Event Overview:

In the US, entrepreneurship is the engine that drives economic growth. Especially in Silicon Valley, people understand how this engine works: how entrepreneurs behave, how they view risk, where they get their funding, how their successes are rewarded, and what happens when their ventures fail. What about their Japanese counterparts? The conventional wisdom in the US is that Japanese entrepreneurship is not only different from the American variety but is also less vibrant, less well-funded, more risk-averse, and generally a less important "engine" for overall economic growth.  Is this conventional wisdom generally correct? Or are the perceived shortcomings of the Japanese entrepreneurial system (for example, the vastly lower venture capital investment figures routinely quoted) just that -- "perceived" rather than real? What business and cultural factors could explain such misperceptions, and what are the implications for cross-border entrepreneurial opportunities?  Join our panelists, Robert Eberhart, Kenji Kushida, and Lisa Katayama, as they discuss the myths, reality and promise of Japanese entrepreneurship and its impact on the overall Japanese economy.

Keizai Society’s theme for the remainder of 2011 is “Recovery and Renewal – Toward a New Japan of Compassion and Growth.” Going forward, all 2011 programs of Keizai Society will be dedicated to building awareness of the crisis in Japan and sustaining Japan’s recovery efforts. Also proceeds from these programs shall be donated to Keizai’s Japan Relief Fund. Please come and find out what the real impact of the disaster is and where we go from here to recover, renew and grow again.

Panelist Bio:

Mr. Robert Eberhart is a researcher at Stanford’s Program on Regions of  Innovation and Entrepreneurship where he leads the Stanford Project on Japanese Entrepreneurship.  His research focuses on comparative corporate governance of growth companies with special emphasis on Japan and the role of Japanese institutions in fostering entrepreneurship.  He is a member of the Academy of Management, the International Society for New Institutional Economics, on the board of advisors to Japan’s Global Entrepreneurship Week, and an advisor to Japan’s Board of Director’s Training Institute.  He serves as an academic advisor to the American Chamber of Commerce’s Task Force on New Growth Strategies and is a frequent speaker and guest lecturer in various programs at Stanford and Japan.  Mr. Eberhart received a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Michigan after undergraduate studies in Finance at Michigan State University.  He is a doctoral candidate in Stanford’s department of Management Science and Engineering.  

Dr. Kenji Kushida is a research associate at the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center at Stanford University.  He is also an affiliated researcher with the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy (BRIE) at the University of California Berkeley.  He completed his PhD in Political Science at the University of California Berkeley, and holds Masters and Bachelors Degrees from Stanford University in East Asian Studies and Economics.  Dr. Kushida’s ongoing research interests are focused on politics, institutions, and markets, mainly in Japan, Korea, and the United States. His publications include analyses of how Information Technologies are transforming services activities, understanding the emerging Cloud Computing markets, and the political economies of broadband and mobile in Japan and South Korea. He recently completed a study on entrepreneurship in Japan’s ICT sector, and plays an active role in facilitating exchange between Japanese startups and Silicon Valley. He has also authored two books in Japanese: “Baikaruchaa to nihonjin [Biculturalism and the Japanese:  Beyond English Linguistic Capabilities]” and “International school nyumon [International Schools, an Introduction]”.

Ms.  Lisa Katayama is a San Francisco-based journalist who writes about Japanese culture, technology, and entrepreneurship for Wired, Popular Science, Fast Company, and The New York Times Magazine. She is also the founder of The Tofu Project, a highly curated boutique program that will bring 10 of the most successful, innovative young entrepreneurs from Japan to SF for a 7-day design and out of the box thinking crash course at the end of October.    

She is also a producer for PRI's Studio360 radio show, the author of a book called Urawaza: Secret Everyday Tips and Tricks from Japan, and a correspondent for Boing Boing, one of Time Magazine's five most essential blogs of 2010, and has spoken about Japanese web culture to the BBC, CNN, ABC, Martha Stewart Radio, and at venues like O'Reilly's ETech conference and the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan. Her personal web site, TokyoMango, was a runner up for the Weblog Awards in 2009. She has a BA in International Relations and French from Tufts University and a MA in Human Rights from Columbia University. When she's not working, she rock climbs, does triathlons, and plays the ukulele to her two dogs.

