Battista and his team gave the deal the thumbs up. And in December 2000, FDC took a 25 percent equity stake in Fexco. Battista, an 11-year veteran of FDC and CIO since 1997, didn't set out in life to be an investment adviser or a venture capitalist, but his business and technical skills have played a crucial role in FDC's enterprise investment strategy. And tomorrow I'm meeting with our president to go over them. This same scenario is playing out in boardrooms and corner offices all over the country as businesses turn to their CIOs, leveraging their technical skills and business knowledge, to help guide their investments in emerging technologies.
Companies see investments as a way to gain a competitive, early-mover advantage.
And given the rapid rate of technological innovation that advantage is more critical than ever before. We are talking about a chance to help set the standards. And that is extremely important. As a result, predicts Koehn, no company will prosper without looking outside its walls. Without, in other words, corporate venturing.