Morris Chang
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chung-Mou 'Morris' Chang, Ph.D. (張忠謀; pinyin: Zhāng Zhōngmóu) (born July 10, 1931) is the founding Chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. (TSMC) in 1987. TSMC pioneered the "dedicated silicon foundry" industry and is the largest silicon foundry in the world.
Dr. Chang was born in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, China. He had wanted to become a writer but his father, an official in the Ningbo county government, persuaded him otherwise. In 1949, as China was in the height of the Chinese Civil War, Chang moved to the United States to attend Harvard University. He transferred to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Mechanical Engineering from there in 1952 and 1953, respectively. He then earned the degree of Mechanical Engineer from MIT in 1955. Chang accepted a job as an engineering manager at Texas Instruments in 1958. He received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University in 1964.
During his 25 year career (1958-1983) at Texas Instruments he rose in the ranks to become Group Vice President responsible for worldwide semiconductor business. He left Texas Instruments to become President and Chief Operating Officer of General Instrument Corporation (1984-1985).
However, a year later, the Republic of China (Taiwan) government recruited him to become Chairman and President of the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI). In this capacity as head of a government sponsored non-profit in charge of promoting industrial and technological development in Taiwan, Chang founded TSMC at a time when firms increasingly needed to outsource their manufacturing capabilities to Asia. Soon, TSMC become one of the world's most profitable chip makers. Chang left ITRI in 1994 and became Chairman of Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation from 1994 to 2003 while continuing to serve as chairman of TSMC.
Dr. Chang was the recipient of the IEEE Robert N. Noyce Award for Exceptional Contributions to Microelectronics Industry, and the "Exemplary Leadership Award" of the Fabless Semiconductor Association (FSA). He was selected by BusinessWeek as one of the "Top 25 Managers of the Year" and "Stars of Asia" in 1998; and by BancAmerica Robertson Stephens as "One of The Most Significant Contributors in the 50 years of Semiconductor Industry" in 1998.
Dr. Chang is Member of National Academy of Engineering (U.S.A) and Member of MIT Corporation, MIT's board of trustees, as well. He is also on the advisory boards of NYSE, Stanford University, and University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Chang is also on the board of the Eisenhower Fellowship Trustees. He was formerly on the board of Goldman Sachs. Chang has also received honorary doctorates from National Chiao-Tung University, National Tsing Hua University, and National Central University in Taiwan as well as Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the U.S. Since 2001 he has been an advisor in the Office of the President of the Republic of China.
Dr. Chang and his wife Sophie reside in Taiwan. His personal interests include classical music and bridge.
