The Yomiuri Shimbun

Toyota Motor Corp. President Koji Sato announced on Friday that Operating Officer Kenta Kon will take his place as President and CEO on April 1. Sato will leave these positions to assume the roles of vice chairman and chief industry officer $(CIO)$ -- a newly established job -- on April 1, allowing him to focus specifically on the industrial sector of the business.

"This is a change in formation that will let us put all our efforts toward addressing the management challenges Toyota is facing," Sato said at a press conference in Tokyo on Friday, explaining the reasons for the executive reshuffle.

Sato identified two of the company's key management challenges. For one, he said: "Toyota is at a critical juncture in enhancing its earning power to support the future. We are shifting gears to pursue improved productivity and the creation of high-quality, affordable vehicles."

The second challenge he highlighted was: "To strengthen the international competitiveness of the automotive industry, the entire sector must unite to find a winning strategy for Japan. Collaboration with partners beyond our own industry is essential, and the role (automotive companies) play within the (Japanese) industrial sector is growing." Sato has served as chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) since January.

The board of directors reviewed a proposal from an executive appointment committee and finalized the decision on Friday. Sato expressed positive expectations for Kon, stating: "He is well-versed in finance and accounting, having also served as CFO of Woven by Toyota Inc. (a subsidiary developing cutting-edge technologies), and has driven reforms with an external perspective. We expect him to demonstrate leadership and advance initiatives that will be good for the company as a whole."

When it was suggested that three years was a short term for a company president, Sato only responded, "I think it is short, but the automotive industry doesn't move at a gentle pace, and timeframes are no longer what they used to be."

Kon said: "I was shocked when I heard about it (his promotion to president) from the board members on the executive appointment committee around mid-January. My mind went blank. As of today, I'm still not sure what I'm going to do. I want to consult with the Chairman (Akio Toyoda), President Sato and other members to consider what direction and what (management) we will go with from April."

Regarding his experience at Woven by Toyota, Kon said: "There are a lot of young people at Woven, and, since it's a software company, it employs agile development methods different from those used in hardware (development). The experience of seeing things from a location removed from Toyota Motors was significant."

He added: "Toyota employees are hardworking and possess a strong sense of mission, backed by accumulated experience. However, even when attempting new things, they tend to think along the lines of how things have previously been done. To do new things, we must also adopt different approaches."

When asked about management philosophy, Kon explained: "Team Toyota remains unchanged. It's not about a lone superman; it's about everyone working together to improve. Team management means everyone is involved in building great cars and making this a great mobility company. We want to keep doing this without wavering."

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This article is from The Yomiuri Shimbun. Neither Dow Jones Newswires, MarketWatch, Barron's nor The Wall Street Journal were involved in the creation of this content.

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February 06, 2026 05:03 ET (10:03 GMT)

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