Stephen Borg, Global Director of Strategy and CEO Australia and New Zealand for AOPEN, is building a new kind of global business. He is transforming his company, AOPEN, from a Taiwan electronics manufacturer to the world’s leading force in digital signage and retail customer-engagement technology solutions.
It’s more than just geographical expansion; it’s about expanding AOPEN’s mindset and culture to create a new East-meets-West business model that amalgamates the best of Asian ingenuity with the best of Western creativity.
Stephen was hired by AOPEN founder Bernie Tsai to execute his vision of a truly global company. Bernie founded AOPEN in 1996, spinning it off from Acer and taking it public in 2000. It remains part of the US$20-billion Wistron group today, but operates with considerable independence.
With more than three decades of experience in the IT industry, including a stint at Thunderbird School of Global Management in Arizona, Bernie wanted to break with the traditional channel-focused approach to product development. As CEO, he had made a point of seeing end users as well as the channel. He wanted better insight into what they were doing with technology and what their problems were.