Acknowledgment

I would like to express my sincere gratitude towards all the people who had offered me

generous help and advice. It’s been a long and inspiring journey and without any of

these people I couldn’t have made it. First, it is my huge privilege to be advised by xxxx.

xxxx is generous and knowledgeable. He has been very supportive of me throughout

my PhD study at xxxx. Over the years we have gone through the hard times together

and worked through numerous versions of the paper. xxxx guided me through the

darkness, just like the North Star and exposed me to the vast sea of knowledge.

Second, I would like to thank xxxx, xxxx and xxxx for serving on my student research

committee. They have been very concerned with my progress and initiated very helpful

discussion. They definitely broadened my horizon about technology management and

offered me a much wider perspective. I would also like to thank xxxx along with xxxx

and xxxx, whom I have closely collaborated with and offered tons of helpful suggestions

on my thesis. It is fortunate of me to have two knowledgeable and life-time friends. In

addition to my academic advisors and collaborators, I would like to pay special thanks to

the staff of xxxx. It was not a easy journey for me and I experienced major setback in

my 3rd year that I had to take a quarter off. In the final phase of my study, I almost burnt

out and felt like dying. The staff, especially xxxx has been a constant source of

psychological support. Last but not least, my family has been very encouraging during

this journey. No words can express how grateful I am to my parents.