#43 – From the Trenches: AI Boards, Cyber Risk & the MSP Security Squeeze (Tom McIntyre – YourTech)

In this episode of From the Trenches on the BMK Vision Podcast, Josh Peterson sits down with Tom McIntyre—founder of Ontario-based MSP YourTech and a 30-year industry veteran—for a grounded conversation about what happens when the “next big shift” collides with real-world MSP economics. This is not an episode about chasing the latest headline. It is a leadership conversation about how owners navigate structural change without losing the fundamentals: client trust, operational discipline, and a clear point of view on risk.

Tom’s story matters because it spans multiple eras of our industry: hardware margins and “free support,” the slow (often painful) transition to recurring services, and now the new frontier—AI as a thinking partner inside the MSP business. But the most useful insight is not the novelty of AI. It is Tom’s framing: if owners treat AI as a virtual “board of directors,” they can pressure-test decisions, expose blind spots, and build consensus before a plan ever hits the team. That same discipline becomes the bridge to cybersecurity reality: insurance questionnaires, rising expectations, and SMB budget ceilings. For MSPs feeling squeezed between what clients should do and what they will pay for, this episode clarifies the real work—leading clients through risk conversations with confidence and consistency. If you want a system that supports that operating rhythm, explore Vision.

If you’re an MSP owner trying to modernize your advisory posture—without getting trapped in tool-hype or fear-based selling—this episode will resonate.

Why “AI as a board” is a leadership move, not a tech trick

Most MSP conversations about AI still orbit efficiency: automate notes, draft emails, summarize tickets, generate scripts. Useful, but shallow. Tom’s approach is more interesting because it forces the owner into a higher posture: AI as a multi-perspective decision forum.

By building a “board” of simulated expert personas—marketing, technical, and operational—Tom turns AI into a structured mechanism for critique, dissent, and consensus. The value is not that AI is “right.” The value is that it makes your thinking explicit, challenges your assumptions, and shortens the cycle between idea → evaluation → better plan.

• It reduces single-owner bias by forcing multiple viewpoints into the same decision.
• It improves clarity by turning half-formed instincts into written, testable plans.
• It strengthens execution because consensus-building happens before the plan hits the team.

The real security squeeze: rising expectations, limited budgets

The episode becomes most practical when it shifts from “what AI can do” to “what clients will actually fund.” Tom describes the familiar pattern: security adoption is often driven by fear or a near-miss, while budget acceptance lags behind. MSPs end up holding the tension between what’s prudent and what’s affordable.

This is where leadership shows up. Mature MSPs don’t sell security as a list of tools. They sell it as a risk posture with defined standards—backed by an operating cadence that keeps the conversation alive even when nothing is “on fire.”

• Clients rarely adopt security because it’s elegant—they adopt it because it’s necessary.
• Small businesses are often the most vulnerable, but least able to absorb abrupt cost increases.
• Insurance and bank requirements increasingly shape the “minimum bar” clients must meet.

The MSP owner’s dilemma: serving clients today without commoditizing tomorrow

A subtle thread in this episode is the innovator’s dilemma in services: if AI makes tactical work easier (or self-serve), where does the MSP create durable value?

Tom’s answer is directionally correct: move up the value stack. If the client can get “how-to steps” from AI, the MSP must become the place clients come for: standards, judgment, accountability, and outcomes—especially when risk is ambiguous and the tradeoffs are real.

In other words: tactical enablement gets you in the room. Strategic leadership keeps you there.

Episode highlights

• 00:00:11 – Using AI to assemble a virtual “board of directors” that offers multi-perspective marketing and technical advice.
• 00:01:29 – Tom’s 30-year journey from machinist and theatre technician to MSP founder in Ontario, Canada.
• 00:04:49 – Lessons learned transitioning from hardware-focused revenue to recurring managed services and new pricing models.
• 00:10:59 – Treating AI as a strategic thought partner rather than just an automation tool for repetitive tasks.
• 00:14:55 – Building consensus-driven marketing plans by having AI personas critique and refine proposals.
• 00:31:53 – The reality of SMB cybersecurity adoption driven by fear, budget limitations, and post-incident reactions.
• 00:44:15 – How cyber insurance questionnaires and emerging regulations are reshaping MSP security standards.

Quote from the episode

About the guest: Tom McIntyre

Tom McIntyre is the founder of YourTech, an Ontario-based managed service provider that has been supporting clients for over 30 years. With a background that spans machining, theatre production, and electronics, Tom brings a maker’s mindset and deep curiosity to every aspect of his business. Over three decades, he has guided YourTech through the industry’s major shifts—from hardware-centric projects to recurring managed services, early adoption of RMM tools, and now the integration of AI into everyday operations and strategy.

Tom is particularly focused on helping small and midsize organizations navigate the growing pressure around cybersecurity, insurance requirements, and regulatory expectations. He experiments actively with AI as a “virtual board of directors,” using it to critique marketing plans, stress-test security strategies, and support better decision making for his team and clients—without losing sight of the budget realities SMBs live inside.

Connect with Tom on LinkedIn →

About the host

Josh Peterson is the CEO of Bering McKinley and host of the BMK Vision Podcast. Through the From the Trenches series, Josh highlights MSP leaders who redefine growth through creativity, resilience, and genuine client connection.

🌐 Connect with Josh on LinkedIn →

📺 Subscribe on YouTube →

Frequently asked questions

How can MSPs use AI without turning it into hype?
Treat AI as a structured thinking partner—use it to critique plans, surface blind spots, and improve decision quality, not just to automate small tasks.

What does “AI as a board of directors” mean?
It means creating a panel of AI personas (marketing, technical, operations) that debate your plan, provide critiques, and help you reach a stronger consensus before execution.

Why do SMBs underinvest in cybersecurity until after an incident?
Because the risk feels abstract and the cost feels immediate—until a breach makes the consequences tangible and urgent.

Are cyber insurance questionnaires changing MSP security standards?
Yes. Insurance and banking requirements increasingly define the minimum expectations clients must meet, forcing clearer standards and better documentation.

How should MSPs talk about security when budgets are tight?
Anchor the conversation in risk posture and standards, not tools. Define what “good” looks like, what is optional vs. non-negotiable, and what tradeoffs the client is accepting.

What’s the long-term MSP opportunity as AI makes tactical work easier?
Move up the value stack: outcomes, standards, advisory leadership, and accountability—areas where judgment and operating discipline matter more than “how-to” steps.

Related resources from Bering McKinley

• Client engagement strategy for MSPs: from onboarding through QBRs
• The role of MSP financial consulting in revenue growth
• Support your support team by hiring a dispatcher

Want to continue the conversation?

If you’re an MSP owner building a more disciplined advisory operating rhythm—and want help turning risk, accountability, and execution into a system—explore Vision or apply to be a guest on the podcast.

👉 Apply to be on the BMK Vision Podcast
👉 Learn more about Vision