Jørgen Sigurd Lien
Encyclopedia
Jørgen Sigurd Lien is the co-founder, and CEO of eHelp Corporation
(formerly known as Blue Sky Software). eHelp Corporation was the worldwide leader in Help authoring solutions before it was acquired by Macromedia
, Inc. in 2003.
to parents Terje Lien (father) and Inger Lise Lien (mother), had an early exposure to entrepreneurship. His paternal grandfather was Jørgen Sigurd Lien, Sr., co-founder and director of Jørgen S. Lien AS, one of the pioneer companies in Norway producing cash registers and safes.
Jørgen Sigurd Lien attended school at Snarøya
, Lysaker
and Stabekk
). Between 1979 and 1981, Lien trained at the Norwegian Air Force Academy
and graduated as one of the top officers. Lien also won the Norwegian Judo Championship twice – in 1975 and 1978.
He is the alumnus of University of California, Santa Barbara
. While at University of California, he earned his Bachelor's Degree suma cum laude in Electrical Engineering. In 1985, he won the Mortar Board Award for being the top graduating student and achieving a 3.96 grade point average. Lien then undertook graduate research in parallel processing and artificial intelligence, and completed his Master's Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering in 1987.
in Norway, and has been involved with Windows development since Windows 1.0
Lien served as the President and CEO of eHelp Corporation
from the mid-90's until September 1999 and then from 2001 until eHelp was acquired by Macromedia
, Inc. His ability to accurately forecast industry trends has enabled him to position eHelp Corporation and its products ahead of the technological curve, which is critical to continued success in the rapidly evolving software industry. Lien's vision, personal leadership and motivational skills have underpinned the dramatic growth of eHelp Corporation in terms of both personnel and revenues, and have helped the company avoid the pitfalls experienced by many high-tech companies that undergo rapid expansion.
In the highly competitive software industry,. Lien has led eHelp Corporation to become a multi-million dollar corporation with 37% compound growth in revenues over the past five years and 40 consecutive profitable quarters. Up until 1999, these accomplishments were achieved without any outside investment, as the company was completely self-funded through its own growth.
In 1999, eHelp attracted a $17 million investment from venture capital firms HarbourVest and Geocapital Partners, to help fund the ongoing growth of the company and the development of exciting new Internet-oriented technologies and products.
Under Lien's leadership, eHelp Corporation achieved twelve years of profitable growth. In 2003, Macromedia, Inc. acquired eHelp Corporation - the majority shareholders of eHelp Corporation were HarbourVest and Geocapital Partners . Robert M. Wadsworth from HarbourVest and Lawrence W. Lepard from Geocapital Partners were eHelp Corporation’s board members.
Lien’s firm Blue Sky Software Corp. has been honored as a “1997 Developer of the Year” finalist, by the Software Council of Southern California.
In 1999, eHelp Corporation was named the 33rd fastest growing technology company in Southern California
by Deloitte & Touche, due to its outstanding average annual revenue growth of 304.7 % over a five-year period.
In 2002, eHelp Corporation has been selected by the Association of Support Professionals as a winner of the "Ten Best Web Support Sites of 2002" award.
In 2003, eHelp Corporation received the Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Gold Award.
12,000,000 worth in RoboDemo(R) eLearning Edition tutorial software to accredited colleges and universities through its Academic Software Donation Program.
In 2003, eHelp contributed a total of $75,000 donation in retail value of eHelp's RoboDemo eLearning Edition software to University of California through the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology [Cal-(IT)²].
EHelp Corporation
eHelp Corporation was co-founded by Jørgen Sigurd Lien and Trond Bergquist in 1990, and headquartered in San Diego, California....
(formerly known as Blue Sky Software). eHelp Corporation was the worldwide leader in Help authoring solutions before it was acquired by Macromedia
Macromedia
Macromedia was an American graphics and web development software company headquartered in San Francisco, California that produced such products as Flash and Dreamweaver. Its rival, Adobe Systems, acquired Macromedia on December 3, 2005 and controls the line of Macromedia...
, Inc. in 2003.
Early life and education
Jorgen Lien, who was born in BergenBergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
to parents Terje Lien (father) and Inger Lise Lien (mother), had an early exposure to entrepreneurship. His paternal grandfather was Jørgen Sigurd Lien, Sr., co-founder and director of Jørgen S. Lien AS, one of the pioneer companies in Norway producing cash registers and safes.
Jørgen Sigurd Lien attended school at Snarøya
Snarøya
Snarøya is a populated peninsula in the inner Oslofjord in Norway. A suburb of Oslo, administratively and geographically it belongs to Bærum municipality in Akershus county. It is located south of the districts Lysaker, Lagåsen and Fornebu, and has 2,940 inhabitants.-History:Its name is derived...