 

Online live cast provided via Ustream

FEES:  FREE for those who rsvp before 9/19/2011 at 5:00 p.m. (PDT)

Log-in instructions for the live cast will be sent on 9/20/2011 to those who registered

Organized by the Stanford Project on Japanese Entrepreneurship (STAJE) at SPRIE, Stanford Graduate School of Business, this panel discussion will talk about the Japanese government, METI's and U.S. Embassy's efforts to promote cross border investments between U.S. and Japan.

A particular interest in the discussion will be the "fly over phenomenon", which is the tendency of U.S. based venture capital firms to fly from Silicon Valley, over Japan, and land into China.

The panel will consist an elite group of experts, Michael Alfant, CEO of Fusion Systems, Martin Kenney, Professor at UC Davis, Allen Miner, CEO of SunBridge Corporation, and a venture capitalist to be named.

 

About the speakers

Mr. Robert Eberhart is a researcher at Stanford’s Program on Regions of Innovation and Entrepreneurship where he leads the Stanford Project on Japanese Entrepreneurship.  His research focuses on comparative corporate governance of growth companies with special emphasis on Japan and the role of Japanese institutions in fostering entrepreneurship. Mr. Eberhart received a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Michigan after undergraduate studies in Finance at Michigan State University.  He is a doctoral candidate in Stanford’s department of Management Science and Engineering.  

Michael Alfant is the Group President and CEO of Fusions Systems Co., Ltd., headquartered in Tokyo, with offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore. Fusion Systems is one of Asia's fastest growing leaders in Business Technology and Systems Consulting.  Michael started an IT solutions company named Fusion Systems Japan in 1992. Mr. Alfant is the President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan, a frequent speaker at US and Japanese Universities, and a member of the Board of Directors of listed firms in both America and Japan. Michael Alfant graduated from the City University of NY with a BS in Computer Science.

Martin Kenney is a Professor in the Department of Human and Community Development at University of California, Davis and Senior Project Director of Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy (BRIE) at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the author and/or editor of five books and 120 articles examining venture capital, high technology and regional development, and university-industry relations. He is an editor at Research Policy and for a Stanford University Press book series on innovation in the global economy. Martin has also been a visiting researcher at the Copenhagen Business School, and Cambridge Hitotsubashi, Kobe, Stanford, and Tokyo Universities.

Allen Miner is a founder/General Partner of SunBridge Partners and the founder/CEO of SunBridge Corporation. Allen has significant experience in Internet, enterprise and open-source software, entrepreneurship, and international technology transfer.  Allen has been actively involved in each of the firm’s investments resulting in numerous successful IPOs, including Salesforce.com, MacroMill, ITMedia and G-Mode, among others. Allen is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Salesforce Japan.

Scott Ellman is CEO and Co-Founder of USAsia Venture Partners. He has over twenty years of experience in strategic alliances, marketing, and business development. Scott has held senior positions at high technology pioneers Silicon Graphics (SGI) and VMware where, among other things, he managed some of the companies' most important alliances such as those with Hitachi, Toshiba, Oracle, NEC, Dell, IBM, and HP. Scott is a strategic advisor to several technology companies as well as the Keizai Society and a member of the Japan-US Innovation in Business and Technology Advisory Council. He holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a BS in Applied Mathematics and Economics from Brown University.

Quaeed "Q" Motiwala joined JAIC US in 2008 and brings 14 years of product and business development experience, working extensively across US, Japan, South Korea and India.  At DFJ JAIC, he specializes in Mobile, B2B Software and Cleantech sectors in the US. Prior to JAIC, Q spent 11 years at Qualcomm in various ASIC product development and business leadership roles that included deploying 3G EV-DO in Korea, Japan and U.S, leading the initiative to embed wireless in notebooks and automobiles and leading business efforts at the Indian wireless carriers.  He was also part of two mobile software startups - SKY MobileMedia and Azteq Mobile. Q holds 5 patents in wireless telecom, has an MBA from Anderson School of Management, UCLA, an M.S.E.E from Virginia Tech and a B.E. (Electronics) from University of Bombay. Q serves as a Board of Director at Tradescape, Innopath Software, and Vitriflex.  

