Congratulations to recent electrical and computer engineering PhD graduate, Lizhi Liao, whose research has earned him international recognition. Liao’s final thesis paper, Early Detection of Performance Regressions by Bridging Local Performance Data and Architectural Models, has been awarded the ACM Special Interest Group on Software Engineering (SIGSOFT) Distinguished Paper Award. He will receive this prestigious honor at the upcoming 2025 International Conference on Software Engineering (ICSE), the premier conference in the field.
Now an Assistant Professor at Memorial University, Liao continues to make strides in advancing software performance engineering. Reflecting on his research journey, he shared insights into the inspiration behind his award-winning work.
“One of the biggest challenges in software engineering today is ensuring software performance before it is delivered to users,” Liao explained. “Through our research and industrial experience, we found that performance testing consumes a significant amount of time and resources. Traditional methods often occur late in the development cycle, making it difficult to address performance issues efficiently.”
Liao’s award-winning paper presents a groundbreaking approach to improving software performance testing.
“Our work is the first to integrate insights from small-scale performance testing data into software architecture models,” he said. “This enables developers to detect performance issues early in the software development phase, preventing major problems in the production environment.”
Unlike conventional testing methods, which typically occur after system integration and deployment, Liao’s approach proactively identifies issues. This innovative strategy reduces the time and resources required for performance testing and offers a promising solution to addressing software performance regressions in today’s fast-paced development landscape.
Choosing Waterloo for research excellence
Liao attributes much of his success to his time at Waterloo.
“Waterloo has a strong focus on software engineering and fosters strong industry connections,” he said. “The program provided me with the opportunity to work with leading experts, particularly my PhD supervisor, Dr. Weiyi Shang. The resources and support available at Waterloo allowed me to explore real-world challenges and develop practical solutions.”
Shaping the future of software engineering
Liao’s PhD experience has had a lasting impact on his approach to both research and teaching.
“My PhD taught me to focus on real-world problems and think critically about how research can solve challenges in software development,” he noted. “As a professor, I strive to connect theory with practical applications, encouraging students to apply what they learn in hands-on projects.”
The transition from PhD student to faculty member has been both exciting and rewarding for Liao.
“I now have more freedom to define my research direction and mentor students,” he said. “Balancing research, teaching, and other responsibilities has been a learning process, but it’s fulfilling to guide students and contribute to the field of software engineering.”
The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering congratulates Dr. Liao on this well-deserved recognition and looks forward to his continued contributions to the field.