New Delhi:
The country’s largest automaker, Maruti Suzuki India (MSI), said on Thursday it has appointed Hisashi Takeuchi as its new general manager and CEO with effect from April 1, 2022.
The company’s board of directors, in its meeting on Thursday, has appointed Takeuchi as general manager and CEO effective April 1, following the completion of Kenichi Ayukawa’s term on March 31, 2022, MSI said in a statement.
To facilitate a smooth transition, Ayukawa will be appointed as a full-time director until September 30, 2022 as Executive Vice Chairman and will continue to supervise the auto major, it added.
The appointments are subject to shareholder approval, MSI noted.
Takeuchi joined Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) in 1986.
With extensive experience in the international operations at SMC and in overseas markets, he has been on the board of directors of Maruti Suzuki since July 2019, as Joint Managing Director (Commercial) since April 2021.
“I thank the Board of Directors for the confidence they have placed in me. Maruti Suzuki is a great organization with a rich legacy and my ambition will be to continue to serve more and more customers, both in India and around the world, with exciting cars that perform well. for them, the environment and society. We will also try to build our business in a way that strengthens Atma-Nirbhar Bharat and the economic growth of India,” he stated.
Ayukawa, who has served as the company’s general manager and CEO since April 2013, called his period both challenging and rewarding.
“India is one of the most interesting and promising automotive markets in the world and it has been both a challenging and fulfilling period for me. Takeuchi has an excellent understanding of both the Indian and international markets and is well placed to lead Maruti Suzuki in the future. I wish him a successful journey forward,” he said.
The automaker, whose market share in the roughly 30-lakh-strength (by volume) domestic passenger vehicle segment has fallen to 45 percent this year from 48 percent last year, is looking to fill in the gaps in the various sub-segments that have emerged in the SUV space in recent years. years.