Challenges and Realities of Software Development in China

Leonard Liu, Chairman and CEO, Augmentum, former executive at Cadence, Acer Group, and IBM

China's software industry is at an inflexion point. For the past decade,

China has been in the shadow of India's spectacular success in the IT outsourcing industry. While changes are underway, many challenges remain.

However, it is possible to build software development teams in China, collaborating with teams in the United States, to be as good as software development teams anywhere in the world.

Dr. Liu will discuss his experience as Chairman and CEO of Augmentum, a value-added software development services company that has grown in 2 years to more than 450 people worldwide, 90% of them at Augmentum's development facility in Shanghai. Sixty percent of Augmentum's work is high-value added such as total products and solutions, from architecture to system integration test. All their customers are in North America — many of them leaders in their respective industries.

Leonard Liu has spent 30 years in the systems industry, with a track record of developing innovative computing technologies into successful businesses. Most recently, he served as president of ASE Group, a leading provider of IC test and packaging services, having held roles as Chairman and CEO of Walker Interactive Systems, COO of Cadence Design Systems, and President of Acer Group. He was an early champion of outsourcing to India and China at Cadence and Walker. Dr. Liu began his career at IBM where he was responsible for the creation and implementation of SQL and the management of CICS, SNA and AIX, eventually overseeing the worldwide Database and Language lines-of-business. He received his undergraduate degree from Taiwan University and his Ph.D. from Princeton University.

Stanford Project on Regions of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Shorenstein APARC Fall Quarter Greater China and the Globalization of R&D series