Honda Motor Co. is turning to an insider who has spent his entire career at the company to navigate its exit from a global auto safety crisis, after seven people died in its cars.
Takahiro Hachigo this week becomes the eighth president of one of Japan¡¯s most renowned companies. By replacing Takanobu Ito, whose tenure was plagued by recalls and rupturing Takata Corp. air bags, he upholds a 41-year custom of Honda presidents hand-picking their successors from within.
The steps Hachigo, 56, takes to tackle the troubles caused by its supplier will help determine whether he¡¯s the right man for the job. His supporters say he¡¯s a listener willing to seek consensus, traits that his more autocratic predecessor lacked. Still, those attributes won¡¯t sway detractors who want more radical change and a break from the insularity that has long characterized Japan Inc.
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