The Business Case for Leaning into Mobility and Fleet IoT and How Wireless is feeding AI data, conversation with Max Silber from MetTel.

In this episode of 'The Wireless Way,' host Chris welcomes Max Silber, Vice President of Mobility and IoT at MetTel, for an in-depth conversation on the latest trends and innovations in mobility and IoT. They discuss MetTel's advancements in mobile device management, IoT connectivity, fleet solutions, and mobile threat defense. Max shares insights on the importance of lifecycle management, the role of AI in edge data collection, and strategies for helping companies transition from CapEx to OpEx models. They also cover the significance of secure mobile deployments and how new technologies are enhancing safety in fleet management. Max offers practical advice for channel partners on expanding their mobility and IoT portfolios to drive revenue and solve customer problems. Tune in for a detailed look at the evolving landscape of wireless technology.

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome

00:37 Max Silberg's Background and Experience

03:30 Personal Insights and Early Career

06:43 Transition to Mobility and IOT

11:49 Business Growth and Industry Trends

17:37 Mobile Device Management and Security

21:12 Introduction to Mobility in Business

21:23 Exploring IoT and Fleet Management

22:49 AI and Real-Time Data in Fleet Management

27:00 Challenges and Opportunities in Mobility Sales

30:55 Strategies for Engaging Customers

36:10 The Importance of Data in AI

40:19 Final Thoughts and Call to Action

Transcript

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 0:00

Hey, welcome to another episode of The Wireless Way If you've been listening for a while, I hope you know, I'm grateful you're here. I know there's so many other things you could be doing. We talk about a lot of things. Yes, a lot of technology, the indirect channel in the us. But more importantly, it's about people. all of this stuff is powered by people and I'm grateful to bring on a great guest today, max Silberg vice President of Mobility and IOT at MetTel. I've been working with Nettel for years. There's a lot of people working in this mobility space, but very few are really doing it. Great. So we're gonna talk about that and how Mitel has done that. A little bit more about Max before I bring'em on. with over 20 years experience spearheading mobility and IOT and managed services across the telecom industry at companies like IDT Net to phone am Tel and GTE Space Net. some of those, you're like, wow, I thought he was born and bred at MetTel. That's where he belongs, which is where he is now, obviously. But he brings, a easy perspective to every challenge. And of course, now being the leader at MetTel, he leads mobility division. Driving operations and business development, including cutting edge offerings like mobile device as a service. we're gonna talk about iot connectivity, fleet solutions, mobile threat defense, all types of wireless connectivity. Medtel has scaled MDAS into an end to end lifecycle powerhouse. it's the full thing. You hear that a lot. Lifecycle. We're gonna talk about that and it's pretty impressive. I've been to their warehouse. It's a smart warehouse. That goes all the way from provisioning to retirement. Simplifying mobile deployments for enterprise and government customers. if you're in the government space pay attention here. His expertise has earned him a spot in the Forbes Technology Council. And his insights have been featured in outlets like CNN Business and Forbes, he's a frequent industry speaker and advisor. he's at the forefront of mobility and iot innovation, shaping how enterprise leaders think about device management, private networks, and mobile security. You can see now why I'm excited to have I could call friend. I've known him for years, but Max, welcome to the show. Excited to dive into your journey. maybe learn something about you and talk about what's next in mobility and connectivity.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 2:18

Thank you, Chris. I really appreciate, me finally being on the show. I know we talked about it once or twice over the years but thank you for that intro. I'm, honestly blushing a little bit from that intro.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 2:30

When you hear that intro, is it surprising to you?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 2:33

it's always shocking to me. Honestly. I'm just like a guy that, likes to tinker with things in technology, and I really enjoy what I do. I try not to take myself too seriously. So when you throw out those, types of accolades, it's a little embarrassing. I'm, blushing a little bit.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 2:51

Man, nothing to be embarrassed about. we were talking pre-show and it says a lot about your character when we, asked you about the bio. You didn't take credit for any of it, you said? No, it's about my team. It's about leadership.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 3:04