, Lysaker
Lysaker
Lysaker is a section of and a postal code area of the Norwegian municipality of Bærum, just west of Oslo.Geographically, it is bordered by Lysakerelven on the east, which also forms the border to Oslo; Fornebu to the south; Stabekk to the west; and Jar to the north...
and Stabekk
Stabekk
Stabekk is a suburban centre in the municipality of Bærum, Norway. Mainly a residential area and have most of the conservative population in Norway the current population is 6,261....
). Between 1979 and 1981, Lien trained at the Norwegian Air Force Academy
Norwegian Air Force Academy
The Norwegian Air Force Academy is the officer training school of the Royal Norwegian Air Force. It was established in 1949 and last reformed its education system in 2005 according to the contemporary reform in Norwegian civilian university education...
and graduated as one of the top officers. Lien also won the Norwegian Judo Championship twice – in 1975 and 1978.
He is the alumnus of University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara, commonly known as UCSB or UC Santa Barbara, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus is located on a site in Goleta, California, from Santa Barbara and northwest of Los...
. While at University of California, he earned his Bachelor's Degree suma cum laude in Electrical Engineering. In 1985, he won the Mortar Board Award for being the top graduating student and achieving a 3.96 grade point average. Lien then undertook graduate research in parallel processing and artificial intelligence, and completed his Master's Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering in 1987.
Career
Prior to founding eHelp Corporation in 1990, Mr. Lien was the technical leader of the original Windows Development team at Norsk DataNorsk Data
Norsk Data was a computer manufacturer located in Oslo, Norway. Existing from 1967 to 1992, it had its most active period in the years from the early 1970s to the late 1980s...
in Norway, and has been involved with Windows development since Windows 1.0
Windows 1.0
Windows 1.0 is a 16-bit graphical operating environment, developed by Microsoft and released on 20 November 1985. It was Microsoft's first attempt to implement a multi-tasking graphical user interface-based operating environment on the PC platform. Windows 1.0 was the first version of Windows...
Lien served as the President and CEO of eHelp Corporation
EHelp Corporation
eHelp Corporation was co-founded by Jørgen Sigurd Lien and Trond Bergquist in 1990, and headquartered in San Diego, California....
from the mid-90's until September 1999 and then from 2001 until eHelp was acquired by Macromedia
Macromedia
Macromedia was an American graphics and web development software company headquartered in San Francisco, California that produced such products as Flash and Dreamweaver. Its rival, Adobe Systems, acquired Macromedia on December 3, 2005 and controls the line of Macromedia...
, Inc. His ability to accurately forecast industry trends has enabled him to position eHelp Corporation and its products ahead of the technological curve, which is critical to continued success in the rapidly evolving software industry. Lien's vision, personal leadership and motivational skills have underpinned the dramatic growth of eHelp Corporation in terms of both personnel and revenues, and have helped the company avoid the pitfalls experienced by many high-tech companies that undergo rapid expansion.
In the highly competitive software industry,. Lien has led eHelp Corporation to become a multi-million dollar corporation with 37% compound growth in revenues over the past five years and 40 consecutive profitable quarters. Up until 1999, these accomplishments were achieved without any outside investment, as the company was completely self-funded through its own growth.
In 1999, eHelp attracted a $17 million investment from venture capital firms HarbourVest and Geocapital Partners, to help fund the ongoing growth of the company and the development of exciting new Internet-oriented technologies and products.
Under Lien's leadership, eHelp Corporation achieved twelve years of profitable growth. In 2003, Macromedia, Inc. acquired eHelp Corporation - the majority shareholders of eHelp Corporation were HarbourVest and Geocapital Partners . Robert M. Wadsworth from HarbourVest and Lawrence W. Lepard from Geocapital Partners were eHelp Corporation’s board members.
Awards and honors
In 2000, Lien was one of ten business people who received an "Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year: San Diego Region" award.Lien’s firm Blue Sky Software Corp. has been honored as a “1997 Developer of the Year” finalist, by the Software Council of Southern California.
In 1999, eHelp Corporation was named the 33rd fastest growing technology company in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
by Deloitte & Touche, due to its outstanding average annual revenue growth of 304.7 % over a five-year period.
In 2002, eHelp Corporation has been selected by the Association of Support Professionals as a winner of the "Ten Best Web Support Sites of 2002" award.
In 2003, eHelp Corporation received the Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Gold Award.
Philanthropy
In 2002, Lien’s software firm eHelp contributed a total of US$United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
12,000,000 worth in RoboDemo(R) eLearning Edition tutorial software to accredited colleges and universities through its Academic Software Donation Program.
In 2003, eHelp contributed a total of $75,000 donation in retail value of eHelp's RoboDemo eLearning Edition software to University of California through the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology [Cal-(IT)²].