Advisory Committee

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Nora Wu is a distinguished leader whose career spans global leadership in one of the world’s largest professional services firms, corporate governance, and non-profit impact. She currently serves as a Trustee of the University of San Francisco and as an independent Director and Audit Committee Chair of JD Logistics, a publicly listed company in Hong Kong. She is also an independent Board member of Meditrina, a Silicon Valley healthcare startup, and Invicikids, a non-profit advancing immersive technology for pain management in pediatric healthcare. In 2023, Nora was invited to join the Committee of 100, a prestigious U.S.-based, non-partisan leadership organization of prominent Chinese Americans in business, government, academia, and the arts.

Previously, Nora was Vice Chairwoman and Global Human Capital Leader for PwC’s International network – becoming the first woman from Asia to hold this global leadership role in the firm’s 165-year history. She led the human capital vision and strategy for PwC’s global workforce of 230,000 people across 157 countries.

Her earlier leadership roles included serving as a Global Board member of PwC International, Human Capital Leader for PwC Asia Pacific, Markets leader for Central China and Managing partner of PwC Shanghai. As a consultant, Nora advised multinational and domestic clients on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, capital markets transactions, executive compensation, and talent strategies, with a focus on enabling successful investments and operations in China and Asia.

Nora’s career reflects a rare combination of strategic foresight, cross-cultural leadership, and deep expertise in business transformation. Her influence extends across corporate, academic, and non-profit spheres, positioning her as a transformative figure in global leadership and human capital strategy.

Her achievements have been recognized internationally: in 2016, she was named one of the Financial Times Upstanding Top 100 Ethnic Minority Executives in the U.S. and U.K., and in 2017, she received the Alumni Professional Achievement Award from the University of San Francisco.

Nora earned her Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of San Francisco in 1988 and completed a Distinguished Career Institute Fellowship at Stanford University in 2018.

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Partner, Foresight Restructuring LLC

Ker Gibbs has been an Executive in Residence at USF since 2022. He was previously the President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, where he focused on US-China relations and business issues facing American companies operating in Asia. Mr. Gibbs has lived in Asia for more than two decades and is a Mandarin speaker.

In the 1990s Mr. Gibbs worked for the Boston Consulting Group in Shanghai and San Francisco. Since then he has split his time between Asia and Silicon Valley, serving in executive positions with Apple, Disney, and high-growth technology businesses. He moved to Shanghai in 2002 as head of Asia Pacific for a Nasdaq-listed network security company that was acquired by McAfee. His career in high tech led him to banking, where he became head of technology and media in greater China for HSBC. As an investment banker he advised at the board and C-level at Alibaba, Baidu, and other firms engaged in mergers and cross-border transactions.

From banking Mr. Gibbs moved to direct investments. He was a founding investor in the Crystal Orange Hotel Group, helping grow the company to 130 properties and 1,500 employees in China. He also led successful investments in e-commerce, real estate, and medical technology companies.

Currently, Mr. Gibbs is a partner at Foresight, a financial advisory firm specializing in geopolitical risk, restructuring, and market-oriented partnerships. He is also an advisor to K2X, a Silicon Valley-based FinTech investment platform.

Mr. Gibbs is an op-ed contributor to the Wall Street Journal, South China Morning Post, and other publications. He edited and co-authored a book, Selling to China: Stories of Success, Failure, and Constant Change, published by Palgrave Macmillan. He holds a BA in economics from UCLA and an MBA from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. He lives in San Francisco and Shanghai.

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Independent Corporate/Nonprofit Director; Advisor/MJGlobal Insights

Marsha Vande Berg is an insightful global CEO, BOARD DIRECTOR, and SEC/Audit Committee Expert adept at: AI Governance | Macro Risk Oversight & Advisory | Strategic Stakeholder Communications Multiple Jurisdiction Regulatory Navigation: Asia, Australia, Canada, EU, India, Japan, and US.

