Bruce Chizen
Encyclopedia
Bruce R. Chizen was the chief executive officer
of Adobe Systems
, based in San Jose, California
. Chizen lives in Los Altos
, California
with his wife and children.
as a founding senior manager and later held positions as vice president of sales and of worldwide marketing before becoming vice president and general manager of Claris Clear Choice.
Chizen earned a bachelor's degree from Brooklyn College
(City University of New York
) in 1978. He serves on the boards of Synopsys
and the Silicon Valley Education Foundation
.
, Adobe's current president and Chief Operating Officer. Bruce Chizen is expected to serve out his term on Adobe's Board of Directors, and then continue in a strategic advisory role until the end of Adobe's 2008 fiscal year.
and advises Seattle Venture Capital
firm Voyager Capital. He also sits on the boards of Oracle Corporation
, Synopsys
, Elemental Technologies, and NDS
, a pay TV technology company. Chizen also sits on several nonprofit boards, including the Silicon Valley Education Foundation and of 1st Act Silicon Valley.
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of Adobe Systems
Adobe Systems
Adobe Systems Incorporated is an American computer software company founded in 1982 and headquartered in San Jose, California, United States...
, based in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
. Chizen lives in Los Altos
Los Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
with his wife and children.
Career
From 1980 to 1983, he worked in Mattel Electronics' merchandising group, helping it grow into a US$500 million business. In 1983, Chizen joined Microsoft as the company's eastern region sales director. In 1987, he joined ClarisClaris
Claris was a computer software developer formed as a spin-off from Apple Computer in 1987. It was given the source code and copyrights to several programs that were owned by Apple, notably MacWrite and MacPaint, in order to separate Apple's application software activities from its hardware and...
as a founding senior manager and later held positions as vice president of sales and of worldwide marketing before becoming vice president and general manager of Claris Clear Choice.
Chizen earned a bachelor's degree from Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a senior college of the City University of New York, located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.Established in 1930 by the New York City Board of Higher Education, the College had its beginnings as the Downtown Brooklyn branches of Hunter College and the City College of New...
(City University of New York
City University of New York
The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
) in 1978. He serves on the boards of Synopsys
Synopsys
Synopsys, Inc. is one of the largest companies in the Electronic Design Automation industry. Synopsys' first and best-known product is Design Compiler, a logic-synthesis tool. Synopsys offers a wide range of other products used in the design of an application-specific integrated circuit...
and the Silicon Valley Education Foundation
Silicon Valley Education Foundation
Silicon Valley Education Foundation , a non-profit organization, has been serving students and teachers since 1999. SVEF is located in San Jose, California, USA...
.
Resignation
On November 12, 2007, Adobe Systems announced in a press release that Bruce Chizen would step down from his role as Chief Executive Officer effective December 1, to be replaced by Shantanu NarayenShantanu Narayen
Shantanu Narayen is the current CEO of Adobe Systems. Prior to this post, he held the role as the President and Chief Operating Officer since 2005.-Early life:...
, Adobe's current president and Chief Operating Officer. Bruce Chizen is expected to serve out his term on Adobe's Board of Directors, and then continue in a strategic advisory role until the end of Adobe's 2008 fiscal year.
Current status
Bruce Chizen is a senior advisor for private-equity firm PermiraPermira
Permira is a United Kingdom-based private equity firm with global reach. The firm advises funds with a total committed capital of approximately €20 billion....
and advises Seattle Venture Capital
Venture capital
Venture capital is financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies. The venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as...
firm Voyager Capital. He also sits on the boards of Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...
, Synopsys
Synopsys
Synopsys, Inc. is one of the largest companies in the Electronic Design Automation industry. Synopsys' first and best-known product is Design Compiler, a logic-synthesis tool. Synopsys offers a wide range of other products used in the design of an application-specific integrated circuit...
, Elemental Technologies, and NDS
NDS
NDS is an initialism may stand for:* Low German , a regional language spoken in the north of Germany and the northeast of the Netherlands* Lower Saxony...
, a pay TV technology company. Chizen also sits on several nonprofit boards, including the Silicon Valley Education Foundation and of 1st Act Silicon Valley.