http://www.openpr.com/news/190435/Hypo-Venture-Capital-Zurich-Headlines-Economic-survey-by-Credit-Suisse-in-cooperation-with-the-Centre-for-European-Economic-Research-ZEW.html
Zurich, July 21, 2011 According to the latest Credit Suisse ZEW Indicator, economic expectations for Switzerland have diminished significantly.The indicator plunged by 34.6 points to the -58.9-point mark in July, thus reaching its lowest level since the beginning of 2009. The indicator for the assessment of the current economic situation also recorded a sharp drop, falling by 17.4 points to the 52.9-point threshold. The respective balances for inflation as well as interest rate expectations also registered much lower readings in July. The indicator for the inflation outlook decreased by 27.0 points, with merely 23.5% of the financial market experts surveyed predicting that inflation rates will advance in the coming six months. The balance for expectations regarding the short-term interest rate environment lost ground by 30.5 points to the 18.2-point level. At the same time, however, a greater share (55.9%, up 15.4 percentage points) of analysts in this month’s survey anticipate that the Swiss franc will lose terrain versus the euro in the coming half-year.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
* Home * About Us * INVESTMENT NEWS * WORLD ECONOMY * WORLD FINANCIAL * WORLD HEADLINES * Hypo Venture Capital Zurich Headlines: Asia technology comes clean to provide green solutions
http://hypoventurecapital-headlines.com/
companies are focusing on how best to recycle waste products
Climate change sceptics might not like to admit it, but Asia is embracing environmentally-friendly technologies.
China is spending tens of billions of dollars every year on renewable energy projects – almost twice the next biggest spender in this field, the US – while South Korea’s clean energy capacity more than tripled in 2009.
The figures speak for themselves.
The population of Asia is expected to grow at more than double the rate of Europe and the US in the next five years, during which time the region’s economy should grow four times more quickly than Europe’s, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
This helps to explain why demand for energy in Southeast Asia should rise by 76% in the next 20 years, the IMF says.
And an increasing proportion of this energy will come from clean technologies – governments and indeed peoples demand it.
Clean tech lures investors to Asia
“Asia is really interested in the environment – you just have to look at China’s latest five-year economic plan [which commits to stringent renewable energy targets, among others] as well as the tremendous demand from people due to pollution,” says Vivek Tandon, co-founder of Aloe Private Equity, an investment group specialising in Asian clean tech.
In fact there are three major drivers behind the push for green technologies in Asia, according to Johanna Klein, investment officer at the Asian Development Bank: energy security, environmental degradation and, perhaps most importantly, the need for new industries to create new jobs.
‘Massive gap’But the introduction and innovation of new technologies to bring about renewable energy development, better waste management, water treatment and the like require private investment – public money can only go so far.
Pollution is one of many drivers of clean technology in many parts of AsiaAccording to Ms Klein, the global clean tech market is currently worth about $500bn, with Asia already accounting for $100bn of this total. There are however, just 17 specialist funds worth $1bn investing in environmental technologies in the region.
New technologies, or at least new to the region, need investment, and there is a huge thirst for money from emerging clean tech companies.
As Ms Klein says: “There is a massive supply demand gap”.
But this gap may be starting to close.
Between 2002 and 2005, there was very little money going into Asian clean tech, Ms Klein explains. In the following two to three years, interest in financing clean energy projects picked up, only to be stopped dead in its tracks by the financial crisis.
Now more investors are looking once again to take advantage of the opportunities on offer, with some more willing to look at early stage projects.
Clean clothesMr Tandon is one such investor. He sees expected returns on investment of between 22% and 26% on Asian clean tech projects, compared with a return of about 8% or 9% on European equivalents.
His private equity fund has backed a number of projects in Asia, with Polygenta one of the most successful.
This company uses patented technology to recycle plastic bottles to make polyester fibre. Using what it calls the Renew process, clear and coloured bottles take the place of many of the petrochemicals used in standard polyester production.
The Polygenta processing plant in Nashik, India, recycles plastic bottles to make polyester fibreIn other words, it makes clothes out of plastic bottles.
The process is more cost efficient and the resulting polyester is of higher quality, the firm claims. As a result, it can charge more for it.
