When we ran our Managed Service Provider (MSP), ConnectWise PSA was our operational backbone. Like many MSPs, we quickly learned that ConnectWise on its own left some big gaps in automation, reporting, and communication. To get the most value, we added several third-party tools to enhance scheduling, collaboration, and billing accuracy.
We had the Business Management License, which included BrightGauge and SmileBack, along with a few consulting hours. While the consulting time was helpful, scheduling consistency was a challenge, and each consultant had a different approach. The sessions often felt more like sales pitches than long-term process improvement.
Still, we were engineers, and engineers love tools. The challenge was finding the ones that actually solved problems rather than added more to manage.
TimeZest integrates client scheduling directly into ConnectWise, allowing clients to book service appointments based on engineers’ real calendars. For anyone used to Calendly, it feels familiar and easy to use. Adoption, however, was our biggest hurdle. The team valued flexibility, and many resisted giving up control of their time. The lesson wasn’t just about software—it was cultural. Tools only work when people buy into the process.
Nilear’s ConnectActive was essential for syncing Microsoft 365 contacts and keeping license counts accurate before Pax8 released its integration. It saved hours of manual cleanup every month. Their MTX tool also made ConnectWise’s interface easier to navigate and improved workflow visibility. Adoption reached about 60 percent, which is respectable for process change inside an MSP environment.
Thread let us manage tickets directly from Slack and Microsoft Teams. This integration impressed clients and even helped us win new accounts. Their support team was outstanding, and they truly understood MSPs. The only disappointment was their early AI functionality, which never lived up to the hype. That gap was part of what inspired us to start building Junto—a system designed by operators for operators, where AI actually drives results instead of just analyzing data.
Rewst is one of the most promising MSP automation platforms available. We invested heavily in it, assigning one of our top engineers to automation design. After more than 60 hours of work, we saw tremendous potential but also hit some friction. It’s incredibly powerful on the backend but still lacks a user-friendly way to connect automation logic to front-end workflows. Rewst remains a strong tool for mature MSPs ready to build serious automation.
If automation and efficiency are your focus, check out our guide on MSP billing and reconciliation, where we share more lessons on eliminating inefficiencies.
CloudRadial promised a professional portal experience for clients. We spent hundreds of hours configuring it and nearly got it right, but the interface felt dated, and updates were rare. At the time, their team was mostly sales-focused, which slowed product innovation. Recently, CloudRadial secured VC funding to pursue AI-driven improvements, so it’s worth watching to see if they modernize the experience.
These two tools remain MSP staples. BrightGauge provided essential dashboards and reporting visibility, while SmileBack made client satisfaction easy to track directly from ticket surveys. They’re not the newest or flashiest tools, but they deliver dependable value every day.
ConnectWise PSA is a solid foundation, but it becomes truly powerful when extended with the right ecosystem of tools. Whether it’s automation, scheduling, or client engagement, MSPs succeed when they eliminate friction between systems and people.
Every MSP has its own tech DNA. The right stack isn’t about having the most tools—it’s about having the ones that solve your problems and drive profit.
At Junto, we’re rethinking how IT support and MSP workflows connect, using AI that acts, not just observes. If you’re interested in where MSP software is headed, explore our other posts on what MSPs are and how to optimize billing and reconciliation.