Tom Welton is a Solutions Engineer and Msp Expert at Pax8. Previously based in their Colorado office, he has been based in the UK since the company opened their first European location.

After getting special dispensation from the British government to move over in the middle of the covid pandemic, Tom has since helped Pax8 to establish several offices in the UK and the wider EMEA.

An Interview with Tom Welton

How Tom Overcame His Imposter Syndrome to Become an MSP Expert

Tom explains that his background was hospitality and customer service, and got into tech while working in hotels at ski resorts. As he says himself, he “ thought that meant coding, scripting and Python and quickly found himself overwhelmed.

However, he came across Pax8 in their early days, and working with them gave him the opportunity to develop his skills and knowledge. Tom adds that Pax8 were always happy with his work, but he still suffered from imposter syndrome.

“So, I got a lot of Microsoft certifications and became a Microsoft enterprise admin expert. Then I took the CompTIA Security Plus qualification. It took three months’ study, but I passed. And it’s especially good because the learning is vendor agnostic.”

Why Tom Enjoys Attending Industry Events

With a day job that means Tom spends most of his time behind a computer, he loves the opportunity to get out to events. “This is where the channel lives. And I get the chance to talk to real human beings.

“My day-to-day calls can become routine. So events break me out of my comfort zone. I get to speak to people who might think that our solution isn’t right for them. And I explain how we can help, they share their story and their goals and sometimes they become a customer.”

How the Solutions Engineer Role Requires MSP Expert Knowledge

Within Pax8, they have both solution engineers and solution consultants. Tom says the consultants sit closest to account management. And the engineer role is more ‘pure technology.’

In Tom’s specific job, he says, “I assist with bespoke conversations where it may not fit into some of the more standard day-to-day work. They tend to follow more or less the same format.

“I hop on the calls with one of the account managers. Having these bespoke conversations is out of my comfort zone. But it keeps me interested, and the client appreciates speaking to an MSP expert.”

How MSPs are Using AI

Like many other solution providers, Pax8 are finding that either their MSP clients or their own end users are leveraging AI. “We have a couple of vendors that use specialist technology.

“It’s fascinating,” says Tom. “I’m studying what’s available, such as AI 900 from Microsoft. And of course, the talk of the town is its CoPilot, which is billed as an AI assistant.

“One of the benefits of CoPilot is that, unlike ChatGPT, the data you share with it isn’t used to develop the model. So you can be sure that if you use CoPilot, you’re not falling foul of GDPR rules. Because it can do a lot of damage if it’s not properly deployed.”

How to Connect With Tom

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Mentioned in This Episode

• IT Industry Association: CompTIA
• AI tool: ChatGPT
• AI tool: Microsoft CoPilot
• Cybersecurity accreditation: Cyber Essentials

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