Katsumi Yasuda
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
Born in Yamaguchi Prefecture in 1913, he graduated from the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Agriculture in March 1936 and joined Sumitomo Goshi Kaisha that April. Sumitomo headquarters' forestry office was split into six companies in February 1948, and two of them, Shikoku Ringyo and Toho Norin, merged in February 1955 to form Sumitomo Forestry. Yasuda became a Director in February 1955, the same month the company was formed, and Managing Director in November 1957. He had joined Sumitomo Goshi Kaisha and had never joined Sumitomo Forestry itself.
Selection
In June 1966 he became President from the post of Managing Director, 11 years after joining the board in February 1955 and eight and a half years after becoming Managing Director in November 1957. The officer listing at the time was filled with directors who had come from Sumitomo Goshi Kaisha, Sumitomo headquarters, Sumitomo Besshi Mining, Sumitomo Mining and Sumitomo Chemical, while officers who had joined from Shikoku Ringyo or Toho Norin were few. Within a board made up of people from Sumitomo companies, the appointment appears to have been a step-by-step rise of a founding director.
Initiatives
Net sales grew 2.2-fold from ¥56.7 billion in the fiscal year ended September 1970 to ¥127.4 billion in FY ended September 1974. In May 1970 the company listed its shares on the Second Section of the Osaka Securities Exchange, and that September it established PT. Kutai Timber Indonesia in Indonesia and acquired a majority of the shares of Hamada Sangyo. Overseas timber operations and a public listing were added to the housing materials manufacturing and housing development begun in 1964. In November 1974 he stepped back to Chairman, and in May 1976 he became Director and senior adviser.
Career
Career
Sumitomo
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Apr 1936 | Joined |
Sumitomo Forestry
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Feb 1955 | Director |
| Nov 1957 | Managing Director |
| Jun 1966 | President |
| Nov 1974 | Chairman |
| May 1976 | Director, Senior Advisor |