Akira Inoue
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
He joined Nissho in 1960 and became a Director of Tokyo Electron in 1978. He became Managing Director in February 1987 and Senior Managing Director in October of that year, and served as President from December 1990 to June 1996.
Selection
In December 1990 he succeeded Toshio Kotaka as President. In the fiscal year ended September 1990, just before, net sales were ¥190.3 billion and net income ¥9.9 billion. After he took office consolidated net sales fell from ¥197.2 billion in the FY ended March 1992 to ¥153.9 billion in the FY ended March 1993, and net income from ¥8.3 billion to ¥1.7 billion.
Initiatives
In October 1994 the company fully switched its sales of semiconductor production equipment in Europe and the United States from distributors to direct sales through wholly owned local subsidiaries. Leading-edge customers were moving outside Japan, and the channel for reflecting customer needs in products had to be rebuilt. In the United States it moved the headquarters of Tokyo Electron America to Austin, Texas, securing a 200,000-square-meter site and building its first overseas clean room replicating a semiconductor fab environment. In Europe it established Tokyo Electron Europe Ltd. in the United Kingdom in April 1994 as its regional headquarters.
Career
Career
Nissho
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Apr 1960 | Joined |
Tokyo Electron
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| 1978 | Director |
| Feb 1987 | Managing Director |
| Oct 1987 | Senior Managing Director |
| Dec 1990 | President |
| Jun 1996 | Chairman |
| Jun 1996 | Stepped down as President |