Data Center Inc., Hutchinson, Kan., a core banking software developer, named the company’s first female president in its history, and announced its acquisition of the Vetter technology suite.
Sarah Fankhauser became DCI’s first female president in the company’s 57-year history, and the first female president among major core providers in the bank technology industry. She will also be the company’s chief operating officer.
Fankhauser’s nomination was unanimously decided upon by the board of directors at the company’s annual shareholders meeting in April. The board also announced that John Jones, who has served as president and CEO since the untimely death of A.J. Krail in late 2003, will remain as CEO until he retires early next year. Fankhauser will take his place at that time, becoming the first female CEO in the same industry space.
“Working with Sarah over the past 20 years has been a privilege,” Jones said. “She’s helped direct the most significant initiatives in our recent history, from development of our iCore260 software to landmark business acquisitions and more. I have no doubt she will continue to lead DCI to even bigger and better endeavors.”
Fankhauser’s banking career began as a teller at a large DCI client bank where she worked her way to branch operations officer. She joined DCI in 1993 as an analyst/instructor training other DCI clients how to use the company’s core processing system.
Fankhauser rose through the ranks at DCI in a series of promotions between 1995 and 2004 during a period of management successions, reaching the position of senior vice president, leading the company’s customer support and product development divisions.
Fankhauser was promoted to executive vice president in 2009, and named chief operating officer in 2014.
“My career started in customer service, so providing the best customer experience has always been my priority, and will be as DCI president,” Fankhauser said. “I’m excited about the modern digital future we are building, and I will ensure it’s delivered with the highly personal service our family of community bankers deserves, and has come to expect from DCI.”
Fankhauser’s husband, Daren Fankhauser, was named the senior vice president, chief development officer and chief architect.
“Daren is an extremely talented visionary software developer who has propelled the depth, breadth and quality of our iCore360 solutions by leaps and bounds during his time at DCI,” Jones said. “ He has a keen sense of how to build our technology today so it is already where it needs to be for our bankers, tomorrow.”
Daren Fankhauser graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in computer information systems from Fort Hays State University. He joined DCI as a software developer in 1996, and has helped develop key iCore redesigns. Daren Fankhauser was promoted to chief architect and technical systems officer in 2010, and was promoted to senior vice president, chief technology officer and chief architect six years later.
“The banking industry is undergoing a digital revolution, and I’m eager to keep DCI innovations at the forefront, and ahead of our competitors,” Daren Fankhauser said. “You’ll see a lot coming from our talented DCI engineers to help community banks and their customers thrive and navigate the future ahead.”
The company announced in April its acquisition of the Vetter technology suite, a product offering of AFT Analytics Inc., in New York City.
The acquisition is the most recent for DCI in the past several years, following the acquisition of products from Benchmark Technologies and the ProfitStars division of Jack Henry & Associates, as part of a major strategic growth initiative by DCI in the digital bank technology industry.