Three companies have won the PitchIT Accelerator Program competition, a ConnectWise program.
The competition, named Battle Royale, is part of the PitchIT Accelerator Program hosted by ConnectWise and Channel Program. Nodeware, vCIOToolbox and Thread, all managed service providers, entered the 16-week business development program and won a three-day competition.
ConnectWise, still based in Tampa after selling in 2019 for more than $1 billion, launched the PitchIT Accelerator Program in 2018 to invest in its vendor partners through networking, training certifications and resources. The competition's intention is to find "the best of the best vendors," said Sean Lardo, a ConnectWise "evangelist."
"We put them through the wringer for it; it's very serious for us," Lardo said, referring to the winning companies' products. "It has to be something that's usable and scalable, and it has to be safe for our partners to use and their clients."
Battle Royale was a three-day showcase of 26 technology vendors. Now, the three companies will go on to compete at IT Nation Connect, an Orlando event on Nov. 8. The winner will receive $70,000, and the second-place winner will be awarded $30,000.
The company's CEO said the experience was a privilege because it connects the industry and gives them recognition.
"This gives us a forum to kind of ride the coattails of some of the work that ConnectWise has done and be able to showcase our product as well," said Brian Doyle, co-founder and CEO of vCIOToolbox.
Kamalesh Srikanth holds a leadership position at AlertOps, an incident alert platform. Srikanth won the PitchIT 2022 grand prize and is now a coach for the 2023 program.
"Engaging in PitchIT was monumentally beneficial for us to gain exposure and expand our presence. Winning PitchIT last year was an amazing experience, but the knowledge, partners and friends we gained are truly invaluable," Srikanth said in a release.
