Nissan Motor has picked executive officer Hideyuki Sakamoto as a candidate for the board of directors, the company stated on Friday, after the surprise resignation of vice-chief operating officer Jun Seki previously this week.
Sakamoto, who became an executive officer in June and has been an executive vice president since 2014, is accountable for manufacturing and supply chain management at the Japanese automaker. Nissan will hold a shareholder meeting on February 18, where his appointment will be one of the proposals submitted for approval, it stated in a press release.
The automaker did not state if Sakamoto would take on Seki’s responsibilities.
Nissan needs stability as it prepares for its poorest yearly profit in 11 years amid declining sales in the United States and China, its biggest markets. The company is also trying to fix their ties with top shareholder and alliance partner Renault SA, which degraded after the ouster of former CEO Carlos Ghosn a year ago.
The sudden departure of Seki, part of Nissan’s recently appointed three-person leadership team and the executive charged with heading the recovery plan, sent the automaker’s shares to an eight-year low on Wednesday. Seki will join motor-maker Nidec as president.
Seki, Chief Executive Makoto Uchida, and Chief Operating Officer Ashwani Gupta officially started their task from December 1, but they failed to immediately according to sources. Renault is set to name a new CEO in the near future as well.
Nissan’s top ranks have seen unusual changes several times in the 13 months since Ghosn’s arrest on charges of financial misconduct, a charge he denies. Hiroto Saikawa resigned as CEO in September following his own admission to have been improperly overpaid.
Nissan started on its wide-ranging restructuring plan in April, trying to draw a line under the costly expansion continued by Ghosn. It plans to cut nearly one-tenth of its workforce and slash global vehicle production by 10% through 2023.
Nissan, Renault, and third partner Mitsubishi Motors have to take advantage of their alliance as automakers worldwide ramp up spending on new technologies such as electrification and autonomous driving.
