Toyota Executive Banto Recounts Akio's Emotional Struggle Over Eleven Years
Last week, Toyota President Akio Toyoda faced a Q&A session at the 116 Ordinary General Shareholders' Meeting. During the session, he addressed a question about the most difficult hardship he has faced during his 11-year tenure, but the precise nature of the hardship was not explicitly detailed.
Operating Officer Koji Kobayashi, who has worked with Akio for more than 30 years and was his supervisor when Akio was younger, mentioned that Akio joined Toyota after working for a non-Japanese company and wanted to become a full-fledged Toyota person quickly. Kobayashi believes that Akio has been fighting against the "big Japan corporation Toyota" throughout his tenure.
Akio Toyoda humbly sought the support of all shareholders, thanking them for their continued trust in him. When a shareholder expressed support, saying "President Toyoda, I don't think that you are by any means alone!", Akio Toyoda was met with a round of applause.
Kobayashi also noted that Akio has mostly lived alone away from home, which is unprecedented at Toyota. He mentioned that there are people who don't try to understand Akio's thinking and resist attempts to change the way they are doing things. Despite these challenges, Kobayashi feels that there will be more people in the company who will come to understand the president.
Kobayashi believes that Akio has the mind of an entrepreneur of a venture business, but thinks that Toyota might be lacking in the strict development of human resources. Akio Toyoda, however, mentioned that he has been able to continue probably because he wanted to experience a passing on of the baton. He committed himself to making Toyota into a company that can conduct a passing on of the baton when it's time to move on to the next generation.
In a bid to ensure transparency and accountability, Kobayashi's title was changed from "representative director and executive vice president" to "Banto", a description of a watchdog executive in pre-modern Japan society. Kobayashi wants to tell all shareholders: "Please don't be worried." He reassured them that Akio Toyoda is constantly fighting against the challenges facing Toyota and is committed to the company's success.
Akio Toyoda, with his entrepreneurial mindset, has faced the challenge of leading Toyota as a business while adapting to the strictures of a large corporation, a battle widely acknowledged by those within the organization. Despite some resistance to his changes, Akio Toyoda's dedication to human resource development and ensuring a smooth transition to the next generation has kept him resilient in his role as Toyota's president.
