Olympia Media names finance veteran, exit expert as CFO

Steve Fouty, a 20-year finance veteran involved in some of Indiana's biggest corporate exits, has joined fast-growing media startup Olympia Media Group LLC as its chief financial officer.

Fouty is vice president of finance and administration at Emerging Threats Pro Inc., a cyber-security firm he helped lead to a $40 million acquisition by Proofpoint Inc. in March.

Steve Fouty

He was also involved in Compendium Software LLC's buyout by Oracle Corp. in 2013 for an undisclosed price, ExactTarget Inc.'s $2.5 billion acquisition by Salesforce.com Inc. in 2013 and Software Artistry Inc.'s $200 million sale to IBM Corp. in 1997.

His last day at Emerging Threats is May 31, and he'll start with Olympia on July 20.

"What drew me to them is they're really disrupting the way publishing is done," the 52-year-old Indiana native said of Olympia.

He's not replacing anyone, he said, but the company has recently grown to the point of needing a CFO.

Olympia operates The Odyssey, a millennial-focused website that crowdsources articles from writers across the country.

With articles like "Why Girls Love The Dad Bod," it draws about 10 million monthly unique visitors and has attracted major advertisers, including Verizon Wireless, Red Bull and State Farm.

The 6-year-old Broad Ripple startup announced earlier this month that it closed on $3 million in venture capital from former ExactTarget executives, including Scott Dorsey, Traci Dolan and Tim Kopp.

Fouty said he'll start with Olympia as a part-time CFO, working two days a week. He said he started off the same way at ExactTarget before becoming a full-time controller there.

"As the company grows, we're hoping it turns into a full-time position," he said.

Fouty has a side consulting business called TotallyWhole Business Partners. He is also a board member for Husk Foods LLC and an adviser to local companies Healthiest Employers, Bindr and PolicyStat.

Editor's note: Due to faulty information given to the reporter, a previous version of this story included an inaccurate price for Compendium Software's acquisition by Oracle Corp. in 2013. The price was never publicly disclosed.