The company’s current plant operations in Nashik, India, constitute 6% of global sustainable polyester production, it says, a figure the firm hopes will grow rapidly in the coming years with more investment.
Other investments in the Aloe portfolio include Greenko Group, which owns and operates biomass energy plants in India, and Longmen Group, which drills coal seams to extract methane gas in China.
Many of the technologies used in Indian clean tech projects in particular are imported from more developed economies and adapted for the local market.
It is this adaptation process, says Mr Tandon, which is the key to success.
Working well with local partners, and acknowledging the key role they play – as well as rewarding it financially – is essential. Too many western companies simply export technologies and expect to take home the lion’s share of the profit, he argues.
Chandra Shekhar Kundur, general partner at Ventureast, a fund manager specialising in Indian clean tech, agrees.
“The Indian market is not ready for innovation yet. It’s about adopting and adapting foreign technologies and utilising them in the local environment,” he says.
Electric powerChina and some other Asian markets are a little different.
Here, inventing new technologies is central to the success of clean tech projects, although this often involves collaborating with western partners.
China is powering ahead with electric vehicles, which form part of the state’s five year economic planAs Dr Eric Wang, managing partner of Grand River Capital, a venture capitalist group that runs green funds in China, explains, Asia has a long history of technological innovation.
For example, the touch-pad technology that underpins iPads and iPhones originated in Taiwan, as did the LED technology used in all laptops, he explains.
“Chinese, South Korean and Taiwanese companies made mass production of many of these technologies possible,” he says.
And now this technological know-how is now being used in the clean tech arena, particularly in China.
Nowhere is this more obvious than in the development of more powerful batteries for electric vehicles. As part of the government’s five-year plan, for example, Dr Wang says there will be 3,000 electric buses on the streets of Qingdao in the next two to three years.
China is investing heavily in solar power generation as well as other renewable energy sourcesThis is why one of Grand River’s favourite investments is Advanced Lithium Electrochemistry, which manufactures Olivine powder, a key raw material for a new type of lithium battery used in electric vehicles.
The fund also has a number of investments in solar technology companies, such as Gintech Energy Corporation, which designs and manufactures multi-crystalline solar cells from specially processed silicon wafers, and Solapoint Corporation, which has more than 20 patent applications for solar-cell technology.
Asian clean tech companies are clearly powering ahead, whether it be through adapting existing technologies to local markets or by innovating entirely new processes designed to protect the environment.
Indeed Mr Tandon argues that the clean tech sector mirrors a wider trend in the global economy.
“China and Asia dominated world trade for 1,500 years, so maybe we are just returning to equilibrium, where the short period of western domination will be seen as little more than a blip”.
companies are focusing on how best to recycle waste products
Climate change sceptics might not like to admit it, but Asia is embracing environmentally-friendly technologies.
China is spending tens of billions of dollars every year on renewable energy projects – almost twice the next biggest spender in this field, the US – while South Korea’s clean energy capacity more than tripled in 2009.
Asia is not, then, the environmental laggard some in the West would have us believe.
In fact, growth in what the industry calls the clean tech, or environmental technology, sector looks set to take off.The figures speak for themselves.
The population of Asia is expected to grow at more than double the rate of Europe and the US in the next five years, during which time the region’s economy should grow four times more quickly than Europe’s, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
This helps to explain why demand for energy in Southeast Asia should rise by 76% in the next 20 years, the IMF says.
And an increasing proportion of this energy will come from clean technologies – governments and indeed peoples demand it.
In fact there are three major drivers behind the push for green technologies in Asia, according to Johanna Klein, investment officer at the Asian Development Bank: energy security, environmental degradation and, perhaps most importantly, the need for new industries to create new jobs.
‘Massive gap’But the introduction and innovation of new technologies to bring about renewable energy development, better waste management, water treatment and the like require private investment – public money can only go so far.
Pollution is one of many drivers of clean technology in many parts of AsiaNew technologies, or at least new to the region, need investment, and there is a huge thirst for money from emerging clean tech companies.
As Ms Klein says: “There is a massive supply demand gap”.
But this gap may be starting to close.
Between 2002 and 2005, there was very little money going into Asian clean tech, Ms Klein explains. In the following two to three years, interest in financing clean energy projects picked up, only to be stopped dead in its tracks by the financial crisis.
