Cyrill Eltschinger
CEO, I.T. UNITED

A multi-cultural entrepreneur educated in Switzerland and the United States, Cyrill Eltschinger has more than a decade of experience working in the China market. Prior to I.T. UNITED, he spent eight years with Electronic Data Systems (EDS) on various assignments in Europe, the United States, and Asia-Pacific. He was eventually posted to China as Head of Technical Infrastructure to establish and lead the country-wide information and communications systems and automation of General Motors.

Anticipating the trend towards global IT outsourcing, he identified early China as an emerging major player. In 1998, he and a group of former EDS colleagues started I.T. UNITED. The company today is one of the most trusted China-based outsourcing services providers with a reputation for delivering cost-effective IT solutions that make technology smarter, easier, and more productive. On August 17th, 2007, I.T. UNITED became a Softtek company and now represents a global team of 6000. For a full press release, visit the I.T. UNITED website.

Due to his unique expertise in the IT field and experience in China, Cyrill acts as a strategy advisor for the TORCH Center, the technology-focused agency of China's Ministry of Science & Technology (MOST); IT strategy advisor for the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA); and is a subject matter expert at the Gerson Lehrman Group (GLG) Technology Council, briefing executives both on the technology industry and the China market. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Finance from the Texas A&M University and a certificate in Systems Engineering Development from EDS.

Cyrill serves as Chairman of SwissCham China (the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in China); on the Board of Governors at the Capital Club, Beijing's premier private business club; he is also the Founding President of the Texas A&M University China Club. Before entering the private sector, Cyrill was an Officer in an elite unit of the Swiss Special Forces. He is also an enthusiastic aviator and holds the first private pilot's license issued to a foreigner in China since 1949.

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Picture caption – JINGSHAN Park temple overlooking the north gate of the Forbidden City in Beijing (Photography by Nathalie Behring)