Always,

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 3:04

your leadership team and you're right. you could be the greatest player in the, industry, but if you don't have the right coaching staff, the right operations, the right team, manager, all those things do matter. it really can make a difference. You can make or break somebody. So you are very fortunate and I'm just glad to call you friend, we've known each other for years I, can't believe I've been doing this for five years and this is the first time, we've been able to get it together. thank you for that. I know you're a busy guy. What's not the bio? Tell us a bit more. How did you get here?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 3:35

Oh boy. How did I get here? what's, not in the bio? First of all, what's not in the bio is I also consider myself to be a professional lacrosse dad because I literally spend every weekend of the summer. Traveling the country for one of my, I have a girl and two boys, both my boys play. So every weekend there's a tournament somewhere in the country.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 3:56

Did you play?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 3:57

a full-time job

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 3:58

Yeah.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 3:58

takes up the other days

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 4:00

did you play lacrosse coming up?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 4:03

I didn't. And I, and I kind of kicked myself because I grew up in the city I grew up in Manhattan. I'm from New York, so we just say the city.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 4:09

We all know what that means.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 4:10

in Manhattan it wasn't a thing. we didn't have a lacrosse team at my school. But when my kids started playing at a very young age I kind of kicked myself that I didn't have it.'cause I really loved the, game. I really enjoyed it. so that's certainly not in my bio. Where it all started. I'll give you the quick iteration'cause it's a crazy story. graduated college, was looking for a job around the time in the early nineties the wasn't great, so there weren't a ton of jobs. but I did get a reach out from, GTE space net, the space communication division of, a phone company back then called GTE that ended up merging into, one of the three remaining ones we have today. And, they, they basically offered me a position as a assistant country manager. Which I thought was amazing. You know, I was just coming outta school and they said, we, think you're gonna be the right fit. the next question was, when are you leaving? I said, I don't understand You told me I'm gonna be the assistant country manager. Where am I going? They said, we've met the assistant country manager in Ecuador. I scratched my head and said, wait, what?

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 5:17

That's a big detail to leave out.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 5:20

I was like a couple of clarifications. Number one, I do not speak a word of Spanish. And number two, I didn't realize it was another country, but I was young, I was single and I said, Hey take a chance. So I ended up moving down to Ecuador.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 5:35

Wow.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 5:36

was there a couple of weeks. Then I got another call from headquarters in Virginia and they said, bad news, good news. I said, what's up? They said, we got into a big fight with the country manager and decided to part ways. So you're now the acting country manager. I said, this is crazy because, I, don't speak any Spanish. The entire office speaks Spanish only. There's one or two people that speak a little broken English, and I don't know anything about your business or how to run it. they said, it's not a problem.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 6:05

Wow.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 6:06

you Spanish. So every night when you get home from work we're gonna have a translator waiting for you. They'll spend three or four hours a night with you, and then in three months you're, you're gonna be able to negotiate contracts in Spanish. And in the meantime, we're gonna get you certified on our technology and you're gonna do great. I ended up signing on for two years. So I was, my first job two years down in Ecuador and then expanded into the Columbia region selling vsat communication and managing that entire business for GT's face net. So that was kind of the beginning of my. into mobility and into wireless in general. And then that over the years expanded into, the cellular side of it as cellular became more and more prominent as well.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 6:54

what was your major in school?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 6:56

my original goal was to become a floor trader on the New York Stock

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 7:01

Of course.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 7:01

So I was a triple finance investment and economics major, which had nothing to do with technology. But then going through GTE space net, I had to become. Certified in their engineering programs. So I went through engineering certification and then I continued to grow in the technology space. I enjoyed learning more on the engineering side. And that's kind of what pulled me more and more into, you know, I, really just look at myself as. A natural troubleshooter, so whatever you put in front of me I like to try every variation until I figure it out, and it translated well into IT based communication services.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 7:46

So when you said that, it made me think of something else totally unrelated at home. When you, when your wife brings you a problem, did she ever just want you to listen or do you always try to solve the problem?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 7:59

I always tried to solve the problem, even though she only just wants me to

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 8:03

Okay,

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 8:03

which

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 8:04

Okay.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 8:04

yeah,

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 8:05

answer.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 8:05

been over 20 years of marriage now. So now she gives me a look as I'm. she just looks at me and I'm like, okay, I'm just gonna shut up now