Now more investors are looking once again to take advantage of the opportunities on offer, with some more willing to look at early stage projects.
Clean clothesMr Tandon is one such investor. He sees expected returns on investment of between 22% and 26% on Asian clean tech projects, compared with a return of about 8% or 9% on European equivalents.
His private equity fund has backed a number of projects in Asia, with Polygenta one of the most successful.
This company uses patented technology to recycle plastic bottles to make polyester fibre. Using what it calls the Renew process, clear and coloured bottles take the place of many of the petrochemicals used in standard polyester production.
The Polygenta processing plant in Nashik, India, recycles plastic bottles to make polyester fibreThe process is more cost efficient and the resulting polyester is of higher quality, the firm claims. As a result, it can charge more for it.
The company’s current plant operations in Nashik, India, constitute 6% of global sustainable polyester production, it says, a figure the firm hopes will grow rapidly in the coming years with more investment.
Other investments in the Aloe portfolio include Greenko Group, which owns and operates biomass energy plants in India, and Longmen Group, which drills coal seams to extract methane gas in China.
Many of the technologies used in Indian clean tech projects in particular are imported from more developed economies and adapted for the local market.
It is this adaptation process, says Mr Tandon, which is the key to success.
Working well with local partners, and acknowledging the key role they play – as well as rewarding it financially – is essential. Too many western companies simply export technologies and expect to take home the lion’s share of the profit, he argues.
Chandra Shekhar Kundur, general partner at Ventureast, a fund manager specialising in Indian clean tech, agrees.
“The Indian market is not ready for innovation yet. It’s about adopting and adapting foreign technologies and utilising them in the local environment,” he says.
Electric powerChina and some other Asian markets are a little different.
Here, inventing new technologies is central to the success of clean tech projects, although this often involves collaborating with western partners.
China is powering ahead with electric vehicles, which form part of the state’s five year economic planFor example, the touch-pad technology that underpins iPads and iPhones originated in Taiwan, as did the LED technology used in all laptops, he explains.
“Chinese, South Korean and Taiwanese companies made mass production of many of these technologies possible,” he says.
And now this technological know-how is now being used in the clean tech arena, particularly in China.
Nowhere is this more obvious than in the development of more powerful batteries for electric vehicles. As part of the government’s five-year plan, for example, Dr Wang says there will be 3,000 electric buses on the streets of Qingdao in the next two to three years.
China is investing heavily in solar power generation as well as other renewable energy sourcesThe fund also has a number of investments in solar technology companies, such as Gintech Energy Corporation, which designs and manufactures multi-crystalline solar cells from specially processed silicon wafers, and Solapoint Corporation, which has more than 20 patent applications for solar-cell technology.
Asian clean tech companies are clearly powering ahead, whether it be through adapting existing technologies to local markets or by innovating entirely new processes designed to protect the environment.
Indeed Mr Tandon argues that the clean tech sector mirrors a wider trend in the global economy.
“China and Asia dominated world trade for 1,500 years, so maybe we are just returning to equilibrium, where the short period of western domination will be seen as little more than a blip”.
* Home * About Us * INVESTMENT NEWS * WORLD ECONOMY * WORLD FINANCIAL * WORLD HEADLINES * Hypo Venture Capital Zurich Headlines: HTC Sensation – Sensational handset includes very latest technology
http://hypoventurecapital-headlines.com/?p=71
HTC is again ready to bring its new member bejeweled with very latest technology. Here, the users are waiting for the handset which is expected to be launched in the midst of June. The users would be getting the handset with very attractive features , as some web portals have claimed. Any way, it comes from HTC family and that is why we can expect some different and also can be confident for some signature features and applications. Yes! We can expect for wide display with HTC Sense UI and of course very updated Android operating system. And besides, we can visit some other web pages to get more details about the handset.
When you would touch the long list of its specifications, 4.3 inches wide S-LCD capacitive touch screen display would appear before you along with some very useful features. Apart from the HTC Sense UI, the display includes gorilla glass display which protects it from any kind of jerks. Come to the next point and here you get handset with very huge memory capacity of 32GB memory capacity with the help of microSD card slot. And it allows you to get your all dearest tracks and important data saved in the handset. Apart from this, you can also keep those all moments you have spent with your beloved with the help of 8MP primary camera in very high resolution of 3264 x 2448 pixels. Now you can feel the intention of HTC Sensation which has been made available here with some other useful applications like SNS integration, TV-out (via MHL A/V link), Document viewer and many more.
