Sylvia Xihui Liu
Assistant Dean (Academic Programmes), Associate Professor
Specialism Leader of MDes Innovative Business Design (IBD), Deputy Program Leader of Master of Technology Entrepreneurship (MTE)
- V702b
- +852 2766 5447
- xihuiliu@polyu.edu.hk
- Expertise: Design management capability, design policy, design-driven entrepreneurship, integrated design thinking
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Research GateBiography
With a wealth of industrial experience in design and management and a PhD degree in Design, Dr. Liu focuses on managing design in a business context. In 2020, her research impact case was evaluated as 4-stars in Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2020. During her years in PolyU, she has published 17 peer-reviewed journal papers, 11 conference papers, 3 books and 15 book chapters. The most significant outcome of her research is the Design Management Capability Framework, which had significantly influenced the making of China’s two main innovation policies at the national level: the “Innovation Design” section of Made in China 2025 and the 2016 Action Plan for Digital Creative Industries in the 13th Five Year Plan.
She served the communities widely as the founding member of the China Design Research Colloquium, delivering over 16 talks to the public and as the jury of 16 design competitions.
Education and Academic Qualifications
- PhD, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
- Master of Arts, Jiangnan University
- Bachelor of Engineering, Nanjing University of Science & Technology
Academic and Professional Experience
Academic experience
- 02/2013 - 06/2019
Research Assistant Professor, School of Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic University
- 11/2011 - 01/2013
Visiting Assistant Professor, School of Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic University
- 2017 - 2020
Visiting Professor, School of Design Art & Media, Nanjing University of Science & Technology
- 2017-present
Visiting Professor, School of Design & Art, Beijing Institute of Technology, Zhuhai
- 2011 - 2016
Postdoctoral Fellow of Management Science & Engineering, College of Economics & Management, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Professional experience
- 2002 - 2007
Design Manager & Co-founder, NOVA Design, Shanghai, China
- 2000 - 2002
Product Designer & Design Researcher, Zuki Design, Tsingtao, China
- 1997 - 1998
Marketing Planner, Golden Eagle Group, Nanjing, China
Teaching Area
- Design Entrepreneurship
- Final Year Project
- Managing Value Creation
- Design Research Method for PhD studies
- Multidisciplinary Project
- Reflective Capstone Thesis
Research Outputs
Das, B., & Liu, X.H. (2025). Overcoming trust barriers in RDCM: the efficacy of psychographic co-design in qualitative data collection. CoDesign, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/15710882.2025.2494098
Liu, X.H. & Cheng, P. (2024). Transforming mature design management to better firm performance: The importance of top management involvement. Design Studies, 95, 101276. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2024.101276
Ning, W., & Liu, X.H. (2024). Policy-making for creative industries in China: A case study of design policy. Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art, 11(1), 107-113. https://doi.org/10.1386/jcca_00099_7
Liu, X.H., Liu, S., Zhang, M., & de Bont, C. (2022). The holistic frame of designing smart, connected products: A systematic literature review and expert interview. The Design Journal, 25(3), 334-352. https://doi.org/10.1080/14606925.2022.2058448
Liu, X. H. (2021). Barriers to Bringing Design Function into Technology Start-ups: A Survey on Incubation Programme of Hong Kong Science Park, The Design Journal. 24(5), 807-828. https://doi.org/10.1080/14606925.2021.1959120
Liu, X. H., & Rieple, A. (2019). Design management capability in entrepreneurship: A case study of Xiaomi. International Journal of Design, 13(3), 125-138.
Liu, X. H., Liu, H., & Zhang, Y. (2018). The New Role of Design in Innovation: A Policy Perspective from China. The Design Journal, 21(1), 37-58. https://doi.org/10.1080/14606925.2017.1395167
Liu, X. H., & de Bont, C. (2017). Barriers to Strategic Design: A Perspective from China. She Ji: the Journals of Design, Economics and Innovation, 3(2), 133-145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sheji.2017.09.003
de Bont, C. & Liu, X. H. (2017). Breakthrough innovation through design education: Perspectives of design-led innovators. Design Issues, 33(2), 18-30. https://doi.org/10.1162/DESI_a_00437
Liu, X. H. (2016). Innovation design: Made in China 2025. Design Management Review, 27(1), 52-58. https://doi.org/10.1111/drev.10349
For more research outputs, please refer to PolyU Scholar Hub.
Projects
| PI, General Research Fund (GRF), Managing Design in the Turbulent Business Context: A study on the updated capability model of design management in Hong Kong and GBA tech start-ups. 2026-28, $576,120 PI, General Research Fund (GRF), Opportunities, challenges and emotional values when plaxing shops in repurposed building. 2024-25. $643,000 PI, Chinese Academy of Engineering, A Study on International Cooperation Path of Manufacturing in the ‘One Belt One Road’ Initiative, 2017–2021, $220 924 PI, Public Policy Research (PPR) scheme, Made in China 2025: The Challenges and Opportunities of the Hong Kong Design Industry, 2018–2019, $501 070 PI, Chinese Mechanical Engineering Society, Innovation of Chinese Small and Medium-Sized Manufacturing Enterprise (SME) Brands, 2014-2015, $88 369 PI, School Collaborative Project, Design-Driven Entrepreneurship: A Translational Mechanism by Visual Thinking to Align Stakeholders and Explore Opportunities, 2021-2023, $300 000
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Awards
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Publications
Liu, X. H. (2020) Chapter author In Y. Lu, Y. Pan, & Z. Xu (Eds.) Innovative Design of Manufacturing (pp. 1–19). Springer Tracts in Mechanical Engineering. Springer.
Innovation Design Research Team. (2017). Innovative design of manufacturing. Shanghai Jiao Tong University Press. [製造業創新設計.上海交通大學出版社].
Liu, X. H. (2015). Design management. Beijing University Press. [設計管理. 北京大學出版社].
Liu, X. H. (2015). China Good Design: Case study on the path of innovative design in enterprise. China Science and Technology Press. [中國好設計:企業創新設計路徑案例研究.中國科學技術出版社].
Chen, Q., & Liu, X. H. (2010). Design management: Theory and practice. Beijing Institute of Technology Press. [設計管理理論與實務.北京理工大學出版社].