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 8:13

That's right.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 8:15

that step by step.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 8:17

That's right, if you're listening and you're a young person, and your significant others bringing you problems, sometimes it may be worth asking, Hey. Do you just want a sounding board or should I give you some options? are you telling me'cause you want me to help you or you just wanna vent? if they wanna vent, just let'em go. Most of the time we know the answers even when we're venting. I've been accused of that too. My wife's like, can you just listen? Just get in my mud puddle with me. She would tell me. so yeah, I'm very cautious I go into problem solving mode. Do you think your, education and work in the financial area, surely that's helped you make good business decisions, right? Even though you're a techie and you love tinkering having the concept of how to turn that into dollars that's been good for you, right? Has that been helpful?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 10:44

I think, everything we do in life is a tool and it's a question of how you use that tool. without a doubt having an understanding of the financial side, it is in the end we always, you know, finish the term with, it's the technology business. It is a business. And part of the business is and I always remember this like way, way. Kind of in my early days, I'd meet with large vendors trying to sell different gears. I went through satellite and then satellite into voiceover ip. different players, different technology we were buying a lot of Cisco gear. For voiceover ip, encapsulation for voice services. I went for a meeting with, Lucent at the time, and Lunt had actually come out with a competing product to what Cisco was making, which was selling like crazy. So Lucent came out with this kind of competing product and I went for the demo and I remember they were showing me like. got two fans to cool the box. We've got four fans and you know, Cisco's got this amount of memory, we've got triple the memory. And then I said in the end, I said, how much is your box? And the price tag was three times that of Cisco. And I said. Do you guys come up with this innovation strictly from the lab? And they said, yeah, this was a 100% engineering project. I said did you benchmark your pricing against the market? And they kind of looked at me with this blank stare. that's what I always remember when I think about the business aspect of what we do in technology. You can solve a problem with technology, but, you have to also solve it within benchmark pricing. You always have to make sure it's not just technically viable, but it's commercially viable. So yes, I think that aspect of what I do is always like. Okay, this sounds great and customers are gonna love it, but nobody's gonna pay that price. So now how do we take all this great stuff that we're trying to put together, like, you mentioned our MDAS or mobile devices as a service program. How do we give all this great value to customers, but still provide it? A price tag where there's true savings that it's actually something that's providing not only a value, but immediate financial benefit. absolutely, these are all tools I've accumulated over the years that I try to apply in every decision and in every new product that we try to launch into the marketplace.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 13:15

That's right. there's a lot of cool technology out there, but at the end of the day, if we're not turning a profit, we all got bills to pay, we gotta make money on it. Speaking of making money I've heard you tell the story of, 10, 11 years ago when you were first starting to MetTel and it was you and an intern doing some staging kit shipping from your apartment living room. And now you got this city block in Queens of this massive huge warehouse with a, ton of devices. Let's just leave it at that, of all types. How are you seeing, the business, how has it grown for you? Where are we now? what's the state of the mobility and iot industry as it is today?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 13:59