HTC Sensation deals would be introduced by all the striking network carriers such as Vodafone, Virgin, 3Mobile, T-Mobile etc. The users can expect for more benefits with the HTC Sensation contract deals and as the network providers have claimed, users would be provided with some more attractive incentives. And on the other side, pay as you go and SIM free would be making the handset available at the reduced prices.
When you would touch the long list of its specifications, 4.3 inches wide S-LCD capacitive touch screen display would appear before you along with some very useful features. Apart from the HTC Sense UI, the display includes gorilla glass display which protects it from any kind of jerks. Come to the next point and here you get handset with very huge memory capacity of 32GB memory capacity with the help of microSD card slot. And it allows you to get your all dearest tracks and important data saved in the handset. Apart from this, you can also keep those all moments you have spent with your beloved with the help of 8MP primary camera in very high resolution of 3264 x 2448 pixels. Now you can feel the intention of HTC Sensation which has been made available here with some other useful applications like SNS integration, TV-out (via MHL A/V link), Document viewer and many more.
HTC Sensation deals would be introduced by all the striking network carriers such as Vodafone, Virgin, 3Mobile, T-Mobile etc. The users can expect for more benefits with the HTC Sensation contract deals and as the network providers have claimed, users would be provided with some more attractive incentives. And on the other side, pay as you go and SIM free would be making the handset available at the reduced prices.
Hypo Venture Capital Zurich Headlines: ‘$50m bounty for bin Laden should go to 9/11 victims’
http://hypoventurecapital-headlines.com/?p=67
NEW YORK: The $50 million bounty on Osama bin Laden’s head should go to the victims’ of his murderous plot, federal lawmakers said Sunday. Two New York Congressmen said they would draft legislation to give any unclaimed reward money to organisations that aid 9/11 first responders, families and survivors. “If the bounty isn’t paid, Osama bin Laden’s victims should get it,” said Republican Anthony Weiner. America’s intelligence network – rather than tipsters – appears to have gathered the information that led to bin Laden’s death, so no one may qualify to receive the bounty, said Republican Jerrold Nadler. Ground Zero construction veteran and advocate John Feal said 9/11 rescuers still carried the scars of that day, and could use the funds. “If it was up to me it would be called the ‘No Responder Left Behind Act’ because my attitude now is we will not leave anybody behind who is affected by 9/11,” Feal said. His FealGood Foundation helped pay for funerals of five Ground Zero responders and workers in just the past two months, he said. The State Department’s Rewards for Justice programme offered an initial $25 million reward for bin Laden. The Airline Pilots Association and the Air Transport Association contributed $2 million more, and Congress bumped the pot up to $50 million in 2004. Less lucrative rewards have worked in other high-profile cases, including the capture of Ramzi Ahmed Yousef, convicted of masterminding the 1993 truck bombing of the World Trade Centre that killed six people and wounded more than 1,000. ap
NEW YORK: The $50 million bounty on Osama bin Laden’s head should go to the victims’ of his murderous plot, federal lawmakers said Sunday. Two New York Congressmen said they would draft legislation to give any unclaimed reward money to organisations that aid 9/11 first responders, families and survivors. “If the bounty isn’t paid, Osama bin Laden’s victims should get it,” said Republican Anthony Weiner. America’s intelligence network – rather than tipsters – appears to have gathered the information that led to bin Laden’s death, so no one may qualify to receive the bounty, said Republican Jerrold Nadler. Ground Zero construction veteran and advocate John Feal said 9/11 rescuers still carried the scars of that day, and could use the funds. “If it was up to me it would be called the ‘No Responder Left Behind Act’ because my attitude now is we will not leave anybody behind who is affected by 9/11,” Feal said. His FealGood Foundation helped pay for funerals of five Ground Zero responders and workers in just the past two months, he said. The State Department’s Rewards for Justice programme offered an initial $25 million reward for bin Laden. The Airline Pilots Association and the Air Transport Association contributed $2 million more, and Congress bumped the pot up to $50 million in 2004. Less lucrative rewards have worked in other high-profile cases, including the capture of Ramzi Ahmed Yousef, convicted of masterminding the 1993 truck bombing of the World Trade Centre that killed six people and wounded more than 1,000. ap
Hypo Venture Capital Zurich Headlines:Pacquiao, Mosley weigh in for WBO title fight
http://hypoventurecapital-headlines.com/?p=23
LAS VEGAS, Nevada — Manny Pacquiao, the Filipino congressman who holds two world titles, puts his World Boxing Organization title on the line when he meets Shane Mosley in a welterweight bout on Saturday.
