Safeguard Scientifics Names Scott A. Snyder, Ph.D. Chief Technology And Innovation Officer
New position signals refined focus on technology-enabled businesses as the company leads the next wave of investment opportunities in an era of digital disruption
RADNOR, Pa., Aug. 30, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. (NYSE: SFE) today announced that Scott A. Snyder, Ph.D. has joined the company as Senior Vice President, Managing Director, and Chief Technology and Innovation Officer. Dr. Snyder is a recognized thought leader and has more than 25 years of experience in business leadership, strategic planning and technology management for Fortune 500 companies and startup ventures.
"More than ever, technology is eliciting dramatic shifts in market opportunities and determining where value is being created and destroyed," said Stephen T. Zarrilli, President and CEO of Safeguard. "Safeguard has historically been a pioneer in identifying and capitalizing on technology-enabled market shifts. By creating a new position focused on technology and innovation, we are strengthening our ability to lead the next wave of opportunities in an era of continuous digital disruption. Scott has been a part of the Safeguard community since 2006 having served on our Advisory Board. He's been on the front lines of Safeguard's evolution and is an integral member of our ecosystem. We're thrilled to have Scott join our team full-time to help shape Safeguard's long-term strategy and actively support our partner companies as they evaluate new opportunities based on their own innovations and technologies. His deep technology experience and entrepreneurial experiences will prove to be invaluable."
Dr. Snyder comes to Safeguard from Mobiquity Inc., a leader in delivering innovative mobile and digital solutions for enterprises, where he was President and Chief Strategy Officer. He will continue to be Chairman of Mobiquity's Advisory Board. Dr. Snyder has held executive positions with several Fortune 500 companies including GE, Martin Marietta, and Lockheed Martin, has been the CEO of a leading strategic planning firm, Decision Strategies International, and has also started business ventures in software including OmniChoice, a CRM/Analytics applications provider, and Strategic Radar, which provides software-based solutions for monitoring changes in the strategic environment. He also serves on the Board of Directors for Fulton Financial Corporation (FFC).
Dr. Snyder has authored a book entitled, "The New World of Wireless: How to Compete in the 4G Revolution", and has been a long-time thought leader in the mobile communications space. In addition, he is a chapter author in the books "The Network Challenge: Strategy, Profit, and Risk in the Interlinked World" and "Inside the Minds: Small Business Growth Strategies: Goals for Successful CEOs." Dr. Snyder is a Senior Fellow in the Management Department at the Wharton School, an Adjunct Faculty Member in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania, and has lectured at MIT, Babson, Duke, and INSEAD on Digital Innovation, Decision-making, Business and IT Strategy, Next Generation Wireless, Product Design and Development, and Business Intelligence. Dr. Snyder founded and directs the Wireless Innovation Council, which is made up of leading companies focused on cross-sector mobile innovation opportunities. He also holds two patents for on-line decision aids and has been quoted as a thought leader in numerous publications including the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Business Journal.
"I have a passion for creating things, and Safeguard provides a powerful platform for entrepreneurs and innovators to grow their businesses by leveraging broad expertise and a high-impact ecosystem," said Dr. Snyder. "Social, mobile, analytics, cloud and internet of things technologies are transforming companies and industries everywhere by creating step changes in economics and driving capabilities to the edge with empowered end-users. There has never been a better time to harness this new wave of technologies to create new ventures with lasting market impact. I'm thrilled to be joining a company that for over sixty years has been paving the way for innovation and a team who has the depth and breadth of expertise to make a lasting impact on our world."
Dr. Snyder earned his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from University of Pennsylvania.
In accordance with New York Stock Exchange rules, Safeguard also stated that it intends to issue to Mr. Snyder an inducement award consisting of a combination of restricted stock and restricted stock units having an aggregate value of $300,000. The number of shares of restricted stock and restricted stock units to be awarded, each representing one half of the aggregate value, will be determined based upon the average closing price of a share of Safeguard common stock on the NYSE composite tape for the 20 consecutive trading days immediately preceding September 30, 2016. The restricted stock and restricted stock units are expected to be granted on or about October 28, 2016. The restricted stock will vest 25% on October 15, 2017, and in 12 equal quarterly installments commencing on the 15th day of each January, April, July and October thereafter, assuming Mr. Snyder's continued employment by Safeguard as of such date. The restricted stock units will have a 10-year term and will vest based on Safeguard's performance-based vesting model. The inducement award was approved by the Compensation Committee of Safeguard's Board of Directors, without shareholder approval, as an "employee inducement" award under the NYSE's rules.
About Safeguard Scientifics
Safeguard Scientifics (NYSE:SFE) provides capital and relevant expertise to fuel the growth of technology-driven businesses in healthcare, financial services and digital media. Safeguard targets companies that are capitalizing on the next wave of enabling technologies with a particular focus on the Internet of Everything, enhanced security and predictive analytics. Safeguard typically deploys between $5 million and $25 million over the course of its partnership with a company, initially investing in a Series A or B Round and opportunistically in a Seed Round. Safeguard has a distinguished track record of fostering innovation and building market leaders that spans more than six decades. For more information, please visit www.safeguard.com or follow us on Twitter @safeguard.
Forward-looking Statements
Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements contained in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Our forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. The risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially include, among others, our ability to make good decisions about the deployment of capital, the fact that our partner companies may vary from period to period, our substantial capital requirements and absence of liquidity from our partner company holdings, fluctuations in the market prices of our publicly traded partner company holdings, competition, our inability to obtain maximum value for our partner company holdings, our ability to attract and retain qualified employees, market valuations in sectors in which our partner companies operate, our inability to control our partner companies, our need to manage our assets to avoid registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, and risks associated with our partner companies, including the fact that most of our partner companies have a limited history and a history of operating losses, face intense competition and may never be profitable, the effect of economic conditions in the business sectors in which Safeguard's partner companies operate, and other uncertainties described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Many of these factors are beyond the Company's ability to predict or control. As a result of these and other factors, the Company's past financial performance should not be relied on as an indication of future performance. The Company does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements or other information contained in this press release.
SAFEGUARD CONTACTS:
For Investor Relations
John E. Shave III
Senior Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
610.975.4952
jshave(at)safeguard(dot)com
For Media Relations
Heather R. Hunter
Vice President, Corporate Communications
610.975.4923
hhunter(at)safeguard(dot)com
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SOURCE Safeguard Scientifics, Inc.
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