MIT Enterprise Forum Hong Kong has kindly invited Stanford GSB Chapter of Hong Kong members and friends to attend, on a complimentary basis, a talk by John Chen, CEO, Blackberry.

Mobile is not just about phones anymore. As billions of objects - including cars, appliances and medical devices - connect to the Internet and each other, virtually every aspect of daily life will be transformed. But as mobile innovations seek to simplify how we live our lives, they introduce new levels of complexity into how businesses manage billions of new endpoints and how we define innovation. In an open dialogue format, John will share his views on:

• The challenges faced by businesses as technology moves toward more diverse and dispersed mobility, which is blurring the traditional lines between work and personal communication;
• How security is more essential than ever – even as the definition changes from restricting what users can do to enabling them to do more;
• The latest on BlackBerry’s turnaround as the company that revolutionized mobile communications itself undergoes a rapid transformation to lead the next era of mobile computing

About the Speaker:
John Chen is CEO & Executive Chair of the Board of Directors of Blackberry. Prior to joining BlackBerry, he served as Chairman and CEO of Sybase Inc., where he developed and led the company’s re-invention from a mature, slower-growth technology company into a USD 1.5 billion-plus high-growth innovator. Under his direction, Sybase became the leading provider of enterprise mobility and mobile commerce solutions, achieving 55 consecutive quarters of profitability. John previously held a series of executive positions at Siemens AG, Pyramid Technology Corp., and Burroughs Corp. He started his career as a design engineer with Unisys Corp.

John is actively involved in international relations. He has testified before Congress on U.S.–China trade relations. In 2005, U.S. President George W. Bush appointed him to serve on the President's Export Council. In 2006, he was appointed co-chair of the Secure Borders and Open Doors Advisory Committee. Additionally, John chaired the U.S.-China Policy Advisory Roundtable for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). In recognition of his leadership in building U.S.-Asia relations, John has received awards from the US-Asia Institute, the U.S.-China Policy Foundation, and the California-Asia Business Council. For his corporate board work, he has been honored by the U.S.-Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation.

John graduated from Brown University magna cum laude with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and holds a master's in electrical engineering from California Institute of Technology. John has an honorary professorship from Shanghai University, and honorary doctorates from San Jose State University, City University of Hong Kong, and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.  John serves on the board of directors for The Walt Disney Company and Wells Fargo & Co. He is also active in the not-for-profit community, and is also a trustee of Caltech, board member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, member of CFR, national trustee of The First Tee and Governor of the San Francisco Symphony.