I have always looked forward to change and in most cases, it has been to our collective advantage.

In 1969, the most revolutionary product was introduced in the United States by Docutel – it was called an ATM. Shortly after, Diebold teamed with two British firms and introduced its own version of an ATM called the Futura banking system. Ultimately, this was a bad decision and we ended our relationship with these firms a year later. But we didn’t give up. Our engineers worked diligently for the next few years and, in 1973, we introduced the Total Automatic Banking System (TABS) 500.

It was without question the best ATM on the market and there were at least 10 different manufacturers building and selling ATMs at that time. It was a very expensive decision, and I heard that former chairman and chief executive Ray Koontz said, “We bet the farm on this product; it better be successful.” With his and other executives’ strong leadership, we were successful. Without question, entering the ATM business was the best long-term decision ever made in Diebold’s history.

During this time, I was selling bank division products in Omaha, Neb. In 1976, I sold the first online interface to a Burroughs (a Diebold competitor at the time) main frame system to National Bank of Commerce in Lincoln, Neb. A year later, I sold the first online interface to a Tandum ACI (Applied Communications Incorporated) system to First National Bank located in Lincoln, Neb.

Online interfaces provide the ability to check accounts to ensure funds are adequate before withdrawals are made. Prior to the introduction of online interfaces, bank customers would receive a debit card with per-day limits, and were only allowed to use the ATM located at their bank. Today, online ATMs allow customers to conduct transactions at banks globally.

I’ve spent my entire professional career at Diebold, starting in 1963 as an alarm installer in Ohio. I have had the good fortune to work in many geographies: Atlanta, Ga., Chicago, Ill., South Bend, Ind., St. Louis, Mo., Omaha, Neb., and New York City, N.Y. I was in service and service management for the first 10 years, and the balance in sales and sales management. When I started, Diebold’s annual revenue was $53 million and today it is more than $3 billion. I am very proud to have been part of that fantastic growth.

I recently celebrated my 45th anniversary with Diebold. Throughout my career, Diebold has been blessed with great leadership. The best thing about Diebold is our resolve to make things right. We may be ahead of the curve with some of our products, but our leadership, and just as important, our service teams, make it right and go above and beyond to always meet our customers’ expectations.