Pacquiao and challenger Mosley weighed in Friday for their title fight in front of a standing-room only crowd of about 6,500 at the MGM Grand Garden arena.
Pacquiao, who is a 6-1 favorite, tipped the scales at 145 pounds and American Mosley was 147 pounds.
The 32-year-old Pacquiao stripped off his red and blue track suit and stepped onto the scale wearing just his shorts and white socks as a roar went up from the mostly Filipino crowd.
“I believe Shane Mosley is a good fighter and he trained his hardest for this fight so I have had to train even harder,” said Pacquiao, who is also the WBC super welterweight champion.
The two boxers shook hands and embraced but the congeniality ends here as they make final preparations for Saturday contest.
The 39-year-old Mosley is hoping to dethrone Pacquiao who is making the second defense of his WBO title he won by beating Miguel Cotto in the same arena in November 2009.
Mosley, who arrived wearing a light blue track suit, said he could hear the roar of Pacquiao’s supporters back stage.
“There are a lot of fans here and I hear a lot of Manny’s fans. It will be a big task tomorrow when I fight Manny,” said Mosley, who is the only boxer to beat Oscar de la Hoya twice.
Pacquiao fans started lining up outside the front doors of the arena eight hours before Friday’s weigh-in to get a glimpse of their boxing hero.
They came draped in Filipino flags and wearing yellow which is the color Pacquiao has asked them to wear on Saturday. Tickets were sold out five weeks in advanced for the fight. Many who were there didn’t have tickets to the fight so this was their only chance to see Pacquiao in person.
By noon the crowd outside the front entrance to the Grand Garden had swelled to thousands and security had trouble at times keeping the walk ways clear and making sure no bottles got inside the arena. It was mainly a festive mood — lots of alcohol but in plastic cups — and no major incidents.
Thousands more who showed up too late were turned away and couldn’t get in for the main event weigh-in which lasted only about 10 minutes.
Americo Canque flew in from Manila to see the fight. This is the fourth time he has traveled to the United States to see the Sarangani congressman fight.
“I think Manny will knock him out in seven rounds,” said the 55-year-old electrician. “Manny has too much speed he is very strong. Mosley has the experience but he is too old.”
Canque said the entire country of 96 million will come to a standstill when the fight happens.
“He is more popular than our president,” Canque said.
Rose Regino was first in line Friday and part of a group of about 20 Pacquiao fans that showed up at 7 in the morning.
“Manny is going to fight like Bruce Lee,” said the 40-year-old banker, who lives in Las Vegas. “We are so excited.”
Las Vegas’ Keo Moya is pulling for Mosley to win but he was definitely in the minority.
The 10-year-old from Las Vegas said the longer the fight goes, the better it is for Pacquiao.
“If Mosley has a chance, it is in the first three rounds,” Moya said. “He is older so he needs to attack first. If that doesn’t happen then Pacquiao will win.”
Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach, says this week he wants the Filipino southpaw to force the action enough to throw Mosley off his guard.
“Most older fighters go forward well but they can’t go backwards in the ring,” Roach said. “They can be aggressive but if you can get them on their heels and they are kind of lost. The legs don’t get them out the way like they used to.”
Roach insists this has been one of their best training camps ever for a title fight. He is hoping “Pac-Man” can do something no other boxer has ever been able to achieve and deliver the first knockout of Mosley in his 18-year career.
Mosley has rarely even been knocked down in a career that has seen him win four world titles.
Roach said one of the keys to beating Mosley is for Pacquiao to keep throwing punches at the end of exchanges instead of resisting the temptation to clinch.
