Daniel Salisbury Corporate VP, Global IT, Cadence Design Systems

How long at current company? 11 years

Career accomplishment I'm most proud of: Over the past seven years, Cadence IT has raised millions in cash and donations as part of its annual Cadence Stars and Strikes community fund-raising effort. In fiscal '07 alone, IT raised more than $1 million in cash and in-kind donations. Organizations such as the San Jose Women's Initiative, the Palo Alto Veteran's Hospital, and the Bill Wilson Youth Center have been able to use these donations to positively affect the lives of many people. It has been an honor to help these wonderful organizations.

Most important career influencer: My father. He led by example through hard work, imagination, curiosity, and focus. His encouragement was always positive and steady.

Decision I wish I could do over: In a prior position with a system integration consulting company, I agreed to a major time and materials contract that included a not-to-exceed cap that we were confident we could achieve. We were wrong.

IT budget: $80 million expense; $60 million capital

Size of IT team: 326 employees

Top three initiatives:

• IT contributes significant engineering productivity gains by delivering critical software development improvements. One success is the use of Predictive Method Testing (patent filed) theory to reduce testing frequency without sacrificing defect detection levels, which cuts annual server costs by 30%.



• Hosted VCAD (Virtual Integrated Computer-Aided Design) is a services model that provides our customers with quick access to a fully productive environment for chip design.



• IT has consolidated the number of vendors and is actively evaluating the metrics for green equipment and vendors.

The next big thing for my business will be ... simultaneous development of integrated circuits and software for optimal efficiency, predictability, and quality. A holistic approach, from concept through design to manufacturing, will be the only way for our customers to achieve business success.

Best advice for future CIOs: The key to your success, far beyond any other factor, is the quality, ingenuity, tenacity, and integrity of the people in your organization. Select them carefully, understand their motivations, and help them realize their dreams.

Colleges/degrees: San Jose State University, BA; University of Santa Clara, MBA

Last vacation taken: Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii

Favorite leisure activity: Hugging my family

Favorite presidential candidate: Which country?

If I weren't a CIO I would be ... Yellowstone Park Ranger.

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