I think the state continues to be healthy. I think the importance of. With, with the mobility program is always about recognizing where the market's going and making the right pivots to stay in line with the market. What I mean by that is we look maybe 5, 6, 7 years ago people were buying. mobile plans that included subsidized equipment or they were financing equipment. what we've seen is companies are really looking for a one-stop shop for all the aspects that are part of that mobile lifecycle management plan. that starts with the device. Not being a capital expenditure, a CapEx, but more an opex. They wanna pay a monthly rate. today, companies are, cautious in the current world markets, economic state, worried about things like tariffs, worried about exposing too much capital, too much cash out to make large purchases. So providing companies with an opex based monthly charge that includes everything, the equipment, deploying it digitally. we enroll it over the air so the device can be fully configured. that's also a security component. we're seeing the addition of needing additional security modules. What we've done over the last year, and we haven't done a lot of noise around it, but now customers that come in and don't even use mobile device management today. We tell them. gonna give you mobile device management included at no charge. now we're doing our MDAS program. we're doing the OPEX model for, a monthly, a fixed monthly charge includes the equipment, includes the unlimited plan for a smartphone, or tablet. the enrollment over the air, mobile device management, and we'll do the setup. so we'll actually train the customer. If they wanna go in and do their own management or they want us to do it, there's no additional charge for that. We'll deploy down to the user level so we can ship it to someone's house if they're remote. They'll just hit the power button. The device will enroll itself over the air, if they break the device, we'll advance, replace it at absolutely no charge, and take back the broken device handle the whole reverse logistics data, wipe, repair, and then depot. having all that provided by a single vendor. That's been the big game changer that we've grown into with this program we started with let's change CapEx to opex, and we ended up with a complete lifecycle management program where customers really get the most bang for the buck. They get the greatest value, and in every case, they also get a savings compared to what they're paying today by utilizing direct. Co contract with the carriers, plus all the other third party vendors they have to usually bring on to be able to provide that experience.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 17:03

There's a saying Pay now or pay later, but you're going to pay, it makes me think,'cause a lot of companies think, oh, we can do this in-house. We can save some money. You know, why would we want to do that? And like, but they fell. As they're paying those employees too. I mean, there's a lot of soft costs compared to the hard savings of, the carrier. And, MDM that's usually a subscription licensing fee per device that you're including.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 17:29

A ton of internal. I was gonna say there's a lot, there's a ton of internal cost. the important thing to also remember is. when we're having these conversations with organizations, when they bring in the people that do the day-to-day, those people don't wanna do this work. They have a million other things

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 17:48

That's right.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 17:48

companies don't have, excessive IT staff. So it's more about giving them their time back to supervise a process. that includes putting on ruggedized cases and screen protectors on every smart device that goes out, that we'd also do as part of our M Ds process at no additional charge. we don't charge for the cases or the screen protectors that all comes with it. But imagine three to four hours of your day just putting cases and screen protectors on devices, now I'm giving you an updated report or portal access to see what's going on with the process. And you can focus on all the other trouble tickets coming in through your ticketing system. So it's a big time saver.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 18:30

both of us have been on numerous calls with companies where it almost makes sense that an IT help desk person would do that, but sometimes it's the HR person the finance, account payable person, or the CEO's secretary, executive assistant receptionist, front desk person, the office manager. I mean, to your point, it's always like a secondary duty for someone and then they come to us and other people in this business going, I don't know what happened. Bill used to be 5,000. We haven't hired anyone else. Now it's 10,000. We don't know what's going on here. it takes some knowledge and having the right tools too.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 19:05

It's having those right tools and, it's important to point out when we say tools, there's a reason why we give customers free. MDM or MDM included, we need that enablement engine. The other huge change we've seen over the last 12 months is the mobile device has become the new threat vector for cybersecurity. we're seeing 42% of all mobile devices, including the ones in front of you, have some form of malware already installed on them. that's a point of entry for cyber criminals. we're giving you MDM included so that if you feel you are at risk, and we do recommend customers look at additional solutions. we recently, did a press release launch for the addition of mobile threat defense a solution we teamed up with Checkpoint for. that's about providing edge device security. And that's super important because we are now eliminating that risk of someone actually infecting a company device or device accessing company assets or a network. that's, helping alleviate a lot of the other big problems.'cause those cyber hacks, they cost millions of dollars to corporations. being able to seamlessly push a mobile threat defense agent on a phone, because you already have mobile device management, included with your plan, becomes the enabler for that other threat factor we've seen added over the last 12 months.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 20:38

I've talked to some cybersecurity analysts and leaders, they're saying, if a breach occurs and it's proven that it originated on a mobile device and there was no MDM on it, claim is null and void'cause you didn't do your due diligence to protect your network. It makes you wonder why there's not a line at the door going, Hey, how can you help me with my MDM? at least 50% of the time when I'm talking to device customers that are large enough to have, you know, even say a hundred plus devices, half of'em either don't have a strategy or they have it, but you ask who manages it and they're like, I don't know. John set it up four years ago, but he left two years ago.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 21:19

