BS People: Yoshiyuki Matsumoto

Honda tweaks India leadership

To oversee the rapid ramp-up of India operations, Japanese auto major Honda Motor Company (HMC) has changed its global organisation structure. Yoshiyuki Matsumoto, the managing officer of the company, has been given the additional charge of vice-president of Asian Honda Motor and president and CEO of Honda Motor India.

Matsumoto will be based out of India and head all Honda companies in the country. In his new role, Matsumoto would be responsible for planning and developing Honda's new vehicles, five in all, that the company plans to launch in Asia, including India, in the next five years. Among its new products would be diesel variants of sedans and utility vehicles, a new category that Honda is trying to gain a foothold in.

The appointment comes on the heels of HMC announcing an investment of Rs 2,500 crore to double its manufacturing capacity in India to 240,000 units annually, to set up a diesel engine manufacturing unit and a forging plant at Tapukara in Rajasthan.

Matsumoto, who has been with HMC for over three decades, has worked across various departments including research & design and production. In April 2006, he was assigned the responsibility for HMC's automobile products and operations and was soon after made the operating officer. In April 2009, he became the general manager of HMC's factory in Suzuka, Japan. He was made the executive in-charge for automobile operations for sub-compact models in 2011 and promoted to managing officer in 2012.