“Shane likes to hit and grab. When he grabs he is reaching for you and that leaves him open for a punch,” Roach said. “We worked on that a lot.
Hypo Venture Capital Zurich Headlines:Up close and personal with Symantec Corp, Mark Bregman
http://hypoventurecapital-headlines.com/?p=16The executive vice-president and chief technology offi cer of Symantec Corp shoulders the challenging responsibilities of guiding investments in advanced research and development.
AS executive vice-president and chief technology officer at Nasdaq-listed Symantec Corp, Mark Bregman shoulders the challenging responsibilities of guiding investments in advanced research and the company’s development centres in India and China.
He is also responsible for the Symantec Research Labs, Symantec Security Response as well as shared and emerging technologies, architecture and standards, localisation and secure coding, and developing the technology strategy for the multinational information technology security vendor, which is ranked 353 on the Fortune 500 list.
Still, had it not been for an impulsive decision to step inside the doors of the IBM Research centre in New York City 27 years ago, Bregman might have found his life calling in the hallowed halls of academia today instead of being at the global forefront of cutting-edge information security, storage and systems management solutions.
A life changing moment
“As a young boy, I never thought about a career in IT (information technology). I always wanted to be a scientist,” recalls the 54-year-old Bregman, who holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from Harvard College and a master’s degree and doctorate in physics from Columbia University.
After completing his doctorate, Bregman harboured ambitions of doing research and becoming a professor at an American university.
At that time, he was working in a laboratory at Columbia University, New York City.
“The laboratory was very close to the IBM Research centre, and I would see it everyday while driving home. So, one day, I thought I should stop there and ask about job opportunities.”
Bregman filled in a job application form, which was obtained from the front desk receptionist, and two weeks later, he received a phone call from the director of the physical sciences department at the IBM Research centre.
“He asked me to join him for lunch the following week. I was thinking I am a graduate student. Free lunch? Are you kidding? I’ll go anywhere for a free lunch,” he quips.
It turned out that his doctorate work in experimental high energy physics had caught the attention of IBM Research.
“At that time, their experiments in measuring the mass of the neutrino was very closely related to my doctorate work.”
IBM Research offered him a salary which Bregman says was “much more than what an assistant professor would get in most universities.”
Still, he had not given up on his dream of being a university professor.
“I was planning on staying with IBM Research for only a few years, and after that, move on to a university.”
However, IBM Research turned out to be a snare that was too fascinating for Bregman to leave for the next 16 years.
“I found so many interesting things happening. You would sit down at the cafeteria and get introduced to people like Robert Dennard he invented dynamic random access memory or RAM. And after some years in research, I realised that some business issues were perhaps more challenging then scientific problems. I also became very interested in the problem of innovation how does a big company like IBM continue to innovate?”
Driving the innovation process
Bregman is mainly driven by coming up with ways to improve the process of turning innovative ideas into successful products.
“Lots of people, engineers and universities have good ideas and inventions but most of them have no impact in the marketplace. This is the challenge for innovation.”
This was among the reasons behind the set-up of the Symantec Incubator division three years ago.
The start-up style Incubator division allows engineers the freedom of working on new projects, outside the company’s traditional product development processes.
Bregman says many ideas from the Incubator division were better than the ones the company paid consultants to provide.
“My role is to look beyond the next product, and help to set the direction for the company’s technology and investments. So I always challenge our engineering teams Look, if these are the trends for the next three to five years, what are we going to do about them?”
He says Symantec has to constantly innovate in helping its customers to secure and manage information.
“We cannot be effective in defending against malicious attacks if we just wait for the next attack. We have to stay ahead of the attackers.”
Being candid and upfront
For Bregman, the story behind his second marriage is a good example of his personal values.
“About eight years ago, I was divorced, and had moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, California. My youngest brother and sister-in-law were often staying in my apartment as they had started a new tech business with clients in the Silicon Valley. One night during dinner, they brought a woman who was their old friend, and she looked me in the eye and told me, “According to your father, I am his next daughter-in-law.” So later, we went out on a few dates and found that we actually liked each other. She is my wife now,” he recalls with a laugh.
Among his core values in business management is openness.
