Toyota Motor : Akio Toyoda Reflects on Toyota's Growth Over His 12-year Presidency

Akio

Ever since joining the company, I have always been treated as a minority because I'm from the founding family. I think I have spent my corporate life in a very lonely environment.

What gradually became stronger and more prominent within me after I became president were my notion that 'nothing good comes from confrontation' and my desire to be useful to others and to work for the sake of others.

However, I also believe that I was able to continue as president for 12 years because of various crises. One by one, we have dealt with major crises that are said to occur only once in 100 years, such as our fall into the red due to the global financial crisis, followed by the recall crisis, U.S. Congressional hearings, and Great East Japan Earthquake.

I believe that it is precisely due to these crises that both I and Toyota have been able to survive to this day. And it is precisely due to these crises that more and more Toyota members started to listen to my words and to try to change themselves.

During the past 12 years of an uncharted world, my colleagues and I have tirelessly taken action and faced reality together with those in the genba based on our mission of determining how Toyota should be.

Not all of the actions we took during this period in a daily struggle to survive were correct or successful. We experienced countless failures and made countless mistakes.

But it is because I, together with my colleagues, took action, that our failures came to light, upon which we stopped and also took steps to improve. This is what has allowed us to take in the scenery that we can see today.

The support by our shareholders over the years has enabled us to enjoy this scenery together with all of you.

Although it was just a coincidence that our share price exceeded 10,000 yen the day just before this ordinary general shareholders' meeting, I feel as if we had been given a push in the run-up to today's meeting.