Richard Daly, a 'godfather' of Minnesota software industry, dies at age 97

Richard Daly was a pioneer of the Minnesota software industry, an energetic entrepreneur, adviser to software startups, a driver behind the industry association, and among the first group of inductees to the Minnesota Science and Technology Hall of Fame.

And Daly, who died Jan. 26 at age 97, also was a Boy Scout pack leader, breakfast chef, can-do optimist and champion of family and friends, said his daughter Teresa Daly Konat.

Daly, who rose to major in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, served in World War II and the Korean War. He earned engineering and graduate business degrees at the University of Minnesota. His early career included Remington Rand, Univac and Engineering Research Associates.

In 1960, at age 36, Daly moved his young family to the Washington D.C.-area for Univac.

"Your job is to manage a big contract with the U.S. government for air traffic control computing," recalled his son Stephen Daly, in a eulogy on Feb. 3. "He had a great job with a big company. What do you do? Of course, you quit that job and start your own business."

Richard Daly founded Aries Corp. He sold his stock in 1969 to return to Minnesota to be director of manufacturing systems for Control Data. He stayed for three years before he was lured to a small company, Comserv: 20 employees who processed payroll checks for small businesses.

"Dad was 48 years old with four children, a mortgage, a cabin on Lone Lake, and lots of college bills on the horizon," Stephen Daly said. "Did he ride that big job at Control Data into retirement? There were weeks when [Comserv] scrambled to meet payroll."

Comserv, which Daly ran for 14 years, went public and grew to 500-plus employees.

Daly later advised dozens of small software firms. He was generous with his time.

"Before stepping into my new role at MnTech in the summer of 2019, I met Rich for coffee to gain his historical perspective on Minnesota's computing industry," recalled MnTech CEO Jeff Tollefson on his LinkedIn page. "It was a magical 90 minutes of storytelling and laughter, and I filled my notebook with pages of 'to-do's'.

"Rich Daly was a visionary with an enthusiasm for life and work that was truly infectious," Tollefson said.

Two months later, Tollefson honored Daly at the Twin Cities Public Television premiere of "Solid State: Minnesota's High-Tech History,'' in which Daly was a subject.

Tom Kieffer, a tech-industry entrepreneur, called Daly, a 30-year friend, a tireless promoter of "our Minnesota tech ecosystem, encouraging entrepreneurs, and recruiting many of us to get involved. Whenever Rich called, I knew I was about to sign up for something!''

Dubbed the godfather of Minnesota's software industry in 1995 by the late Star Tribune business columnist Dick Youngblood, Daly was a founder of the state's original technology association, the Minnesota Software Association.

Teresa Daly Konat recalled that her father was inducted into the first class in the Minnesota Science and Technology Hall of Fame with the likes of Seymour Cray, Bill George, Earl Bakken and Chuck Denny.

His children said his favorite role was his marriage to his wife of 71 years, Marguerite. It was described as a romance and partnership that also was a gift to those who knew them.

Daly is survived by his wife, sons Rocky and Stephen, daughters Teresa and Mimi Larson, several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Services have been held.