To make that happen, the company has been bringing its executives together from around the world to talk on a monthly basis. "Everybody has input," Gibson said. "That helps a lot at FedEx. It makes it really smooth."

These global IT concerns also hinge on having a qualified IT staffing pool, which is often a challenge here in the U.S., the panelists said.

"The need for talent is global," Buettner said. "And I think that in the U.S. again we are facing a shortfall of talent. We need to continue to reach out for our talent base. Unfortunately, the IT depression at the start of this decade has scared a lot of people off. Hopefully, it's cyclical."

Gibson said having a talent pool from many cultures and countries has other benefits besides filling IT staff positions. "Having diversity on the staff really helps us with the global focus," he said. "If it were all Americans, I think it would make it harder to have a global focus."