Financial-software firm bends with trends.

• Author: Chavez, Lorenzo
• Position: Executive Edge

CHRIS SCHERPENSEEL IS AN ASTRONOMY BUFF WHO HAS SHOWN A CERTAIN telescopic vision in helping Denver-based FRx Software become a multimillion-dollar company in less than 10 years.

FRx provides financial analysis and budgeting software for customers who fit somewhere between the mainstream Microsoft Excel users and the more demanding, high-end People-Soft users.

"We started with financial reporting where there was a big need in the mid-market," says Scherpenseel, FRx's president. "We put power in the hands of end-users so that they can create their own financial statements, and then we moved more into the budgeting and planning arena."

Scherpenseel and FRx have succeeded because they've been able to anticipate what business-technology trends will be adopted by tens of thousands of CEOs, CFOs, accountants, investors and others interested in tracking corporate financial performance. Last year during a gathering with corporate leaders, Scherpenseel laid out his philosophy, giving listeners not only a morsel of advice, but also a clue as to how FRx has succeeded:

"Leaders today must remain vigilant--never grow complacent or arrogant," Scherpenseel said. "Though your business may be successful, it's imperative that you operate with the same passion and commitment that a struggling company would."

They're not struggling, but passion and commitment have served Scherpenseel and FRx well. Founded 10 years ago, the company today distributes various financial-planning applications used by 115,000 companies worldwide--companies with annual revenues between $10 million and $250 million. (The name "FRx" refers to the company's "financial-reporting" software, while the "Rx" is a play on the universal medical prescription symbol.)

Despite an avuncular manner, Scherpenseel gives off an air of quiet confidence and certainty when describing his company and its products. The towering 6-foot-6-inch executive could just as easily be another worker in a nearby cubicle. But that perception ends when he thoughtfully outlines the company's history, its customer-focused approach and a key acquisition that helped FRx keep pace with technology-fueled change--in this case, the Internet.

To diversify and expand its offerings, he says, the...