Marsha is an Independent Non-Executive Board Director, an Audit Committee Member, and Board Liaison to the Risk Management Committee of QUANTUM ADVISORS PRIVATE LIMITED, one of India’s most respected investment firms with offices in the UK, Canada, EU, and US. She is responsible for holding company oversight of a US$3 billion asset allocation to India’s public markets on behalf of international institutional investors, high net worth and mutual fund retail clients. Marsha is their expert on strategic, operational, cybersecurity/technology, reputational risks and geopolitical global dynamics for India businesses.

Marsha serves as an Advisory Board Director for GG56 Ltd, a South Korean global leader in innovative new technologies solutions leveraging big data, AI, & blockchain, where she champions the integration/implementation of global governance best practices.

She is the Founder and President of STRATEGICS GLOBAL-SF, where she providesmacro-risk advisory services to decision-makers at the corporate, Board, and public policy levels regarding organizational governance and the harnessing of drivers of global disruptions, digital transformation, and geopolitical complexity for resilient growth.

Previously, Marsha was the long-time Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for PACIFIC PENSION & INVESTMENT INSTITUTE (PPI), where, with a $2B budget, she led all PPI functions on behalf of a powerfully influential group of institutional investors and in support of programming and auxiliary services regarding global risk and opportunities with an emphasis on the Asia-Pacific region.

Academically, Marsha earned a Ph.D., VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY; an M.A., DUKE UNIVERSITY; and Certificates, including from Stanford University Rock Center for Corporate Governance Directors’ College Executive Education. She is a Lifetime Member of THE COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS, a Board Director and Officer of THE JAPAN SOCIETY NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, and an inaugural member of the Global and Emerging Risks Advisory Board for THE RAND CORPORATION.

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Professor

Professor Xiaohua Yang teaches International Business and has been the founding director of the Center for Business Studies and Innovation in Asia-Pacific in the School of Management at the University of San Francisco, which is merged with the USF Center of Asia Pacific Studies. She specializes in the internationalization of firms, MNE corporate social responsibility and sustainable development, international R&D strategic alliances, and foreign market entry strategies. She has taught and lectured in the USA, Australia, China, Taiwan, and Europe. She regularly teaches MBA and EMBA students and supervises doctoral students. Dr. Yang is a recipient of multiple Best Paper Awards from prestigious international conferences, the outstanding research award and the outstanding service award from the USF School of Management as well as the prestigious China Natural Science Foundation grants. Widely published in international journals, she also is an author of multiple books and has served as the senior editor and the guest editor of several prestigious international journals.

Dr. Yang has served on numerous boards and has consulted companies and government agencies in a number of countries, including the U.S., China, Australia, Finland, and Armenia. She has designed and delivered training courses for companies and organizations. She has been serving on the industry advisory board of International Relations Programs at Bond University, Australia, and an honorary professor at the Center for Business Ethics at Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, Hunan Normal University’s Public Administration School, and Sichuan University’s School of Business as well as a doctoral adviser at Emlyon Business School.

Her work on the globalization of firms has not only attracted attention from the academia, but also from the media. She has been interviewed by many media outlets. She is frequently invited to speak at international conferences, forums, and symposia. She has been a keynote/panel speaker at both academic and industry conferences and forums. Dr. Yang co-founded an international conference series/AIB Special Theme Conferences that are held annually on internationalization of firms from emerging markets.

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Founder and CEO, Kochis Global

Tim Kochis, JD, MBA, CFP®, has over a half century of experience in the personal financial and investment planning profession. In 1990, he founded Kochis Fitz, one of the predecessor firms of today’s Aspiriant. In the 1980s, he led the personal financial planning business for Deloitte and for Bank of America. His profession has conferred on him every leadership and achievement award it offers, in recognition of his work in leading its professional associations and establishing its professional status in the US and around the world.

Tim has served on numerous civic and arts boards, largely focused on enhancing cultural awareness and improved relations between the US and Asian countries, with particular emphasis on China. He is Trustee Emeritus of the University of San Francisco and he currently serves as Chair of the San Francisco-based Asia Foundation.

Tim received a Purple Heart while in service in the US Army during the Vietnam War.

