Nissan announced on Tuesday that Ivan Espinosa, its current chief planning officer, would take the company’s lead from April 1, succeeding Makoto Uchida as CEO of the distressed Japanese car manufacturer. Nissan has also announced significant changes to its executive committee, which will report to Espinosa effective April 1.
Uchida faced mounting pressures to step down following the company’s declining earnings performance and the collapse of merger talks with Honda. The $60 billion merger would have created the world’s fourth-biggest auto group by vehicle sales after Toyota, Volkswagen and Hyundai.
Espinosa, a Mexican citizen, joined Nissan Mexico in 2003 before being appointed as overseas program director – light commercial vehicle in the ASEAN region. He held several positions in the company including vice president of product strategy and planning at Nissa Europe. Ivan Espinosa moved to Nissan Motor Corporation in 2016 and has been serving as the company’s chief planning officer since April 2024.
Nissan faces mounting pressures
Nissan has been troubled by years of disappointing sales and management challenges, never completely recovering from a hit to its brand following the 2018 expulsion of former chairman Carlos Ghosn, who was accused by Tokyo prosecutors of financial misconduct.
During the current financial year, Nissan has already cut its profit forecast at least three times. The Japanese automaker reported a 78 percent year-on-year decline in operating profit for the third quarter of 2024. It also reported a net loss of 14.1 billion yen ($95.7 million), a significant decline from the 29.1 billion yen profit over the same period the year before.
The company is also facing challenges in launching its hybrid cars in the United States amid strong Chinese EV competition. Additionally, it now faces potential tariffs on vehicles it exports to the U.S. from Mexico, a major manufacturing hub.
Following the announcement, Nissan shares were up 1.39 percent to 439 yen.
Read: US stock market in sharp decline, S&P 500 loses $4 trillion in value
Key leadership shifts
Along with Uchida, other senior management personnel stepping down on March 31 include chief brand and customer officer Asako Hoshino and chief strategy and corporate affairs officer Hideaki Watanabe.
Effective April 1, Guillaume Cartier, chief performance officer and chairperson of the Management Committee for AMIEO, will have an expanded role that includes global marketing and customer experience. Eiichi Akashi, currently corporate vice president (CVP) of the Vehicle Planning and Vehicle Component Engineering Division, will become chief technology officer and executive officer, succeeding Kunio Nakaguro.
In addition, Teiji Hirata, currently CVP of Vehicle Production Engineering and Development Division, will take on the role of chief monozukuri officer and executive officer, responsible for Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management, succeeding Hideyuki Sakamoto.
Meanwhile, Jeremy Papin, chief financial officer, was also appointed executive officer.
