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This month, John Symon spoke with Wade Weidong, CEO of Geong International to learn more about his organisation.

Can we start with an introduction of yourself and an overview of your company?

 I am CEO of GEONG International Limited, a leading Chinese based, online business solutions provider.

 As one of the founders of GEONG International, I previously worked for People's Bank of China Banknote Printing and Minting Corporation and was also founder for Mandarin International Software Ltd and Advanced Business Solutions Ltd which sold to HKSE listed company, Hisun, in 2000. In September 2000, with the assistance of venture capital from Shanghai NewMargin Ventures Co. Ltd, GEONG was established.

 In June 2006, GEONG was successfully listed on London (AIM) Stock Exchange, becoming the first Chinese enterprise content management (ECM) company to be listed on a foreign stock exchange.

 We have a very strong executive & technical team, some of whom have gained many years’ experience working for leading IT companies such as IBM & Compaq. Our key strategic partners include IBM, Microsoft, Oracle (BEA) and SAP.

 Our business is to design, develop and deliver online business solutions utilizing ECM software technology to help our clients streamline their business processes.

What are the primary products /services you offer and what is your key value proposition?

GEONG International's core product offerings include content management, collaborative management and enterprise portals, based around our PortalAge™ ECM applications & collaboration platform. Smartbox™ is an ‘off the shelf’, licensed solution for enterprise management & collaboration execution, particularly for SME’s and is now available as a SaaS solution.

One of our core competencies is the intensive industry knowledge we have accumulated in our chosen market sectors and this is being constantly enhanced. Compared against our competitors, our solutions have a history of delivering higher value to customers.

Our corporate strategy is to design industry specific solutions by leveraging our extensive industry knowledge. We develop our solution components and/or integrate third-party solutions based on our product platform. 

We deliver these solutions to our clients via IaaS (Information-As-A-Service) and SaaS (Software-As-A-Service) business offerings.

- IaaS for long term ECM projects, contracts plus consultancy, and
- SaaS for quarterly/monthly based license fees and variable charges based on volume

How do you position yourselves in the market?

We are the leading, independent, ECM solution software provider in China and are becoming the No1 online business solutions provider in China

Which business applications and market sectors do you primarily address?

Online business applications, including external and internally via the Internet - Wireless and 3G is our focus. Our major market sectors are the financial sector, telecom, auto and MFG.

Who do you consider to be your major competitors?

Second tier ECM product providers from international vendors, such as Vignette and Interwoven etc. and some smaller, local ECM product providers

Which geographies do you service?

GEONG International currently operates through its branch offices and R&D centres, of which there are three in China - Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong and one in Canada - Vancouver.

What do you consider are the major differences in your domestic market versus, say the USA, Europe or North America?

- Local industry knowhow and best practice
- Higher price/performance solutions
- Long-term relationships with our clients
- Long-term partnerships with international software vendors, such as IBM and Oracle

The ECM market is undergoing further consolidation, convergence and evolution with the impact of web 2.0, SaaS, social networking, virtualisation and other innovations and discontinuities in the market. What effect is all of this having on your business?

Experience Management, Enterprise Marketing Management, Social Networking etc. We think it is a plus for our existing, traditional business model – IaaS

What impact is Microsoft’s Sharepoint having on your business and how readily has this been adopted in the Chinese market?

We are also a business partner of Microsoft because some of our clients require GEONG to provide Hybrid model solutions for them. Typically, they use Microsoft Sharepoint in front end and use J2EE in back-end.

How has your business fared during the recent economic downturn?

We continued to execute our proven successful strategy - ‘Go Deep & Broad’ - to generate more recurring revenue from our Diamond and Gold clients.

What key market drivers are positively impacting your business?

- Fast growth of the Chinese economy
- Fast growth of online business of large Chinese enterprises

How do you see the market for ECM solutions evolving in China over the next 2-3 years?

According to IDC, the Chinese market will become the largest ECM market in Asia Pacific and will be led by the financial sector and nationally owned companies. This is definitely a huge opportunity for GEONG.

What are your top three priorities for the next 12 months?

- More products and industry solutions offerings - especially SaaS Offerings
- Merger and acquisition
- Stronger management system

What are the main challenges for you to overcome?
-   Overseas expansion
-   Acquisition

Which new technologies, markets or geographies are you looking to expand into?
On the technology side - Cloud computing, SNS, GRC
Relative to markets - Healthcare and New Energy
Geographies - Asia, North America and Europe

What is the mission and vision that drives your company?

Our vision is to become a world-class leader by 2015 in producing online business solutions, utilizing ECM software technology.

Our mission is to help customers move their business online and to streamline their business processes by deploying GEONG’s IP products and solutions