Akio Toyoda
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
Born the eldest son of Shoichiro Toyoda, he studied at Keio University's Faculty of Law and earned an MBA from Babson College in 1982. He joined Toyota Motor in April 1984, became a Director in June 2000 and Executive Vice President in June 2005. He also has another face as a driver involved in vehicle development under the name "Morizo." Yet for a member of the founding family, his capital backing is limited. Since listing on the Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka stock exchanges in May 1949, the major shareholders have been corporations such as Toyota Industries and Denso and trust banks, and the Toyoda family as individuals do not rank in the top 10.
Selection
In June 2009 he succeeded Katsuaki Watanabe as President, the first president from the Toyoda family in 14 years since Tatsuro Toyoda stepped down in August 1995. In the fiscal year ended March 2009, the year before he took office, the company was in the red with an operating loss of ¥461.0 billion and a net loss of ¥436.9 billion. The appointment appears to have drawn on the founding family's unifying pull to handle the crisis.
Initiatives
Right after he took office, a massive recall on the order of 10 million vehicles worldwide surfaced, and he set up a Special Committee for Global Quality chaired by the President to rebuild quality assurance. In 2011 he decided to consolidate three affiliates in Tohoku, and Toyota Motor East Japan was launched in July 2012. In 2016 he reorganized the company into in-house companies, management units by vehicle type and technology area. From 2017 onward he built capital alliances with Suzuki, Mazda, Subaru and Isuzu, and began in-house production of automotive batteries through a joint venture with Panasonic.
Career
Career
Toyota Motor
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Apr 1984 | Joined |
| Jun 2000 | Director |
| Jun 2002 | Managing Director |
| Jun 2003 | Senior Managing Director |
| Jun 2005 | Executive Vice President |
| Jun 2009 | President |
| Apr 2023 | Chairman |
| Apr 2023 | Stepped down as President |
Toyota Real Estate
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Jun 2015 | Representative Director, Chairman |