“For example, I am told that certain information is too sensitive to share with other employees. My view is, we should share the information. If the employees violate our trust, they should not be in the company anymore.”
Bregman also believes in promoting employees within the company rather than looking outside to fill vacant positions.
“I have a positive view of human nature. My experience has been, when you set high expectations for people, whether it is trust or performance, most people will rise to your expectations.”
Meanwhile, he does not consider himself to be a workaholic although he puts in between 70 and 80 hours of work a week.
“I get to work by 7.30am and I come home by 7pm. Then again, I also work at home and during half the weekends. So, well, I don’t go sailing very much anymore.”
Life as a global citizen
His work entails plenty of travelling, and Bregman considers himself extremely fortunate to be able to combine one of his passions with work.
He recalls visiting the Asian region 20 times last year.
The only continent he has not visited is Antarctica, he chuckles.
“Having such a global experience is definitely among the highlights in my life. I have colleagues and friends all over the world,” muses Bregman, who lived in England for five years as a young boy.
“When I was eight years old, my family moved to London because my father, who was in the advertising business, got a job there. So I was an English schoolboy, and wore short pants, a tie and knee socks, and played rugby, cricket and soccer. Also, I spent a year working at a laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland as a graduate student. And when I was with IBM, I ran a semiconductor plant in Japan for almost four years near Kyoto.”
At the time of this interview, Kuala Lumpur was the third stop for Bregman, after Indonesia and China, in a whirlwind week.
He relishes being exposed to different cultures and societies.
“I find it really rewarding,” says Bregman, who recommends a book entitled “The Global Soul: Jet Lag, Shopping Malls, and the Search for Home” authored by Pico Iyer.
“He talks about the same experiences I have and being a global soul.”
He is also fortunate that his wife, who works for Intel Corp, understands the need for frequent business travel.
AS executive vice-president and chief technology officer at Nasdaq-listed Symantec Corp, Mark Bregman shoulders the challenging responsibilities of guiding investments in advanced research and the company’s development centres in India and China.
He is also responsible for the Symantec Research Labs, Symantec Security Response as well as shared and emerging technologies, architecture and standards, localisation and secure coding, and developing the technology strategy for the multinational information technology security vendor, which is ranked 353 on the Fortune 500 list.
Still, had it not been for an impulsive decision to step inside the doors of the IBM Research centre in New York City 27 years ago, Bregman might have found his life calling in the hallowed halls of academia today instead of being at the global forefront of cutting-edge information security, storage and systems management solutions.
A life changing moment
“As a young boy, I never thought about a career in IT (information technology). I always wanted to be a scientist,” recalls the 54-year-old Bregman, who holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from Harvard College and a master’s degree and doctorate in physics from Columbia University.
After completing his doctorate, Bregman harboured ambitions of doing research and becoming a professor at an American university.
At that time, he was working in a laboratory at Columbia University, New York City.
“The laboratory was very close to the IBM Research centre, and I would see it everyday while driving home. So, one day, I thought I should stop there and ask about job opportunities.”
Bregman filled in a job application form, which was obtained from the front desk receptionist, and two weeks later, he received a phone call from the director of the physical sciences department at the IBM Research centre.
“He asked me to join him for lunch the following week. I was thinking I am a graduate student. Free lunch? Are you kidding? I’ll go anywhere for a free lunch,” he quips.
It turned out that his doctorate work in experimental high energy physics had caught the attention of IBM Research.
“At that time, their experiments in measuring the mass of the neutrino was very closely related to my doctorate work.”
IBM Research offered him a salary which Bregman says was “much more than what an assistant professor would get in most universities.”
Still, he had not given up on his dream of being a university professor.
“I was planning on staying with IBM Research for only a few years, and after that, move on to a university.”
However, IBM Research turned out to be a snare that was too fascinating for Bregman to leave for the next 16 years.
“I found so many interesting things happening. You would sit down at the cafeteria and get introduced to people like Robert Dennard he invented dynamic random access memory or RAM. And after some years in research, I realised that some business issues were perhaps more challenging then scientific problems. I also became very interested in the problem of innovation how does a big company like IBM continue to innovate?”
Driving the innovation process
Bregman is mainly driven by coming up with ways to improve the process of turning innovative ideas into successful products.
