Toyota Picks A Foreigner For The Board

[Mulboyne]

[floatr][/floatr]Forbes: Toyota to appoint US unit president Press as board member
Toyota Motor Corp is likely to appoint Toyota Motor North American president Jim Press as a board member, the first non-Japanese to join its board of directors, the Nikkei business daily reported, without citing sources. The appointment of Press is expected to be approved by the board following a general shareholders meeting in late June, the newspaper said. Press is expected to assume the title of senior managing director, the Nikkei said. Currently, eight executive vice presidents and 12 senior managing directors serve under company president Katsuaki Watanabe.

From a USA Today profile of Press:

..He has cultivated some of the habits of his Japanese bosses, talking slowly and choosing his words carefully. He is unfailingly polite in an industry where talk is often fast, loose and profane. His kids, secretary and other co-workers say they've never seen him blow his cool...He's humble, a trait that's both Japanese and Toyota-like. He frequently stops to chat about basketball with security guard Bobby Patterson, who has gotten to know Press in the past 18 years...[Former bosses] Moran and Jamiesson both credit Press for his ability to understand Japanese ritual and culture, even if not the language. "He can charm the Japanese," Moran says...

[Mulboyne]

Mainichi: Jim Press, first non-Japanese on Toyota board, quits for Chrysler

Jim Press, who became the first non-Japanese on Toyota's board earlier this year, is taking a new job as president at U.S. rival Chrysler, both companies said Thursday. Chrysler LLC Chairman and Chief Executive Robert Nardelli announced the appointment of Press as vice chairman and president, overseeing North American and international sales, global marketing, product strategy and other areas. Press' resignation from his post as president of Toyota Motor Corp.'s North American operations, and from senior managing director at the Japanese manufacturer, will be effective Sept. 14, Toyota said in a release...Departures from top ranks of Japanese companies aren't as unthinkable as they used to be, but jumping to a rival in such a blatant way is still relatively rare, and may be seen here as a kind of betrayal, especially from a foreigner who was bestowed a high-profile promotion. "Toyota has been the centerpiece of my life. This was the most difficult decision I have made," Press said in a statement...Press, who enjoys scuba diving and flying airplanes, joined the Toyota board in June as part of an expansion of the board from 25 to 30 members. He joined Toyota in 1970, after leaving Ford Motor Co. Press' promotion may have symbolized Toyota's hopes for averting a political backlash in the U.S. for its success at a time when U.S. automakers, including Chrysler, are struggling...more...

[Kuang_Grade]

Toyota's hopes for averting a political backlash in the U.S. for its success at a time when U.S. automakers, including Chrysler, are struggling

ehh, that's cutting a bit fine, given that Chrysler was formerly owned by a German company and is now owned by an international hedge fund. The only thing that makes Chrysler different than the J carmakers in the US is that they have factory workers under United Auto Worker (UAW) contracts. I've been a bit surprised by levels of Toyota's efforts to play down its success in the US...while there has been some grumbling about the yen/$ rate, it is not like Toyota is flooding the market with below cost goods, the problem is that US automakers product mix has been poor, given the current levels of gasoline prices...Granted there is no money in running ads telling Detroit to suck it, but Toyota seems to acting like it is embarrassed by its success.

It will be interesting to see how Chrysler and the UAW will workout together...Given Nardelli's previous performance, I don't now how well rank and file union members are going to cotton up to him and the rest of Cerberus' management team, esp. since this #2 is not coming from a company with a track record with the UAW.

[gkanai]

Press leaving Toyota is a big, big deal. (I know because I used to work there.)

It is a big risk for Press to take on turning around Chrysler, but I'm sure Cerberus Capital will end up paying Press in a few years at Chrysler more than he would have ever been able to make at Toyota. It was absolutely the right move for Press.

[Mulboyne]

From here:

Mizuho's Kawai speculated that money may have driven Press into Chrysler's hands. "I guess what he can earn with struggling Chrysler is many times better than as a senior managing director at Toyota," he said. Chrysler did not reveal how much Press would be paid, but his salary and benefits are likely to be lucrative, while Toyota is famous for the comparatively frugal level of its executive compensation.

As Gen said, it is probably true that Jim Press will get a better financial package at Chrysler but he worked with Toyota for 37 years so it isn't exactly as if he's been shopping himself around.

Ironically, it may well have been his promotion to the board that helped tip the balance. It will have raised his profile in the industry and made him a more attractive hire for a senior role elsewhere while also showing Press that he'd gone as far as he could go with his current job. Becoming a board member is the ultimate goal of most ambitious Japanese executives but the real benefits only accrue if you are Japanese: status, expense account, access to corporate facilities and a healthy pension allowance. Press wasn't about to send his kids off to an exclusive Japanese school and probably hadn't planned to use private clubs and golf courses in Japan during his retirement.

The question Toyota has to ask now they have lost a 37-year veteran is whether they have a succession of 35, 30, 25, 20 and 15 year U.S. veterans to step up. In my experience, this is rarely the case at most Japanese companies. They pick a guy they like and put all their eggs in one basket.

[Kuang_Grade]

Got around to reading my wall street journals from last week and the piece they have says that while he's president, he's not going to be handling any of the production side of things....

Mr. Press will report to Mr. Nardelli, as will Mr. LaSorda. Chrysler spokesman Jason Vines said Messrs. Press and LaSorda will split duties that a traditional president would oversee. Mr. Press will be responsible for sales and marketing, product strategy, and service and parts. Mr. LaSorda, who had been CEO of Chrysler, will continue to be in charge of manufacturing, procurement and supply and other issues.

