australia. And it became clear to me that Kaseya and N-able are engaged in a foot war in Australia — with many other MSP software companies dialing in from afar.

More recently, sources have told me that MSP board room discussions have increasingly focused on opportunties in India.

As the managed services market goes global, localized support from software providers will become even more critical.

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