Yeah,

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 21:20

we have an NDM, but no one knows how to log in. No one's checking the alerts, no one's enforcing the policies or the groups and all the different settings. So, That's, I'm glad you brought that up.'cause that is often I feel like overlooked because.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 21:34

if you are going through a renewal for your cybersecurity insurance, ask them about discounts. By adding components it's not even compliant for insurance. they'll just reject that claim. But in some cases, you're actually going to save money by adding something that doesn't cost a lot. It's actually a small component. And the reason why I mentioned that is in most of these exercises when we're taking over mobile lines for, the customer, moving it over to MetTel manage mobility. We're typically saving them a lot of money in that process they can look at it and say, let me reinvest some of the savings in having better compliance and having a real tool that sits on the edge device, scrubs the device, make sure it has no malware. If it has malware, removes it immediately. this is also the stuff that blocks those annoying text messages that say Hey, you have a pass due bill with Easy Pass or Sun Pass, They actually make it custom.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 22:34

Yeah, it looks convincing.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 22:35

make that scam custom to your area. It will stop if you clicked on any link from those text messages. that mobile threat defense that we launched will stop that. So we'll stop the infection of the device with malware.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 22:49

That's huge. Let's pivot just a little bit'cause you can't think of a company that doesn't leverage mobile devices. Check the show notes, definitely be some links to learn more. But I wanna pivot a little bit about another part of your mobility business. the IOT and the fleet. Tell us a little bit more about that. where are you seeing that state of the industry from, the non-mobile device, cell phone, tablet to. Other parts of iot and Fleet.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 23:12

So what's really fascinating is, you know there's always buzzwords every year, I feel like forever. AI is the big buzzword. But I would say, like, take a step back and try to think of what's the fuel for ai. For AI is data And data from the edge. So what we're seeing more and more is. a multiplier of edge sensors going out to provide better real-time data. And that could be anything from utility based sensors. and certainly what we see a ton of is more and more on the fleet side. A real revolution where we were two years ago with fleet. was general Fleetmatics driver behavior. if you're not familiar with Fleet, we measure for things like Nancy's a new driver. We send Nancy out, she hits the brake a lot or a little too hard, that generates an alert. she tries to take turns at 40 miles an hour. That generates an alert based on the G-Force. So it's a lot of driver behavior, driver training. making sure you're not providing too much wear and tear on the vehicle itself. what we're seeing now with AI specifically with the use of high definition video both in cab pointed towards the driver as well as externally, is the AI is actually. Helping provide better outcomes. It's actually alerting for things externally like the distance between the vehicle and the vehicle in front of you. So if you're someone that's always tailgating, that's a high risk alert for an accident, it does the same, cabin facing as well. So we can actually, using ai, zero in on eye movement. We know if someone's looking down into the left, they're looking at their cell phone while they're driving, or if they're distracted by other things. Smoking eating those types of behaviors. The AI agent now looks at the video, analyzes it, and generates alerts directly to the, to, to the driver. driver has a training app that basically says, here are the things that you should really improve on. you shouldn't be having that, double cheeseburger while you're driving an 18 wheeler, or you really should stop looking at your phone. We know you're looking at your phone. So that's really where I've seen. use of real time data, in this case, video, capture, and then using those engines to generate better outcomes. it's not just, your boss calling and yelling at you. You've got an app that's kind of self-regulating, like, Hey, we know we're, all intelligent people. change your behavior. that turns into a scoring system. the higher you score, sometimes you get bonused based off of that. So you wanna maintain. Kind of a high score ratio, but certainly we, we've seen that and now we're using that video as well to provide better safety overall. So things like complete bird's eye view, look around where it's almost like you have a perimeter fence around a moving vehicle using all these sensors and cameras. allows the driver to see, where they couldn't see before. So it'll alert them and tell them, I know you can't see this motorcycle driving next to us, but it's there and it can actually show you on a view. So, things we're retrofitting, vehicles that didn't initially have it, like newer pickup trucks that have, if you've got a camper in the back and it can almost show you. Transparently past the camper. We can now do that with a lot of what we're retrofitting onto fleet solutions. So it's not just the Fleetmatics piece anymore. We're providing a better learning tool and a higher degree of safety, which is really what you're striving for when you're trying to retrofit a fleet.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 27:13

