HCIL gets new President & CEO, Katsushi Inoue
There has been a few management changes at Honda Cars India (HCIL) this month. Replacing Hironori Kanayama, Katsushi Inoue has been appointed the President and Chief Executive Officer of HCIL, with effect from April 1, 2015, while Hiroyuki Shimizu’s new designation will be Senior Vice President and Director, Marketing and Sales at HCIL.
Kanayama’s replacement, Inoue, has been with Honda Motor Co., Ltd. for over 29 years, having served as the General Manager in the Marketing Planning office at the manufacturer’s Japanese headquarters in his last assignment. With global experience at Honda in markets like in Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, UK, Poland and Germany, Inoue’s expertise will be a valuable asset in HCIL’s expansion plans.
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On the left: Katsushi Inoue, President and CEO, HCIL[/caption]
Meanwhile, Hironori Kanayama has effectively retired from Honda and will be moving back to Japan. His 3 year tenure as HCIL head saw Honda bring its first diesel, the 1.5 i-DTEC, to the country, launch new products like the Amaze compact sedan, Mobilio MPV and the 4th gen City, and increase its operating field from 10 per cent in 2012 to the current 51 per cent. In addition, the period between 2012 and 2015 also saw the start of operations at Honda’s Tapukara plant in Rajasthan, increasing production capacity to 2,40,000 units/ annum between the two plants. HCIL also witnessed significant expansion in its dealer network from 135 outlets in 83 cities (in March 2012) to 232 facilities in 152 cities (in March 2015) by focusing on existing & newer Tier III markets.
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On the left: Hiroyuki Shimizu, Sr. Vice President and Director, Marketing & Sales, HCIL[/caption]
The second appointment this month, Hiroyuki Shimizu, takes over from the current Sr. Vice President and Director, Marketing & Sales — Shigeru Yamazaki, who has held the position since April 2012. Shimizu has also had an extensive 25 year history at the Japanese brand, serving as Director and Vice President in Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co., Ltd. The man he replaces, Yamazaki, will be placed at the Japan headquarters and will be responsible for Automobile Operations Business Planning in Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
