Background
Liu Jiren was born in 1955, China.
积仁 刘
Liu Jiren was born in 1955, China.
Liu went to junior and high schools in Liaoning. He obtained his first degree from Northeastern University, Shenyang. He also gained a year of research experience in America at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Maryland, between 1986 and 1987.
Liu, who was a junior academic at Northeastern University, was the lead founder of the Software and Network Engineering Research Laboratory (the predecessor of Neusoft) in 1988. Liu’s US$4000 initial capital derived from his personal savings as a computing researcher. The new venture, which was based at the university’s premises, had very basic facilities, that is, three IBM286 personal computers but no telephone line. Liu had to run two or three minutes to a neighboring office to answer calls or simply to use the telephone. On top of this, the new venture also suffered from sudden power disruptions that were typical in the region at the time. In 1990, a software research center was established, based at Liu’s laboratory. Kutsuzawa, the founder of Alpine Electronics in Japan, met Liu during a visit to the center in 1991. He was impressed by Liu’s knowledge and enthusiasm for developing business software and offered him a project worth US$300 000. Alpine set up a joint venture with Liu in 1993. Hence, Neu-Alpine Software Company was formed. Neu-Alpine was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 1996, being the first software firm to utilize public funding in China.
In 1993, China’s State Planning Commission named Neusoft as the first National Engineering Research Center for Computer Software. Neusoft took advantage of its early mover advantage and provided programming services for Chinese state banks and telecommunication firms as they began to modernize their infrastructure. Its software also facilitated the computerization of the social security system in China. From the mid-1990s onwards, Neusoft took over Northeastern University’s failing medical equipment business, diversified into IT education and training and participated in joint ventures with Toshiba and Philips. It also consistently improved its technological capabilities and became the first Chinese software firm to obtain CMM Level 5 accreditation in 2004. The accreditation enabled Neusoft to compete internationally with Indian firms in offshore outsourcing; Neusoft’s outsourcing business grew rapidly from US$33 million to US$62 million between 2003 and 2006. Neusoft’s three major businesses are grouped into software and service, digital medical equipment, and IT education and training; these businesses have been incorporated under Neusoft Group Ltd, formed in 1996.
Other than transforming Neusoft into a global firm, Liu has engaged in various research activities. For example, he took part in China’s leading technology projects such as the 863 Program, which was initiated in March 1986. In addition, Liu has been active in national and international political, economic, and educational bodies, includ- ing memberships in the National People’s Political Consultative Conference, the Business Advisory Council of APEC and Northeastern University (vice-president).
He was at the forefront of Chinese software programming when he gained his PhD from Northeastern University in 1987. Liu was, in fact, the first individual in China to complete a doctorate in computer applications, thereby becoming one of the few local experts who could offer advice to government users in the late 1980s and the early 1990s.