Whoa. This recession/depression is really serious. The Sony Corporation as they prepare for a record fiscal loss drastically restructures their management as well as their business sectors for their soon-to-arrive new fiscal year. Starting April 1st of this year, Welsh-born Sony Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Sir Howard Stringer also takes over as President of the company replacing Dr. Ryoji Chubachi who will now command the role of Vice Chairman of Sony Corp. overseeing product safety and quality as well as Sony's environmental policies. Dr. Chubachi will stay on as a member of Sony's Board of Directors and keep the role of Representative Corporate Executive Officer in order to assist Sir Stringer where needed. Sir Stringer commands the overall strategic direction of the company as he directly oversees their electronics division, the root of the entire corporation and its largest business sector.
Also on the same date, Sony will combine Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. (its videogame or "PlayStation" division) with their VAIO computer and Walkman music player brands (along with various to-be-produced mobile devices and Sony Media & Software Services) into the new entity known as the Networked Products & Services Group. This new combination will be led by Kazuo Hirai, Chairman and Group Chief Executive Officer of Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc., who while maintaining his current position will also become Executive Vice President of the overall Sony Corp. as well as President of this newly-established group come April 1st.
There's a lot more info to follow. Keep readin'...
More positions set by this major restructuring are those of Kunimasa Suzuki, current President of the Consumer of America Group of Sony Electronics in the United States, who will now become Senior Vice President of the overall Sony Corp. as well as Deputy President of the Networked Products & Services Group led by Kaz Hirai. Suzuki's role is to lead a new home and mobile business incubation project to create new products utilizing the best technologies from throughout the whole company including the VAIO Business Group. I guess that means make new hot stuff on the store shelves and revive lagging brand lines.
Also, there will be the formation of the New Consumer Products Group combining their current television (Bravia), digital camera (Cyber-shot), and home video/audio businesses. Leading this new setup will be Hiroshi Yoshioka, currently Executive Vice President of the overall Sony Corp. (a role to be fulfilled by Kaz) and President of the TV Business Group, who will now become Executive Deputy President of the whole Sony Corp. and President of this "New CPG" group. In this group, he oversees its focus on profitability and sustained growth by enhancing product innovation and competitiveness while improving the speed and efficiency of operations (not to mention concentrate on emerging markets for further development and growth).
He also looks over Sony's Semiconductor and Component Business Group (microchips, circuits, batteries) for the same profitability motivations as well as improving its coordination with associated Sony products. Taking over Yoshioka's former role as President of Sony's TV Business Group is Yoshihisa Ishida, currently Senior Vice President and President of the VAIO Business Group.
More. There will be the new Common Software and Technology Team headed by Keiichiro Shimada as Senior Vice President who will also oversee Research & Development/technology strategy. And there will be the new Manufacturing/Logistics/Procurement Team headed by Yutaka Nakagawa as Executive Deputy President. Both of these new entities are created to improve communications and coordination between associated divisions cutting back on waste in hopes of better effiency for the customer's benefit (yes, there will be outsourcing).
Last but not least, Katsumi Ihara is nominated for the position of Executive Director of Sony Financial Holdings, Inc. as he ceases being a member of Sony's Board of Directors as well as Sony Corp.'s Corporate Executive Officer on the April 1st date that begins Sony's 2010 fiscal year. This nomination is dependent on the outcome of the yearly SFH Shareholders Meetingto be held somewhere in June 2009. In the meantime between April 1st and that June date, Ihara will hold onto the titles of Corporate Executive and Executive Deputy President of Sony Corp.
The stagnation and/or decline of key business sectors propelled further by worldwide economic decline led to this massive overhaul. Some background first on the chief positions on Sony's roster to give context to the new change: Sir Stringer who after emigrating to the U.S. in 1965 serving in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War became a major figure for CBS rising up in its news division to become President of CBS, Inc. before quitting the organization in 1995 after a 30-year career. Joining Sony in 1997 initially as President of Sony Corporation of America, he again rose up the ranks making history as the 1st foreign-born head of the Tokyo, Japan-based conglomeration when he replaced Nobiyuki Idei as Chairman and CEO of the entire Sony Corp. in 2005.
Dr. Chubachi joined Sony in 1977 working with magnetic tapes as part of the Magnetic Products Group. His work in this area made instrumental influence in producing the 8mm video tape as well as the corresponding 8mm video camera (camcorder) known as the Handycam. He rose up the ranks of Sony's video tape and recording media products departments as a General Manager before becoming a Corporate Vice President of Sony Corp. in 1999. From there, he anchored a number of chief positions while gaining status as a high-level executive eventually rising up to President of the company in 2005 under Sir Stringer as its new Chairman and CEO.
The fact that Sir Stringer takes over another major position held by a Japanese person (by ethnicity and citizenship) means that the company is deadly serious about changing direction since there is the belief that due to a Japanese culture that discourages layoffs Japanese execs find it difficult to discard their rank and file outright preferring to shame them into leaving. It is believed that Sir Stringer, a White man being born in the United Kingdom with United States citizenship, may not have such hangups coming culturally from a different land. The recently announced 16,000 job cuts on top of the previous recent job cuts do not prevent the possibility on more to come.
And for the most prominent and influential division of Sony for the past 15 years, Sony Computer Entertainment and the PlayStations, Kaz Hirai gets the prime chance to prove his mettle now that the division gets merged with VAIO and the Walkman. If successful, he will get the credit for resurrecting and improving upon these product lines. In not successful, the major grouping gets written off as a failure possibly preparing to be jettisoned from the corporate body along with the man who expressed his love for Ridge Racer.
Crisis can indeed set the stage for opportunity. Let's see how the Sony Corporation works this out.
Flowers to Bloomberg.com.
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