Toyota Names Finance Chief Kenta Kon as Next CEO in April Leadership Shift

Toyota Motor Corp. will hand the chief executive officer role to Chief Financial Officer Kenta Kon on 1 April, marking the world’s largest automaker’s second leadership transition in three years. Current CEO Koji Sato, who assumed the top post in 2023, will become vice chairman and take on the newly created position of chief industry officer (CIO).

Leadership transition

The company announced the move on Friday during a press conference in Tokyo. Under the revised structure, Kon will focus on day-to-day management as president and CEO, while Sato will concentrate on wider industry initiatives in his capacity as vice chairman and CIO. Toyota said the division of responsibilities is intended to sharpen decision-making and accelerate the group’s transformation into a diversified mobility provider.

In remarks to reporters, Kon compared the new arrangement to leadership roles in sports, describing Sato as a “national team captain” who will represent both Toyota and the broader auto sector, while Kon assumes the role of “club captain” responsible for internal operations. Sato noted that the realignment enables him to devote more attention to his separate duties as chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association and as vice chair of Keidanren, Japan’s most influential business federation.

Executive Vice President Yoichi Miyazaki will step into Kon’s current position as CFO when the changes take effect. Toyota also disclosed plans for additional board adjustments in June 2026, when Kon is slated to join the board as a director and Sato will step down from that body.

Quarterly results and outlook

The leadership announcement coincided with the release of fiscal third-quarter figures. Sales revenue for the three months ended December climbed 8.6 percent year on year to ¥13.46 trillion (US$85.8 billion), surpassing LSEG SmartEstimates by roughly 10 percent. Operating income slipped 2 percent to ¥1.19 trillion, yet still outpaced the consensus forecast of ¥1.09 trillion. The company attributed the earnings pressure in part to continuing U.S. tariffs on vehicles built outside North America.

Toyota raised its full-year operating profit projection by 11.8 percent, citing the benefit of a weaker yen and ongoing cost-reduction efforts, which the group expects will offset tariff-related headwinds. Investors responded positively: Toyota shares gained about 1.5 percent in Friday trading after the twin announcements.

Emphasis on electrified vehicles

Amid intensifying global competition, Toyota has been expanding its lineup of electrified models, including battery-electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrids. Nearly half of the automaker’s retail sales in the first nine months of the current fiscal year came from electrified vehicles, bolstered by robust demand for hybrids in North America and China.

The company said the leadership adjustments are designed to speed up initiatives in areas such as vehicle electrification, software-defined mobility services and new business models. Toyota’s changing product mix reflects a strategy to balance conventional internal-combustion offerings with hybrids, plug-in hybrids and full EVs, a portfolio approach intended to meet diverse regional regulations and consumer preferences.

Rationale for structural change

According to Toyota, separating the roles of vice chairman/CIO and CEO will clarify lines of authority and enable faster responses to shifts in technology, regulation and consumer demand. Sato’s CIO remit includes monitoring trends across the automotive landscape and collaborating with industry organizations. Kon, by contrast, will oversee production efficiency, financial management and the roll-out of next-generation vehicles and services.

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The transition reinforces a pattern of leadership renewal at the company. Sato himself succeeded Akio Toyoda—grandson of founder Kiichiro Toyoda—in April 2023. Toyoda currently serves as chairman of the board. The latest change effectively places a finance specialist at the operational helm while keeping an engineer, Sato, in a role that interfaces with regulators, suppliers and peer manufacturers.

Market implications

Analysts have long viewed Toyota’s gradual approach to full electrification as a hedge against uncertainty over charging infrastructure, battery costs and regional policy differences. The company’s strong hybrid portfolio has provided a cushion against the margin pressures often associated with pure EVs. By elevating Kon, Toyota emphasizes financial discipline during a period of large capital commitments to batteries, software platforms and manufacturing upgrades.

Additional leadership shifts at major automakers underscore sector-wide pressures to realign skill sets. In a recent industry study published by the Toyota Global Newsroom, executives across the automotive value chain cited rapid technological change as the primary catalyst for reorganizing management structures. Toyota’s move echoes that broader trend without altering its basic stance of technology neutrality.

Next steps

Kon will formally assume the CEO post following shareholder approval at the end of March. The new CFO, Yoichi Miyazaki, is expected to outline updated cost-efficiency targets at Toyota’s full-year results briefing in May. Meanwhile, Sato will represent the automaker in discussions with government officials and industry groups on topics ranging from carbon neutrality to autonomous-driving regulation.

Toyota said it will announce further details on board composition, committee assignments and executive responsibilities ahead of the June 2026 annual shareholders’ meeting. For now, the company emphasized continuity, noting that core strategies and existing medium-term plans remain intact as it seeks to maintain global sales leadership while navigating an evolving mobility landscape.

Image credit: Tomohiro Ohsumi / Getty Images News