Others Who Led The Way - Austin Adams

In the days that followed New Year's Day, there was lots of grumbling about all the money spent to prepare for the Y2K rollover. But the nearly glitchless arrival of the millennium was the result of scores of senior and junior technology professionals who put in sleepless nights and long days wrestling with computer code. As a result, 2000 dawned with a peaceful yawn and not a crash.

Their efforts bordered on the "heroic," said Robert M. Garsson, director of press relations at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. "In my wildest dreams I didn't expect things to go as well as they did."

"All the teamwork and planning that our employees put into this project is amazing," said Austin Adams, executive vice president of automation and operations at First Union Corp., who is representative of the many who got the country through the new year.

Technology bankers, in turn, were also quick to applaud regulators and bank public relations employees for reassuring consumers that there was no need to pile cash under mattresses. "They made it clear early on that FDIC coverage was not affected by Y2K," said Gregory J. Miles, who manages electronic banking at Amsouth. "This resonated with customers."

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