Yoshiharu Ueki
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
He joined Japan Airlines in June 1975 and served as a captain in the flight crew. He joined the executive ranks in the midst of corporate reorganization proceedings, becoming an Executive Officer in February 2010 and Senior Managing Executive Officer in December that year. It took him two years from becoming an Executive Officer to the presidency; he came from flight operations, with no experience in sales or finance. In a company rebuilding after bankruptcy, someone who knew the front line moved over to the management side.
Selection
In February 2012 he succeeded Masaru Onishi as Representative Director and President. Japan Airlines had filed for corporate reorganization in January 2010 with the support of the Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corporation of Japan, was delisted in February that year, and wiped out shareholders' equity through a 100% capital reduction. In his first year, the fiscal year ended March 2012, ordinary profit was ¥197.7 billion, more than three times the ¥62.8 billion of the FY ended March 2008 before the bankruptcy. The recovery in earnings had been accomplished by his predecessors; what remained was the relisting and running the company afterward.
Initiatives
In September 2012, two years and eight months after filing for corporate reorganization, the company relisted on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Operating profit thereafter held between the ¥160 billion and ¥200 billion levels for six years, at ¥195.2 billion in the fiscal year ended March 2013, ¥209.2 billion in the FY ended March 2016 and ¥174.6 billion in the FY ended March 2018. Revenue also recovered from ¥1,204.8 billion in the FY ended March 2012 to ¥1,383.2 billion in the FY ended March 2018. In 2018, the year he stepped down, the company set up a preparatory company for a medium- and long-haul international low-cost carrier, renamed ZIPAIR Tokyo the following year.
Career
Career
Japan Airlines
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Jun 1975 | Joined |
| Feb 2010 | Executive Officer |
| Dec 2010 | Senior Managing Executive Officer |
| Feb 2012 | Representative Director, President |
| Apr 2018 | Representative Director, Chairman |
| Jun 2018 | Stepped down as President |
| Apr 2020 | Chairman |