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How to Hire & Retain Top Talent for Your MSP (The "Moneyball" Strategy)

Are you burning precious management calories interviewing candidates who look great on paper but fail in the real world?

Hiring for an MSP is uniquely difficult. You need technicians who can handle the technical pressure of a dozen different environments, but who also possess the soft skills to handle stressed-out clients. Most MSPs rely on "post and pray"—throwing a job ad on LinkedIn and hoping a unicorn applies.

But the best candidates usually aren't looking at job boards.

In this episode of the How to MSP Podcast, Andrew Moore talks with James Bier, Co-Founder of VAR Staffing. James shares the secrets from 25+ years of placing talent in the MSP channel. They discuss why you need to stop hunting for "active" candidates, how to apply the Moneyball philosophy to find undervalued talent, and the specific "hiring hacks" that predict employee success.

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What You Will Learn in This Episode

• [07:16] The Hiring Mistake: Where most MSPs screw up their recruitment process (and why doing it yourself often costs more than a fee).

• [11:32] Active vs. Passive: Why the best candidates are "passive" (currently employed and heads-down) and won't see your Indeed ad.

• [19:05] Vetting Tactics: How to use scenario-based questions (e.g., "The client can't reach the internet") to spot candidates who rely on Google vs. those with troubleshooting logic.

• [36:53] Retention via Structure: Why "Career Pathing" and clear KPI benchmarks are the only way to keep your best Level 1 techs from leaving.

• [51:02] Hiring Hacks: The specific resume traits to look for: Community College grads, Collegiate Athletes, Military Vets, and Eagle Scouts.

Resources Mentioned

• Guest: James Bier (VAR Staffing)

• Book: Moneyball by Michael Lewis

• Company: Ridgeview Advisors

Deep Dive: The "Moneyball" Strategy for MSP Hiring

A major theme of this episode is applying the concept of Moneyball to recruitment. In the book (and movie), the Oakland A's realized they couldn't afford "five-tool players" (superstars who do everything), so they focused on undervalued players who were elite at one specific thing (getting on base).

James Bier argues MSPs should do the same. You might not find the perfect "unicorn" technician who knows every stack and has perfect soft skills. Instead, look for "Trade Craft" and "Grit"—traits that are often undervalued by traditional HR but predict massive success in an MSP environment.