Fuji Zerox Co. Chairman Yotaro Kobayashi, the newly appointed chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai), expressed hope Friday that he will be able to give foreigners a clear picture of a changing Japan in his new position.
Kobayashi will replace Jiro Ushio, who currently chairs the major business organization, as well as Ushio Inc., on April 22, starting a two-year term. "In Japan, drastic changes that used to be unthinkable are taking place. Appointing the chairman of a foreign-affiliated company as a leader of Keizai Doyukai is a very clear sign that Japan has changed," Kobayashi told a joint news conference with Ushio.
"We have to explain the fundamental changes in Japanese thinking that cause those small visible changes to people abroad in a way that they can understand us," Kobayashi said.
As reasons to appoint Kobayashi as his successor, Ushio noted that Kobayashi has progressive ideas on corporate management and is the most suitable person to explain present-day Japan to the world.
Kobayashi said that he would make efforts to further promote Ushio's activities, such as raising corporate governance in Japan to international standards and easing or abolishing regulations to revitalize the economy, without losing the "momentum" created by Ushio.