Michael Pratt, Chief Marketing Officer, PANINI Michael Pratt has recently been named Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of the global Panini Group. In this section, Mr. Pratt will address questions regarding his new role and its impact on Panini and their customers and partners.

Why did Panini decide to form one worldwide marketing organization?

MP: Creating one marketing organization for the entire company allows us to optimize marketing operations efficiency by consolidating marketing processes & functions while eliminating redundancy. Additionally, we're able to achieve consistency in identity, strategy, and prioritization of activities, facilitate exchange of opportunities and capabilities across all global markets and accelerate penetration in targeted international markets. The team will also continue to focus on protecting and extending our market leading position in the US market.

What are the capabilities of the new marketing organization?

MP: Our global marketing team is organized into five key areas leveraging the world-class talents of our existing global marketing resources. The team is responsible for maximizing and supporting opportunities in all global markets through Product Management, Product Marketing, Marketing Communications, Channel Marketing, and Market Development.

How does Panini plan to extend their U.S. success worldwide?

MP: Panini has experienced outstanding success in the U.S. thanks to world-class products, tremendous customer and partner support, and also Check 21 legislation. My initial priority as CMO of Panini was to analyze international markets to identify the best opportunities to focus our company's capabilities and leverage our U.S. experience. We have developed a marketing plan for targeted markets that includes a market assessment, SWOT analysis, market sizing, and key competitive factors. Using this plan, we've been able to identify product requirements, competitive situations, partner opportunities, market opportunities for existing products, and the market infrastructure in each target market. Additionally, we're extending our Partner Plus channel program to our partners worldwide to ensure they have all the support necessary for their success.

Going Green

For Panini, respect for the environment is a real commitment, and an integral part of the corporate mission. The initiative to achieve ISO 14001 environmental certification was a company-wide commitment achieved in 2008 that applies to our products and our office environments. In February 2009, for example, a management review showed that with each employee's increasingly strong focus on the initiative, water and energy consumption has markedly decreased compared to the two previous years. Additionally, industry studies have attested that electronic document processing applications such as Remote Deposit Capture, made possible by Panini's products, produces energy savings and lower emission of pollutants thanks to reduced travel between office and bank.

Panini doesn't stop there, however. We continue to keep an environmental focus at the center of all company initiatives. The Panini I:Deal, for example, is shipped in packaging designed to be completely ecological, made of cardboard printed with water-based inks. Furthermore, the product's power supply is classified as IV CAC class and absorbs the least energy possible while in stand-by mode. After the I:Deal is paused for five seconds, it enters into "low consume" mode, ensuring real energy savings. Additionally, Panini's R&D team continues to innovate ways to protect the environment through world-class design capabilities. For more information on Panini's Environment Policy, visit www.panini.com.

CIAB Recap

Panini Launches I:Deal™ Check Scanner Worldwide

Last week, at Febraban’s CIAB 2009 in São Paulo, Brazil, Panini introduced their newest check scanning platform to the global payments community. The Panini I:Deal™ incorporates the industry-leading reliability, quality and performance customers expect from Panini, and features unparalleled affordability combined with best total quality.

“The early success of the Panini I:Deal in the United States and the progressive development of distributed check capture environments throughout the world prompted us to extend this product to all of our targeted markets,” notes Nicola Aliperti, CEO, PANINI. “The Panini I:Deal is designed specifically for low volume check capture environments, offering a perfect match for many emerging global markets.”

Brazil’s leading financial institutions spent a significant amount of time in Panini’s booth receiving demonstrations and more information about the product. As they prepare for check truncation, the Panini I:Deal has emerged as a perfect solution. The I:Deal was also featured by Tecpoint, a leading technology company in Brazil, with a custom demo solution designed specifically for the event.

Febraban is the Brazilian Federation of Banks, a professional organization and the principal representative of the Brazilian banking sector. CIAB 2009 is the largest Information Technology event for financial institutions in Latin America. The event is comprised of a product and service exhibit of best technology for the financial sector in an area of more than 4 thousand square meters. At the same time, in three auditoriums, presentations will be held regarding important topics of the financial industry.

Quarterly Webinar Recap

Earlier this month, Panini welcomed Dan Fisher, President & CEO, The Copper River Group, to our quarterly Panini webinar where he presented Understanding the FFIEC RDC Guidance. Additionally, Michael Pratt, CMO, PANINI, presented Distributed Capture Goes Global. Panini’s quarterly webinar continues to attract many attendees from the nation’s top banks and technology companies. In addition, the 2nd Quarter webinar marked the first time the event was expanded to include attendees from markets throughout the world.

To view a recording of the event, click here.

To receive an invitation for Panini’s next webinar, email Jess Back at jessica.back@panini.com.

Upcoming

AFP Annual Conference & Expo
October 4 – 7, 2009
San Francisco, CA
Visit Booth #1400

BAI Retail Delivery
November 3 – 5, 2009
Boston, MA
Visit Booth #410

Panini continues to experience early success of the Panini I:Deal and has received unparalleled support from industry leading partners! Among these early adopters are NCR, WAUSAU Financial Systems, Metavante, Jaguar Software, Heartland Payment Systems, J&B Software, Jack Henry ProfitStars, Silver Bullet, and Edward Jones. In just a few short months, Panini has already sold more than three times the initial 2009 forecast for the product!

Visit www.paninina.com/ideal to view two testimonial videos highlighting early reaction to this breakthrough product. Additional product materials include a market video and a product video!