“Lots of people, engineers and universities have good ideas and inventions but most of them have no impact in the marketplace. This is the challenge for innovation.”
This was among the reasons behind the set-up of the Symantec Incubator division three years ago.
The start-up style Incubator division allows engineers the freedom of working on new projects, outside the company’s traditional product development processes.
Bregman says many ideas from the Incubator division were better than the ones the company paid consultants to provide.
“My role is to look beyond the next product, and help to set the direction for the company’s technology and investments. So I always challenge our engineering teams Look, if these are the trends for the next three to five years, what are we going to do about them?”
He says Symantec has to constantly innovate in helping its customers to secure and manage information.
“We cannot be effective in defending against malicious attacks if we just wait for the next attack. We have to stay ahead of the attackers.”
Being candid and upfront
For Bregman, the story behind his second marriage is a good example of his personal values.
“About eight years ago, I was divorced, and had moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, California. My youngest brother and sister-in-law were often staying in my apartment as they had started a new tech business with clients in the Silicon Valley. One night during dinner, they brought a woman who was their old friend, and she looked me in the eye and told me, “According to your father, I am his next daughter-in-law.” So later, we went out on a few dates and found that we actually liked each other. She is my wife now,” he recalls with a laugh.
Among his core values in business management is openness.
“For example, I am told that certain information is too sensitive to share with other employees. My view is, we should share the information. If the employees violate our trust, they should not be in the company anymore.”
Bregman also believes in promoting employees within the company rather than looking outside to fill vacant positions.
“I have a positive view of human nature. My experience has been, when you set high expectations for people, whether it is trust or performance, most people will rise to your expectations.”
Meanwhile, he does not consider himself to be a workaholic although he puts in between 70 and 80 hours of work a week.
“I get to work by 7.30am and I come home by 7pm. Then again, I also work at home and during half the weekends. So, well, I don’t go sailing very much anymore.”
Life as a global citizen
His work entails plenty of travelling, and Bregman considers himself extremely fortunate to be able to combine one of his passions with work.
He recalls visiting the Asian region 20 times last year.
The only continent he has not visited is Antarctica, he chuckles.
“Having such a global experience is definitely among the highlights in my life. I have colleagues and friends all over the world,” muses Bregman, who lived in England for five years as a young boy.
“When I was eight years old, my family moved to London because my father, who was in the advertising business, got a job there. So I was an English schoolboy, and wore short pants, a tie and knee socks, and played rugby, cricket and soccer. Also, I spent a year working at a laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland as a graduate student. And when I was with IBM, I ran a semiconductor plant in Japan for almost four years near Kyoto.”
At the time of this interview, Kuala Lumpur was the third stop for Bregman, after Indonesia and China, in a whirlwind week.
He relishes being exposed to different cultures and societies.
“I find it really rewarding,” says Bregman, who recommends a book entitled “The Global Soul: Jet Lag, Shopping Malls, and the Search for Home” authored by Pico Iyer.
“He talks about the same experiences I have and being a global soul.”
He is also fortunate that his wife, who works for Intel Corp, understands the need for frequent business travel.
Hypo Venture Capital Zurich Headlines:Why China Is Hoarding Rare Earths
http://hypoventurecapital-headlines.com/?p=14
Watch out! China continues its hoarding of rare-earth metals — a substance vital to the manufacturing of high-tech products, from flat-screen TVs, laptops and mobile phones, to batteries for electric cars and solar panels.
Is China establishing itself as the next Saudi Arabia for technology manufacturing, complete with an OPEC-style embargo? And what could this mean for America’s continued technology sector primacy and the prices our consumers pay for technology products?
No need to hit the panic button just yet. With the initial fear-driven headlines on this topic come and gone, it’s time to revisit one of Chairman …
Watch out! China continues its hoarding of rare-earth metals — a substance vital to the manufacturing of high-tech products, from flat-screen TVs, laptops and mobile phones, to batteries for electric cars and solar panels.
Is China establishing itself as the next Saudi Arabia for technology manufacturing, complete with an OPEC-style embargo? And what could this mean for America’s continued technology sector primacy and the prices our consumers pay for technology products?
No need to hit the panic button just yet. With the initial fear-driven headlines on this topic come and gone, it’s time to revisit one of Chairman …
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