Being passed over for a management job was, in retrospect, one of the best things that ever happened to John Chen. At the time, the Hong Kong native was a young electrical engineer at a California plant of Unisys Corp. The reason for the rejection? Poor speaking skills. Mr. Chen was told that he wasn't "very presentable." Later, Mr. Chen realized "it was not meant to be a degrading comment -- it literally meant that we don't know how to present the story (to non-engineers)." Rather than give up, Mr. Chen took presentation and speaking classes. Not only was he later promoted, but he eventually became manager of the plant where he was first passed over. Mr. Chen went on to work at Pyramid Technology Corp. for six years, becoming CEO in 1995. In 1997 he moved to software maker Sybase Inc., and as chairman, president and CEO he's led the once-ailing tech firm back into the black. Last year he was named to the board of directors of the Walt Disney Company. A popular speaker, Mr. Chen was recently named vice chairman of the Committee of 100, a Chinese-American group that advocates improving Sino-American relations.

He lives in San Francisco with his wife, Sherry, and has three daughters -- Jackie, 20, Stephanie, 15, Victoria, 11 -- and 7-year-old son, Justin.

What do you feel is the future of American-Chinese relations?

I'm a strong believer in the relationship between (these) superpowers -- one the most powerful and richest nation, the other the most populous and quickly developing. The historical differences lend themselves to a lot of ups and downs and conflict. I believe (we) should focus more on the people...Americans' understanding of China, not just a mystical East that treats people poorly. In the case of the East, they have to view people and understand the American ideologies.

What's the key to turning around a troubled company?

You have to build the confidence. Most people jump in and talk about strategy, talk about products -- those are important aspects. (But) the most important people whose confidence you need to rebuild is the employees. The second is the customers, then the shareholders. It has to be in that order: If you don't have (confident) employees, the customers will not be well treated, which means they will abandon you, and that will make the shareholders unhappy.

What do you wish you'd known 20 years ago?

Not to be overly cocky. Just because you had good grades and a good education, you sometimes feel you know everything. There is so much to learn from one has a monopoly on all the knowledge and know-how. And the other thing, there is never really a right or wrong way of doing business, other than to have integrity. You read a lot of books about how to set up a business, how to organize, how to set marketing strategy, how to do this or that, but I really don't believe there is a cookbook for it. Twenty years ago I wish I would have listened more.

What mistake have you learned the most from?

On the business side I could think of a number of times where I didn't listen to my gut, especially in dealing with people. I'm a big proponent, almost to a fault, of loyalty. Some of these people have been working for me at three or four companies in the past 20 years.

I'm a terrible person in dealing with the Peter Principle (it states that employees are promoted to a level where they are incompetent, and then they stay there) ... I understand the principle behind it...(but) it's hard for me to pull the trigger.

What is missing in your life?

I think I'm pretty stereotypical, with a background in engineering and business...I'm a byproduct of a typical Hong Kong (mentality), told to study math, science, go to grad school. I've been surrounded by books, mathematics, computers and businesses, which has served me great. I'm blessed with a great family.I wish I had developed more outside interests...I play golf but that's about it. I'd like to learn more about art, learn to cook, just something that is different.

What book has influenced you the most?

"Renewal Factor: How the Best Get and Keep the Competitive Edge" by Robert Waterman Jr., which talks about constant change in an organization -- when things are working, that's when you need to think about change. It's still a little radical in a sense. It talks about how businesses can get stagnant. It's hard to do, because you always get in a comfort zone....You typically find yourself reacting to changes way too late.

Nowadays, I tend to be more a novel junkie. I just read "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown -- I think it's a lot better than his "The Da Vinci Code." I've read all the Agatha Christie, all the Sherlock Holmes, Mark Twain, John Grisham, Mary Higgins Clark, Michael Crichton.

What's the most important thing you pack when you hit the road?

I spend two-thirds of my time on the road. I always bring my laptop, but I never turn it on. I'm very disciplined in terms of down time...I need time to reflect, to write speeches, to read.

What's your ideal holiday destination?

The thing we like to do as a family the most is go to Hawaii, like Kapalua on's where my kids learned to ride bikes and stuff. I love to golf; my favorite (course) in the U.S. is Pebble Beach. I like to go to Scotland and play at Gleneagles. I like Blue Canyon Country Club in Phuket.

What does exercise mean to you?

Besides golf, I have a (personal) trainer who hates me. When I'm in town, I try to exercise on the treadmill three days a week, which I don't always do.

What do you do to help the world?

I get involved in...Chinese-American relations. I do a lot of mentoring with college students. I give a lot of speeches to universities. I get invited to speak to a lot of Asian and Chinese societies at universities on how to break through the glass ceiling. I'm on the San Francisco Symphony board helping to raise music awareness...I do fund-raising at several universities. Mostly I help (by extending) my Rolodex to give time and money to worthy causes.

If you had a choice, what would your last meal be?

Being in America, I miss the Shanghai meals; I'd like the ribs boiled in sugar and vinegar in a hot pot.

How do you want to be remembered?

That I made a difference, that I made (Sybase) survive. I had to cut 1,500 people out of 6,000 in a very short time, which was tough. I don't think that being a leader you have to focus on being well liked, but well respected.


Probably be more content. I think I still have a lot of energy and want to do more, more, more. I have so much going on right now...(But) I would like to find a way to slow that I mean, liking it and enjoying it. When I slow down, I don't like it.

Write to Kevin Voigt at