Mr. LaSorda will also continue to lead crucial talks with the United Auto Workers union to negotiate a new contract. In the talks, which kicked off in July, Chrysler is hoping to win cost-saving measures that would immediately boost its cash flow, such as the same health-benefit concessions General Motors Corp. and Ford got from the union in 2005, as well as the flexibility to outsource more jobs.

[Mulboyne]

Wired: Jim Press "Clarifies" Outburst that Japanese Government Paid to Develop Prius

Perhaps the allegations wouldn't have seemed so inflammatory, but Chrysler's vice chairman and president Jim Press is, after all, a former Toyota board member and career executive with the Japanese auto giant for more than 30 years. Early this week, he claimed that the Japanese government "paid for 100 percent of the development of the battery and hybrid system that went into the Toyota Prius." Cerberus spokespeople have since, well, backpedaled. "He referenced the close cooperation between the Japanese government and the Japanese industry. He said the Japanese government strongly supported R&D investment in battery development, and the Prius and other Japanese models benefited from that investment in industry," according to company officials...more...

[Takechanpoo]

Wired: Jim Press "Clarifies" Outburst that Japanese Government Paid to Develop Prius

Totally ridicurous
At first nobody think there is such a demand for hybrid car.
And our stupid J-bureaucrats have no foresight.

[Greji]

Totally ridicurous
At first nobody think there is such a demand for hybrid car.
And our stupid J-bureaucrats have no foresight.

Very astute point Take, I totally agree!

[Mulboyne]

Reuters: Unpaid bills mount for top Chrysler executive

One of the best-known auto industry executives in the world has fallen on hard times. Jim Press, who briefly ran Toyota Motor Corp.'s U.S. operations and spent 37 years with the Japanese automaker before joining Chrysler as one of its three top executives in 2007, is facing claims of more than $1.35 million for unpaid federal taxes and a personal loan. The 62-year-old auto executive, who told the New York Times last year he wore a single string on one wrist as a reminder that material wealth is not the most important thing, may be one of the highest profile victims of Detroit's collapse. Press blamed the elimination of bonuses at Chrysler for his failure to pay back the personal loan. Chrysler went into a U.S. government-financed bankruptcy earlier this year in a deal that gave management control to Italy's Fiat SpA.

The distressed state of the Detroit area housing market, which has been hit hard by the U.S. housing bust and the auto industry's troubles, may be adding to his problems. Press, known to be an avid swimmer, and his wife, Suwichada Busamrong Press, purchased a multimillion-dollar, 6,900-square-foot luxury home in the Detroit suburb of Birmingham in June 2008, taking out a $2.2 million mortgage with ING Bank, records show. The couple, who have put the six-bedroom mansion up for sale at $3.15 million, now face a tax lien against the property for just over $947,000 related to unpaid income taxes for 2007, according to a filing in late August. Press has also been sued by a California credit union for failing to repay $406,000 on a loan dating back to his time at Toyota, court records show. "No comment," Press said in an email to Reuters. "Thank you for your interest." The lawsuit and tax lien against Press were first reported by The Detroit News on Friday.

BONUS REQUEST DENIED

Press was the only member of Chrysler's senior leadership team to remain with the company after it completed a fast-track bankruptcy backed by $10 billion in federal funding in June. His immediate future at Chrysler is unclear. Two people briefed on the matter said in late August that Press had conveyed plans to leave Chrysler by November. Documents filed with an Oakland County court and the county register of deeds appear to show how Chrysler's deepening financial problems corresponded with a liquidity crunch for one of its most visible and highly regarded executives. Late last year, with credit markets in a tailspin and Chrysler seeking a federal bailout, Press was forced to plead with a credit union for forbearance on a personal loan. That loan totaled over $800,000, and he missed repayments in November 2008 and in February this year totaling more than $400,000. "Due to the turmoil in the automobile industry and uncertainty surrounding our ownership, my request for bonus payment was denied," Press said in a letter to the Western Federal Credit Union that was included as an exhibit in a lawsuit against him. "I am not able to make the November and February payments due to the elimination of bonuses which was just announced by my company," Press said in his letter.

Press told the credit union, which took on the unsecured personal loan when it bought Toyota Federal Credit Union, that he had tried to obtain loans at his two current banks and sought to refinance his house without success. "I am attempting to arrange for a loan against my future bonus with my employer which would allow me to pay this loan off," Press said then. The lawsuit was filed June 30 in Oakland County Circuit Court. "We are simply pursuing our contractual rights to collect on a loan that was made to Mr. Press some time ago for which other collection efforts have been exhausted," Western Federal said in a statement. No one answered the door on Friday at the mansion in Birmingham, Michigan, and it appeared to be empty, as was the circular driveway, which was flanked by pink and white flowers. The lawn was well-tended. A statue of a dog sat on the porch.

'WHAT'S IMPORTANT IN LIFE'

Press said he wanted to restore an American icon when he joined Chrysler, but his term at the No. 3 U.S. automaker corresponded with deepening financial problems, stalled product development efforts and a controversial decision to slash Chrysler dealerships. During his career at Toyota, Press became the first non-Japanese person elected to Toyota's board of directors. The Kansas native was known for a soft-spoken manner that seemed a perfect match for the self-effacing style of corporate Japan. At Chrysler, however, Press ran into criticism from the automaker's struggling dealers for what many saw as an attempt to get them to take on more inventory than they could afford just on the cusp of the automaker's bankruptcy. Divorced with four grown children, Press married his Thai-born wife in 2006 just as his career at Toyota was winding down. In last year's interview with the New York Times, Press said, in reference to the string on his wrist: "This is actually from my wife's grandfather. It reminds you that in life, you just need enough to get along. What's important in life isn't what you have, but how you live."