William F. Miller is Herbert Hoover Professor of Public and Private Management Emeritus; Professor of Computer Science Emeritus; President Emeritus, SRI International; Chairman Emeritus, Borland Software Corporation; and Chairman/Founder of Nanostellar, Inc. Professor Miller has carried out research on atomic and nuclear physics, computer graphic systems and languages, computer systems architecture, and the computer industry. His current research interests are on industrial development with special interest in local and regional industrial development, the evolution of regions of innovation and entrepreneurship, the “habitat” for entrepreneurship, and the globalization of R&D. His international industrial development studies have focused on Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan, and Malaysia.

 

Directions

Map of Knight Management Center:
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/news/packages/PDF/GSB-kmc-campus-map-Final.pdf

Directions to Stanford Graduate School of Business:
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/about/directions.html

Presented by the Stanford Program on Regions of Innovation and Entrepreneurship-Stanford Project on Japanese Entrepreneurship (SPRIE-STAJE) at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Parking on the Stanford University campus can be challenging, so please consider arriving early. Parking is free after 4PM. Parking spaces may be available at the new Knight Management Center, Stanford Graduate School of Business:
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/about/gsbvisitors.html

The SPRIE conference on "China 2.0: Transforming Media and Commerce" was held at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University, in the heart of Silicon Valley, on Friday, September 30, 2011. The conference focused on the driving forces and global implications of the rapid growth of China's internet industry.

China is home to nearly half a billion internet users, twice the online population in the US. Already home to two of the world’s top five internet firms by market valuation, China is giving birth to innovative start-ups and powerhouse billion dollar firms in social networking, games, media, and e-commerce. These companies thriving in China are increasingly impacting the global digital economy. Fueling the rise of China’s internet firms are venture capitalists who are leading new investment models and strategies which are shaping the VC industry and the most dynamic—and profitable—internet sectors in China.

Featured speakers included internet pioneers, trailblazer investors across the Pacific, and young entrepreneurs who are shaping the rise of China 2.0.

Keynotes

Jack Ma - Chairman and CEO of Alibaba Group, delivered the closing keynote address. Alibaba Group includes online marketplace Alibaba ($4.8 billion market cap,ticker 1688:HK), retail and payment platforms (Taobao, Alipay), cloud computing services, China Yahoo, etc. In 2009, Jack Ma was recognized as one of the "TIME 100: The World's Most Influential People" by TIME, one of "China's Most Powerful People" by BusinessWeek and one of the "Top 10 Most Respected Entrepreneurs in China" by Forbes Chinese edition.

 

Joseph Chen (MBA '99) - Chairman and CEO of Renren Inc. offered a keynote speech. Renren.com is one of China’s leading social networking sites, which completed its IPO on the NYSE (ticker: RENN) in May 2011 and now has a market cap of $2.6 billion. Joseph Chen is a pioneer of China's internet industry. Before founding Renren Inc., he was the co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer of ChinaRen.com, a first-generation SNS in China and one of China's most visited websites in 1999.

 

China 2.0 Conference Co-Chairs shared sprie's research preview:

Duncan Clark is Senior Advisor for the China 2.0 Project at SPRIE and Chairman of BDA China, a company he founded in Beijing in 1994. An expert on the Internet, e-commerce and telecom sectors in China, he has guided BDA to become the leading technology and media advisory firm in China, with a team of 70 in Beijing serving financial institutions and corporations investing in high-growth sectors in China and neighboring markets.

 

 

Marguerite Gong Hancock is the Associate Director of SPRIE where co-leads overall programs and also directs research initiatives on "China 2.0" and "Smart Green Cities". Since joining Stanford in 1987, she has led international research programs at the intersection of business, technology, and policy at the Graduate School of Business and the Shorenstein Asia Pacific Research Center. She is an expert on innovation and entrepreneurship for high technology regional development and has co-edited four books and co-directs an executive education program for international policymakers.

