John W. Thompson, chairman and CEO of Symantec Corporation, has won the Marco Polo Award for his work in promoting Sino-US personnel exchanges and friendship.

Thompson's company actively supports American professional volunteers to work in China, according to the China Association for International Exchange of Personnel (CAIEP), which presented the award on Monday in Beijing.

Named after the Venetian traveler who first promoted friendship and trade between China and the West, the award is given to foreign business leaders for their contributions to Sino-US exchanges of specialists in various fields, and to others for advancing economic and cultural communication between China and the United States.

Thompson led the company to become the global leader in information security for individuals and companies, providing software, appliances and services.

Symantec opened its first China office in Beijing in 1998 and organized a local team. Symantec China now has offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. In June 2004, the company established a service center in Beijing with a team of experts to assist customers with technical problems.

Since its inception in 1987, the Marco Polo Award has been presented to many distinguished Americans. Past recipients include Ralph Larsen, chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson; David Komansky, chairman and CEO of Merrill Lynch; Alex Trotman, chairman and CEO of Ford; Dr. George Fisher, chairman and CEO of Kodak; and former President George H. Bush.

CAIEP is a nationwide, government-sponsored institution engaged in the international exchange of specialized technical and managerial personnel. It promotes exchange and cooperation between China and other countries in industry, agriculture, finance, science and technology, education, medicine and culture through the international exchange of personnel, to contribute to China's reform, opening and modernization as well as to benefit humanity in general.

(China Daily, China.org.cn November 9, 2004)