GTIA On Location at CanITCon Calgary 2026

By GTIA

Oct 7, 2026

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GTIA On Location headed north to Calgary for CanITCon 2026, where MSP leaders from across Canada came together to talk AI, acquisitions, talent and client trust. One theme ran through every conversation: Nobody should figure this out alone. Whether it's preparing for an exit, experimenting safely with AI or earning a client's confidence, the providers pulling ahead are the ones leaning on their peers.

Watch the full playlist here.

Below is a roundup of key moments and featured videos worth your time.

What Were IT Service Providers Talking About?

    • Why community and peer groups remain the single biggest growth driver for MSPs, from first-year members to owners planning an exit
    • How joining a community before an acquisition gets MSPs integration-ready, an approach that helped The 20 roll up 49 companies in 36 months
    • What makes an MSP truly ready to sell: Clean books, aligned employees and shared systems matter more than size
    • The double edge of AI agents: The more AI can do for you, the more it can be made to do to you
    • Why sharing failures, not just wins, is the fastest way to learn AI, and why personal projects are the safest place to experiment
    • The push for vendor-neutral standards that define what an MSP and a managed intelligence provider (MIP) are
    • How AI data center demand is driving up hardware costs and changing the way MSPs help clients budget
    • Why Canadian MSPs lead with relationships over transactions, and how culture-first hiring helps keep talent in the door

Featured Videos to Watch

Can Small MSPs Survive AI?
Tim Conkle, founder and CEO of The 20, joins GTIA's Scott Campbell to explain why he sees community as the only thing that truly moves the needle for MSPs. Conkle shares how The 20 prepares members to become acquisition-ready long before a deal is signed, so integration is complete within 90 days of closing. He also offers candid exit advice, from getting your books in order to making sure your employees (and your spouse) are on board and makes the case that AI will reshape the market for smaller providers who don't scale together.

 

Your Next AI Move: Experiment, Collaborate
Ola Witukiewicz, director of community engagement at Pax8, and Matt Lee, senior director of security and compliance at Pax8, sit down with Campbell to talk about the realities of AI adoption. Lee breaks down how security risk grows as AI agents get more access and urges MSPs to experiment on personal projects before touching client environments. Witukiewicz shares the momentum behind the Managed Intelligence Alliance's work with GTIA and Texas A&M on vendor-neutral standards for MSPs and MIPs, and why the top question she heard at CanITCon was how to get involved.
 
 
Don't Struggle in Solitude
Daniel Mitchell, CEO and founder of Alt-Tech, joins Campbell to talk about the opportunities and challenges shaping Canada's MSP market. Mitchell explains why being a trusted advisor means having honest, adult conversations with clients, how AI data center demand is pushing up device costs and reshaping budget planning, and why his team runs a culture-fit interview before any technical one. His advice to fellow MSPs is right there in the title: Find a community.
 

 

Watch the Full Playlist

These videos are just a sampling of the conversations GTIA captured in Calgary. The full playlist includes additional interviews and moments from across CanITCon 2026.

Explore the complete GTIA On Location at CanITCon Calgary 2026 playlist.

Keep the Conversation Going

GTIA On Location continues to bring the channel's most important conversations directly to the community, wherever the industry gathers next. Subscribe to the GTIA YouTube channel and follow along to stay connected with the voices shaping what's ahead.
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