 

Panel discussion on "china new media & E-commerce investment outlook"

Tim Chang (MBA '01), Managing Director of Mayfield Fund. Tim is a proven venture investor and experienced global executive.  He was named on the 2011 Forbes Midas List of Top 100 Dealmakers, was featured by The Deal as one of five emerging VCs to watch and by the AlwaysON Hollywood IT List recognizing technology leaders in the digital entertainment industry. 

 

 

David Chao (MBA '93), Co-Founder and General Partner of DCM. He has been active in the information technology industry since the 1980s, participating in the fastest growing sectors of computers, communication and the Internet. David serves on the Boards of 51job, 99Bill, BitTorrent, Lumi, Renren.com, RockYou and Translattice. He is also responsible for the investments in Clearwire, eDreams, Fortinet, kabu.com and Sling Media.

 

 

 

Paul Kwan (BAS '96), Managing Director, Morgan Stanley. Paul leads the global Internet and software banking effort at Morgan Stanley. In China, Paul and his team have led the IPOs for Renren, 21Vianet, Phoenix New Media, 51job.com and others. Morgan Stanley has also been the lead left bookrunner on the recent IPOs for LinkedIn, Pandora, Yandex, and Homeaway. In M&A, Paul has been particularly focused on the convergence of internet advertising, commerce and technology, and advised Omniture on its $1.8Bn sale to Adobe, ATG on its $1.0Bn sale to Oracle, aQuantive on its $6.1Bn sale to Microsoft, DoubleClick on its $3.1Bn sale to Google, and Zappos on its $1.1Bn sale to Amazon.

 

Richard Lim (MBA '88), Managing director and co-founder of GSR Ventures, the premier early-stage venture capital firm in China. Mr. Lim focuses on investments in the Internet, digital media and green technology sectors. In the Internet sector, some of the boards where Mr. Lim serves are AdChina, Baihe, Lashou, LightInTheBox and Qunar.

 

 

 

Panel discussion on "China internet entrepreneurs"

Fritz Demopoulos, Co-Founder and Former CEO of Qunar.com. Fritz Demopoulos has been involved in the Chinese internet and media industries for over a decade. He was recently the co-founder and CEO of Qunar.com, China's largest travel website and venture backed by GSR, Mayfield, Granite and Tenaya. Qunar sold a majority stake to Baidu earlier this year, which was the largest trade sale in the history of the Chinese internet space.

 

 

 

Grace Huang, Founder and CEO of iPinYou Interactive Advertising Co. She started her career at P&G as brand manager and was an ex-McKinsey consultant focusing on marketing. She obtained her MBA degree from ULCA business school. She has profound knowledge in brand marketing and internet advertising, especially targeting advertising.

 

 

 

 

Jianshuo Wang, CEO of Baixing.com. He founded Hotales.net in college, an online marketing site. After six years at Microsoft he launched Kijiji, eBay's classified-advertising business in China in 2005. Three years later Mr. Wang spun off Baixing.com, an online community with listings for houses, jobs and second-hand goods.

 

 

 

Nick Yang (MS '99), Founder and CEO, Wukong.com; Co-Founder, ChinaRen.com and KongZhong. He is one of China's most successful digital media entrepreneurs. He started his third venture Wukong in 2008, a mobile internet operation support company for telecom operators and mobile internet distribution network. Mr. Yang is an active Angel investor and involved in many internet and media companies in China. He graduated from Stanford University, master’s degree in electrical engineering in 1999.

 

 

 

Presentation and Discussion Topics

• How are internet entrepreneurs transforming China’s technology sectors?  Are there any lessons from firms in China for the Valley beyond?  What is the future for US-based internet firms in China?

• Is China giving birth to truly innovative technologies, processes or business models?  If so, are any of these innovations exportable?

• How is the Venture Capital /Private Equity industry evolving in China? What patterns, strategies and practices distinguish the most active (and successful) investors?

• What are the most interesting new developments that will impact the future of China’s internet?  Who comprise the next generation of 2.0 start-ups in China?

• How is the landscape changing? What are the current key challenges and opportunities?

Conference sponsors