You know, a lot of, drivers, I've talked to some fleet managers and, some drivers and a lot of'em don't like it. they've liked the big brothers watching me, I want my privacy. I'm in this cab 12 hours a day. but when you just turn it around and go, Hey, you're gonna get bonused or this is gonna be part of your performance review. Just ai, you hear about all the time in the contact center world, right? I mean, AI is Rating these agents and telling if the customer's getting upset, all the different AI features there. So it's kind of cool to see it coming over into the fleet tracking route optimization, fuel conservation, insurance discounts oftentimes, right.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 27:48

Look at the business outcomes you're going to, get better safety and lower insurance premiums because of that better safety. it is a direct correlation to business outcomes, and that's why many companies are excited that they have a tool that they can actually use. It's also reward'cause that reward to having everyone really be accountable and provide the best And safest experience generating lower insurance premiums. It's helping the company overall financially. Obviously, less people hurt, less equipment damaged, so less claims for totaled trucks or vehicles or anything else. So in general, it just provides better business outcomes. As part of changing and using technology to help make that transformation.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 28:37

We've talked about managed mobility, managed device as a service. We've looked at, some IO ot, how AI's impacting fleet. all great topics and I feel like we just scratched the surface on them. I wanna dive into, when you look at the channel, whether it be your internal team and even selling advisors out in the market. Some people are natural sellers, so they're crushing it in these areas. And then you have some that have really big logos, big brands, big businesses, but they're not, they're just not doing it. They're not doing any mobility. Our fleet. Why do you think that is?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 29:11

I think it's a combination of knowledge and perception. I think there are people that have. Some element in their background where they were involved with a mobility sale or came from a company where mobility was part of the portfolio. they've gotten some basic knowledge, they're confident enough to speak to it, and they're confident enough to speak to it in a way where they can add value to their customers or their, partners. So I think. The most important thing, and I say this by the way, both to channel managers as well as to partners, is to identify where you can have the greatest conversation that can provide the value to set up that exploratory call. And I think instead of sticking to what you are comfortable with, take this as an opportunity to learn. on the mobility side, we always have. Extra resources dedicated just to training, just to updating. one of the things that I love to do more than anything, and this is why I joke, when you give me all the accolades and you know, all the stuff I've been quoted in or spoken to, I like to have one-on-one conversations with channel managers and partners that come in and say, look, I've never sold mobility before, so where do I start? Let's take one example. Give me one partner. What vertical are they in? I will give you specific examples of other similar partners or customers where we've solved specific problems. We understand what compliance that vertical needs to adhere to, and we'll help you develop that initial talk track where you can come in and say. Are you challenged with the following components specific to your vertical? If you are, we'd like to set up an exploratory call with a wireless sales engineer to talk through some of these components and provide initial recommendations use that call to listen. And learn what that talk track is. It is identical. Identical to every vertical. I'm not just talking about commercial. I've been doing federal work for years, I walk into those big rooms and there's 65 people of different departments, I start with the same conversation and discussion, and the feedback is identical. The problem is always the same It's about understanding that initial discussion and that initial talk track so that your customer sees how much value you're going to bring into that conversation, and then everything from there on. It's just about learning and understanding how to solve for each slight deviation based on compliance by vertical or use case. Maybe it's field services, it's more ruggedized device base, where it's more, law firms and accounting firms where it's more kind of executive hierarchy based. But the problem statement doesn't change. It's about. distributing edge devices. having a program for what you do when those edge devices need to be returned maintained dispatched and giving control to that entire process from a monitoring perspective, back to the organization. So I would start by saying, don't be afraid. to say, I'd love to learn more. Can I set up a briefing before I introduce you to my customer I'm happy to have those conversations because there's one thing we both know Chris and we've known for years. There is no customer left where mobility is not part of their spend. So as a partner, if you are not selling it to them, someone else is.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 32:58

