ST. LOUIS – Hiroyuki Yoshimoto becomes the first person in the 45-year-old history of the Kyoto-based multinational manufacturer of electric motors to hold the position as Nidec's new president. He succeeds the company’s founder Shigenobu Nagamori.
The appointment, announced on Feb. 15, was approved on June 20 at the 45th regular general meeting of shareholders and a subsequent meeting of the board of directors.
Nagamori will remain at the helm of the company, together with the new president and COO Yoshimoto, as chairman and CEO.
"I have no intention of resigning yet, but the time has come to share the responsibility of managing a company group that now operates in 43 countries and continues to grow. At first, Yoshimoto will take over about 30 percent of my responsibilities. Ten percent of my time will go toward chairing the board of Kyoto Gakuen Educational Foundation that manages Kyoto Gakuen University, where I will develop the next generation of talented engineers, but I will dedicate the remaining 90 percent to Nidec. As a result the ‘management power’ of the company will actually increase to 120 percent (90 percent + 30 percent)," Nagamori said at a press conference held in Kyoto.
"Yoshimoto is young and ambitious and his management style and methods are similar to my own. Shortly after joining Nidec he managed to turn around Nidec Tosok, a struggling subsidiary, in a single year and significantly boost the growth of Nidec Corporation’s automotive business in under two years.”
Nidec has a history of acquiring and turning around underperforming companies, and Yoshimoto outlined his ambition to further boost the growth of the company group by focusing on post-merger integration.
"I do not intend to change a winning formula," he said at the press conference. “On the contrary, I will stay true to Nagamori’s methods and thoroughly infuse the Nidec spirit into the newly acquired businesses through hands-on management.” Yoshimoto also stated his vision for Nidec to become a globally respected company group that each employee can take pride in being a part of.