Takanobu Ito to be Honda’s new CEO

Japan based Honda Motor Company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mr. Takeo Fukui will be stepping down in June 2009 to hand over the company’s reins to Mr. Takanobu Ito, who is currently the Senior Managing Director. Ito’s career trajectory has been strikingly similar to that of Mr. Fukui, moving from R&D to Senior Management, leading many people to speculate early on that he would be stepping into Fukui’s shoes at some point. Mr. Fukui (64) who has been Honda’s CEO for the past 6 years said that the company needed someone young like Ito (55) to overcome the current economic downturn.

Thanks to its cautious approach, Honda  has so far managed to deal with the economic crisis in a far more effective manner than other Japanese car companies like Toyota and Nissan. Mr. Fukui pulled out of Formula One racing last year when no serious buyer emerged for the team and channeled the funds to the development of a new generation of cars. He also refrained from building a car factory in Russia unlike rivals, at a time when sales were at their peak.