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Partner, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

Jenny Liu is a partner in the firm’s corporate practice and co-leader of the firm’s China practice. She splits her time between the San Francisco, Shanghai and Beijing offices.

Jenny advises growing companies on their operations in the United States and China in various industries, including internet and telecom, software, energy, education, medical devices and consumer services. She also represents private and public companies, financial institutions, private equity firms and venture funds in commercial and corporate transactions, including equity financings, loan and credit agreements, cross-border mergers and acquisitions, and the formation and structuring of direct investments in the United States and China.

Here are some highlights of Jenny’s experience:

• Represents active venture and private equity investors, such as IDG Capital, Chengwei Capital, Bertelsmann Asia Investments, Sumitomo Corporation Equity Asia Investments in financing transactions in China, Hong Kong and the United States.
• Represents Chinese growing companies, such as BabyTree Inc., NetentSec Inc. and Shinho Holdings in their on-going corporate matters, cross-border financing and other commercial transactions.
• Represents major financial institutions, such as China Development Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited and the Export-Import Bank of China in their international debt financing transactions.
• Regularly speaks and lectures in China concerning developments in the financing market and acquisition trends. She has been quoted in Chinese publications like China Daily and China Business.

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Director, University of California Inland California Innovation Initiative

Dr. N. Bruce Pickering works with a wide range of organizations on international policy and development. Currently, he works with four UC campuses (Berkeley, Davis, Merced and Riverside) on creating a bioeconomic model for inland California, designed to increase productivity and decrease income inequality in the inland regions of California, using potential models derived from Japan, Denmark and Israel. He is also an adjunct professor teaching Political Economy of the Asia Pacific at the University of San Francisco. He has also served as the North American Executive Secretary for the Greater Bay Area Initiative, a joint platform sponsored by Harvard University, the Central Party School of the People’s Republic in Beijing, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Prior to his current positions, Pickering was Senior Policy Advisor at GlobalSF, an international business development organization closely associated with the City of San Francisco and the greater San Francisco Bay Area. From 2019 – 2021, Dr Pickering was a Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, working with the Future of Work program to address the relationship between technology, the international economy, and the future of work and prosperity.

Prior to his work at BRIE, Pickering was the Vice President for Global Programs and Executive Director, Northern California, for the Asia Society. He has also served as a Foreign Service Officer specializing in arms control issues.

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Head of GTM at SifThub

Kishan Bulusu is the Head of GTM at SifThub, an AI-powered revenue intelligence platform designed to help go-to-market teams accelerate deal cycles and drive predictable growth. SifThub turns fragmented deal data and tribal knowledge — spread across tools like CRM, Slack, Gong, Drive, and more — into real-time, actionable insights that enable teams to work smarter and close faster.

Kishan brings more than 20 years of leadership experience across enterprise software, AI, cybersecurity, and automation. Prior to joining SifThub, he founded and led Botprise, a no-code automation platform for IT and security operations. His career has consistently focused on building and scaling technology that solves real business problems — especially in high-velocity, high-impact environments.

In addition to his technology background, Kishan has worked closely with venture capital and investment banking partners, supporting both early-stage fundraising and strategic growth planning. His financial expertise gives him a well-rounded perspective on scaling startups and aligning operational execution with investor expectations.

At the University of San Francisco’s Center for Business and Society, Kishan serves on the advisory board, where he actively supports student learning and engagement. In 2023, he hosted a session for students in the Global Student Ambassador Program (GSAP) at AWS's San Francisco office, showcasing live applications of AI-driven automation in cybersecurity. His approachable style and real-world perspective made a lasting impression on the students and faculty alike.

Expertise Areas:

• AI-powered GTM and revenue strategy
• Sales productivity and deal intelligence
• No-code/low-code automation
• Venture capital and investment strategy
• Student mentorship and industry-academia collaboration

Kishan’s blend of startup experience, enterprise acumen, financial insight, and commitment to education makes him a valuable contributor to USF’s advisory board and an advocate for innovation in business and technology.