Key facts
- Hiroshi Okuda, former Chairman of Toyota Motor Corp., died at age 93.
- Okuda was an outsider to the founding Toyoda family, a rarity in the company's leadership.
- He led Toyota as president from 1995, implementing a strategy to increase overseas production.
- This strategy contributed to a significant rise in global sales.
- Okuda was a key figure in the development and market launch of the Toyota Prius.
- He also served as chairman of the Keidanren business lobby.
Hiroshi Okuda, a transformative figure who steered Toyota Motor Corp. to global prominence and was one of the few leaders from outside the founding family, has died at the age of 93, according to Kyodo News. Okuda's tenure as president, beginning in 1995, was marked by a strategic shift towards international production bases to counter a strong yen and declining exports, a move that significantly boosted sales.
During his leadership, Okuda championed the development and early market introduction of the revolutionary Prius hybrid vehicle in 1997. He was also known for his outspoken nature, notably criticizing the appointment of Akio Toyoda, the founder's grandson, to a leadership position, calling it nepotism and suggesting that family members needed to prove their worth rather than inherit positions.
Born in 1932 to a wealthy family that owned a regional stockbroker, Okuda joined Toyota's accounting department in 1955. He rose through the ranks, becoming known for his integrity and comprehensive managerial perspective, which he attributed to his early work confronting opaque transactions. He became Toyota's first non-Toyoda president in nearly three decades.
Okuda's strategic vision, "Vision 2005," aimed to reduce reliance on exports by increasing local production, a strategy that saw overseas sales more than double and global sales increase by 67% within a decade. His chairmanship of Toyota concluded in 2006. Beyond Toyota, Okuda also served as chairman of the influential Keidanren business lobby from 2002 to 2006 and led the Japan Bank for International Cooperation for approximately a year starting in 2012.