Tatsuro Toyoda
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
Born the second son of Kiichiro Toyoda, he graduated from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Engineering and joined Toyota Motor Sales in March 1953. He also completed business school at New York University. He built his career at the sales company and became Managing Director at the July 1982 merger of the manufacturing and sales companies, Senior Managing Director in 1986 and Executive Vice President in 1988. Yet for a member of the founding family his capital backing was thin. As of November 1974, the top 10 shareholders were banks, life insurers, Toyoda Automatic Loom Works and Toyota Motor Sales, and the Toyoda family as individuals were not among them.
Selection
In September 1992, as his elder brother Shoichiro Toyoda stepped back to Chairman, he moved up from Executive Vice President to President. Following Eiji and Shoichiro, he was another president from the founding family, extending a 25-year run since 1967 of Toyodas at the top. When he took office, the domestic passenger car market was shrinking after the bubble burst, and the product lineup had not kept up with popular models from rivals such as Honda's Odyssey multipurpose vehicle. Criticism that the long run of management headed by the Toyoda family was delaying decisions also grew stronger in this period.
Initiatives
His three years in office were a period of carrying on the overseas course laid down in the previous term. In North America, the Kentucky plant established in 1986 had entered full production in October 1988; in 1989 the luxury brand Lexus was launched in North America, and in December that year a production company was set up in the United Kingdom, extending local production to Europe. At home, Toyota Motor Kyushu, established in February 1991, was added. Meanwhile, in December 1994 the share of domestic registered vehicles fell below 40% for the first time in 11 years, and rebuilding the product lineup was left to the next generation.
Career
Career
Toyota Motor Sales
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Mar 1953 | Joined |
Toyota Motor
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Jul 1982 | Managing Director |
| 1986 | Senior Managing Director |
| 1988 | Executive Vice President |
| Sep 1992 | President |
| Aug 1995 | Director, Vice Chairman |
| Aug 1995 | Stepped down as President |