Editor's Note: John Moscicki is no longer the CEO of Columbia Ultimate. Fred Houston is now the CEO of the firm (updated July 2005). 

Q. Your career trajectory has never wavered since earning a Ph.D. in Communications Technology at Columbia, but what led you to apply your technology expertise to the collections industry?

A. I started off doing R&D for Xerox with a focus on computer and video media applications. But since then I've done a lot of consulting work, helping companies improve their business processes. I managed a successful business turnaround, which led to its eventual sale, and gained a lot of international business experience, working with corporate clients in Europe, Latin America and Canada. I directed the design, development and launch of a claims estimating system for Automatic Data Processing as Vice President of Product Development and Marketing. That was ADP's PenPro, an interactive, graphically-based product which ultimately won the Bronze Medal of Excellence in Software Design award from Business Week magazine and the Industrial Design Society of America.

Q. From a technology perspective, what key changes in the collection industry have you observed during the past few years?

A. The biggest change is the increasing demand on management/owners to meet competitive pressures and client requirements, while remaining productive and profitable during an economic downturn. We need to deliver technology that enables proactive management of resources, meets current requirements, and provides a clear and dependable path for the future. In order to do this, we need to understand the changes in the market and business environment, and the new mandates related to privacy, data connectivity, security and responsiveness in the entire collections and recovery arena.