Yes, absolutely there is opportunity there. sometimes I talk to partners and advisors and They're like, well, gosh, Christian, I just sell to SMB. I sell to mom and pops. And I'm starting to ask'em why, do you limit there? And you know, the answer's like, Hey, I'm semi-retired. I don't want any complex deals. I'm just trying to, you know, it's a lifestyle business. Okay, great. Good luck with that. But they're like, yeah, I've been in it for about five years and I'm really struggling to grow my business. I'm like, but you just told me you only work with SMBs. why is that? Oh, well, I don't have a shot at going for the bigger accounts, you know? All the big agencies are already in there. but you know, what are they leading with? Oh, they're trying to sell'em Fiber and ucas and maybe cybersecurity. I'm like, you know what? I bet if you go to them with a different message and a different value prop manage mobility or iot, I mean these are things that my research suggests maybe only 25% of the channel is kinda leading with. Would you agree with that?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 33:55

I look at MetTel's embedded base of customers we have over 5,000 corporations that we service. There's still a percentage of them that don't have any mobile services for one reason or another. Maybe they didn't make their way into the top thousand account group that manages stewardships for that group maybe an initial agent from years ago kind of fell off and no one managed the account. But there is so much opportunity out there. And now more. Than ever. Because we are solving more than just a savings on a plan We're taking over that complete lifecycle management. We're helping them set up a program that has what we call triple defense. So it's the enrollment piece, the MDM piece, and now things like mobile threat defense to provide that complete layer of security, which for SMB is, 10 times more important than it is for enterprise.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 34:55

a lot more to lose.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 34:58

I heard some alarming stat. one out of every three SMBs that get hit with a cyber attack out of business, they can't survive. if they've got, revenues of,$15 million or less, one in three will fail because of a cyber attack. when you think of that in relation to. Do I spend, a couple of dollars per device per month to protect that? It almost seems illogical not to go that direction. it's just as important for SMB. for anyone selling SMB, who's afraid to go into mid-market another secret, don't share with anyone. the same exact sale process. The only difference is there's more layers in the decision tree, so you have to wait a little bit longer. Those deals take a little bit longer to make their way through all the different departments, but it's identical.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 35:52

Yeah, solving problems and solving problems. I mean, it might take a little bit longer, but I think the payoff's bigger in most cases, right? land and expand, ask better questions. You will be compensated for your time. You don't ask questions. You don't land and expand. How can you grow your agency double digits?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 36:09

the mid-market ones grow. They will always grow, in my experience every single year, grow at a percentage, even if you don't do anything.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 36:19

That's right.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 36:20

Sometimes the SMBs grow and that's a great thing, but sometimes the SMBs. Are kind of capped. They'll always stay the same. They're consistent. It's great, but the mid-market ones actually grow without any effort. So definitely something. If you're SMB and you've got some contacts at a mid-market company you, wanna engage us for that as well?

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 36:39

So tell me a little bit more about how your team in MetTel will help these partners that are looking to expand their revenue they're like, okay, I hear you. I haven't been talking about mobility, I haven't been talking about fleet or iot. How are you guys helping? any last words or advice around growing into that and did this era we're talking about.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 36:59

So I would say definitely engage. If you have good contacts into a company and you're not sure how to start, engage us. through Intelisys. You can engage your channel manager at MetTel. they'll bring in one of our wireless sales engineer. On a, one-on-one call with you, we'll explore the vertical, we'll explore how much knowledge we have. We have a lot of data engines that feed us knowledge on customers, so we can look at what's in place what's the best approach, any specific challenges that the customers mentioned to you already as a starting point. And then we'll build that playbook. We'll build that strategy on how we're going to get on an intro call with you and your customer. And be able to expand that conversation. So we're there to hold your hand and help you, get to the next phase with that customer, As far as any parting words my parting words this year is that the true fuel, the true enabler of AI is actually wireless. It's the data from the edge. Without that fuel, AI doesn't learn or get better. So when you're talking to your customers and customers are talking about their AI strategy or how to grow the output they're getting out of their LLMs, their large language models or whatever AI tool they're using, the fuel of AI is actually wireless because it's about data from the edge.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 38:31

