Faced with a lack of options, Delgado decided to teach himself how to program and set about designing his own accounting software. A remarkable achievement, whichever way you look at it.
Delgado agreed. “Jerry’s a very determined and smart man,” he said, recounting the story for MPA. “Although he does not have an official computer science degree, he knows just as much as anyone who does have one – he is very strong in math.”
A computer technician impressed by Delgado’s computer skills, arranged a meeting with an accountant who had expressed an interest in buying the program.
The client loved it and wrote Delgado a check for $1,500 – a huge sum in those days, especially for a car mechanic. While driving back from the meeting, the couple decided to start a new venture, creating ABS.
Word spread and before long they attracted a healthy list of customers, but it was only while working for a California mortgage broker that Delgado realized that their accounting software “just didn’t quite cut it for the loan origination business”, according to Nodarse.