Professor Willy C. Shih

Professor Willy C. Shih

Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration
Harvard Business School

Willy Shih is the Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration. He is part of the Technology and Operations Management Unit, and he teaches in the MBA and Executive Education Programs. His expertise is in manufacturing and product development, and he has written or co-authored numerous cases and teaching materials in industries ranging from semiconductors, information technology, consumer electronics, aerospace, transportation equipment, manufacturing processes and tools, and intellectual property.

Prior to coming to HBS in 2007, Willy spent 28 years in industry at IBM, Digital Equipment, Silicon Graphics, Eastman Kodak, and Thomson SA. He worked in product development and manufacturing in a wide range of areas including computer systems, scientific instruments, semiconductors, digital cameras, optical discs and software systems. Reporting to him have been major manufacturing operations in the United States, China, Ireland, Japan, and Mexico, as well as global sales and marketing operations. He has led the building of billion dollar revenue businesses.

Willy is on the Board of Directors of FLEX Inc., a large provider of design, manufacturing and supply chain services. He is also on the Board of Directors of VEO Robotics, a firm that brings advanced computer vision, 3D sensing, and AI to industrial robots, enabling them to work collaboratively. He has two S.B. degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley. He is a Life Member of the IEEE.