Wow. I love it that you got me. I told you I wanted a good one. And that's a good one. I agree with you a hundred percent. I tell people all the time, you know, people are like, Chris, you've been talking about iot for years I'm like that's'cause you're not doing it right. You're not focusing. But you're right, in the last year or two, probably three, AI is now making iot a real business conversation because it's actionable data, it's making businesses more efficient and effective, more profitable. Uh, before when you're collecting all this data. Didn't know what to do with it, you know, it just was sitting there. But now AI can do something with it. that is great. We've covered a lot, check the show notes. I'm grateful for this time today, man. Thanks.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 39:11

Really appreciate you having me on. I'm glad we finally got to do it.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 39:15

Yes. we don't have to wait as long. Next time we can get an update, next year and look back and say, Hey, were we right? Was AI really driving a lot of this? how was sales because of it? Something I always like to measure is, active selling partners, how many people are actually selling this stuff, or even, deal regimen it. And that's usually the good indicator, Of where, the funnel's gonna grow. ask yourself, how are you leveraging this technology. It might be new to you, but it's been around for, decades. how are you leveraging it? are you asking your customers about mobility, how they're managing it? How are they managing their expenses? Are they frustrated with working with the, underlying carrier? There's a lot of good ways to, take a quick assessment, What advice do you have for them? there has to be something they can do today. What can a partner do today to change the TR directory of their revenue by leveraging in mobility and iot? Is there anything you would recommend?

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 40:08

I would say definitely get that conversation started. reach out to us, it's okay to ask for help. I've always asked for help my entire career. That's how I learn something new. So reach out to your Intelisys rep. Get on with a channel manager at MetTel. They'll connect you to myself or someone on my team, one of the wireless sales engineer. Let's figure out what the right playbook is to create that intro call for your customer. That will add. The greatest value. The other one is by looking at what is the customer challenge. In many cases, I'm also seeing a big frustration for customers and a big initiative is to consolidate vendors. If it's a vendor consolidation get a list of all the vendors being utilized in a mobility program today and see if our MDAS program can help. consolidate and centralize how the entire program runs for those customers. So a lot of different. in which we can approach, that initial call with the customer. It's about providing the most value to the customer and solving the most immediate problem.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 41:17

Yeah.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 41:17

that problem on that call, so we'll, come armed ready to have that conversation. One thing I will tell you, I've never been on a call or no one on my team has ever. Been on one of those calls where a customer said this adds no value. And you know, this wasn't a good use of my time. So as an advisor, it's important to bring these conversations to the forefront with your customers as well. It positions you as a person that brings value and expertise into those calls. So I'd say it's there. It doesn't cost you anything. Let's have that conversation and let's bring that conversation to your customer.

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 41:55

Man, again, another great word, to end on AI is fed by data. Mobility and Fleet iot provides that data. if you're a selling partner, advisor, consultant, whatever. Let's start with the deal you're working on right now. Surely you have a prospect, you have a client on your radar ask that client the questions that Max is talking about here. Let's start now. Today's the day. Today's the day you pivot and it becomes a part of your discovery questions. as you talk your clients, as you check in with your current customers, today's the day to ask about, how are they collecting data? What are they doing to have safer fleets? How are they managing their assets and their expenses? If you can't tell Max, I really don't want to end this conversation. Can you tell I keep circling. I keep trying to close this and I just wanna keep talking about it, a tip of the hat to you You got good energy and, you got such experience in this area. we'll wrap it up. thanks so much for your time. Look forward to hopefully seeing you on the road here soon.

max-silber_1_07-22-2025_110008: 42:59

Thanks for having

chris_1_07-22-2025_110009: 43:00

And there you go. Yes, the official ending of this episode. if you like what you heard if you thought about a client, a colleague, a coworker, a salesperson on your team, please share this episode with them. subscribe, like, follow all that. I really appreciate it. And also check the website, the wireless way.net. The wireless way.net. There's a contact us button there. come straight to me and my team and we'll love to engage with you. Get any advice or input on this episode or others. Check us out@thewirelessway.net. And there you go, folks. Another episode in the books. We'll see you next time on The Wireless Way