Toyota Japan appoints a new Chairman & 1st Local MD/CEO
Mon, 4 Jan 2021 |
Toyota Japan appoints a new Chairman & 1st Local MD/CEO
Toyota Lanka, the nation’s first flagship automobile company who is pursuing to be the island’s “Next Gen Mobility Solutions to the Nation” and the country’s first automotive company to pioneer 3S (Sales, Spare-parts & Service) concept has received a new Chairman and has appointed the first-ever local MD/CEO to its board for the very first time.
Beginning: of a 25-year-old automotive empire
Established on 12 Dec 1995 as a 100% fully owned subsidiary of Toyota Tsusho Corp (TTC) of Toyota Group Japan; Toyota Lanka is currently a leading-edge advocate in the mobility transformation.
Today global automotive industry is being re-shaped by “CASE” phenomena, which denoted by (Connected Cars, Autonomous, Shared & Subscription mobility, and Electrification). Toyota Lanka as a part of its global multi-national background, is carefully evaluating these disruptions taking place to pioneer its new and next growth phase of transforming from a car company into a “next mobility company”.
Toyota Lanka is celebrating its 25 years of serving the nation and shown an exponential growth in expansions and extended product-lines with an unparallel symbiosis in customer service value addition.
Arrival: of Chairman of Toyota Lanka
| Chairman of Toyota Lanka Sachio Yotsukura |
Newly appointed Chairman, Sachio Yotsukura expressing his new assignment in Sri Lanka said, “It has been a true privilege to join and able to lead this talented team Toyota Lanka. I am extremely excited to take the baton in wheeling into the next growth engine”. He expects to support Sri Lankan economy by looking at various other economic vitalities and business verticals such as renewable energy, next technology, global parts & logistics, electronics, and next generation mobility.
New: Baton passed On – new Beginning!
At his first-ever press comments, Chairman also said “my commitment is to build-up on the success of my predecessors by accelerating our pace of progress”. He thanked the management and staff, for their unstinted commitment and dedication for delivering great products and innovative solutions for the last 25 years.
The Chairman: of the Board, Sachio Yotsukura
37+ years of experience spanning to many countries in the Toyota Group, Sachio Yotsukura has been a true leader of multi-national exposure. Previously he was the MD of Toyota Kenya, and Chairman of Toyota Zimbabwe, Malawi, Uganda, and Mauritius. He possesses diverse working experience in Middle East, Africa, Latin America, Oceania, and Southeast Asia.
New MD/CEO, Manohara Atukorala commented, “with the global experience and business leadership transformation, Chairman will give us a
fresh global think-tank with a locally-building business direction to re-direct Toyota Lanka in the mobility solution space in the new normal”.
The New: MD/CEO on board, Manohara Atukorala
Manohara Atukorala is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (ICSL) and holds MBA from University of Colombo. He is a product of De Mazenod College, Kandana. He joined Toyota Lanka in 2003 from an overseas hospitality industry as the Head of Finance. He was able to successfully transform the company to establish a new culture of “Customer-Guest-Experience”.
Largely he had been the cornerstone to turnaround the Toyota Lanka as a change catalyst-artist. By crafting and rafting the company strategy from an undesirable state into a state of growth and prosperity, had gained him a global attention as an “transformation leader”.
| MD/CEO of Toyota Lanka Manohara Atukorala |
He is the first-ever Sri Lankan MD/CEO to be appointed by Toyota Group Japan after six Japanese MD’s at the helms. It was during this time; he was tasked with revamping the company’s strong brand presence backed by after-sales services have come into more attention in design and delivery.
Chairman said, “it was the right decision to appoint Manohara Atukorala as the MD/CEO, who moved the company from 2003 and into the new era of automotive and mobility with deeper focus on customers.” During his career, Manohara Atukorala was monumental to introduce many Japanese customer service principles such as Toyota Way philosophy to Sri Lankan operations.
Chairman, representing Toyota Tsusho Corp (TTC), said that headquarters is extremely pleased with the achievements and leadership of Manohara Atukorala. He made Toyota Lanka the jewel of the crown in our group”. Speaking on this, Manohara Atukorala said “I’m very delighted to accept this appointment as MD/CEO and further rest assured of maintaining the highest customer focus and quality of service” to this nation.
Prior to this appointment, he was successfully completed an accelerated Global Advance Leadership Program which conducted in three phases in Paris France, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) and Japan in 2019 on global leadership, strategy, and innovation at HEC Paris. This program is only offered to, by the recommendation of Toyota Tsusho Group, Japan for few and selected C-Suite of the highest reflection of leadership and strategy. HEC. is one of the world’s oldest business schools established in 1881 and catering to prized CEO’s in the world.
Toyota Lanka (Private) Limited: (TLPL)
Toyota Lanka is the sole distributor for Toyota, HINO trucks and forklifts. As a Value Chain (VC) business with strong support on after-sales services; the company has it is own genuine spare parts & motor oil, accessories, and total industrial racking system covering a full-stack automobility solution.
Toyota Lanka is a 7 times gold award winner in most outstanding customer services excellence category, whilst global award-winning HR practitioner in the Toyota Group. Toyota Lanka has been recognized by Toyota Group as a “role model” and placed it-self as a Center of Excellence (CoE) for South-East Asian region for the notable contributions of transferring technical skill and technology to SEA countries such as Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Maldives.
Island- wide Network: Epicenter of regional growth upliftment
Company is synonymous for operating vehicle showrooms and service facilities of world class standards. Wattala, Ratmalana, Kurunegala, Maharagama, Negombo, Matara, Kandy, Ampara and Ratnapura operates as a fully-fledged 3S facility. In a sprawling acreage, in Wattala, is also the home of island’s only dedicated Body Repair & Paint (collision repairs & car restorations) facility and established over dozens of its owned spare-parts branches catering to spare-parts needs of the island nation.
With the roll out of ambitious expansions, the company always takes a good care of life & community of people in the regions. Setting up operations and expansions, always means creating an economic and community development associated with mobility.
Whilst technology, technicality and automobile engineering skills are transferred, Toyota Lanka is in pursuance of spotting local talent, fostering their growth and development as new breed of auto-professionals. These mechanisms of creating home grown talent, has immense possibilities to place in the local industry employment. Beyond that as an entrepreneur. It also awaits possibilities of overseas employment which certainly uplift the most important economic vitality and financial empowerment to the country.
Forging: into to Future!
Amidst the unprecedented times and looking ahead, Toyota Lanka intends to extend Japanese-blended-Sri Lankan hospitality with customer obsessed-guest experience in all touch points. To cater local and global automotive skill demand, company continues to grow and harvest new breed-of-auto-professionals to the nation and beyond.
Signature: Customer “guest” Experience
In a recent global survey focusing Sri Lankan auto user experience, ranked Toyota Lankas as one of the most preferred automotive service brands. Digitally conducted survey reflected the services of Toyota Lanka as “guest experience”. This is a true manifestation of living Toyota’s DNA and brand heritage of Quality, Durability, Reliability & Safety by Toyota Lanka.
The simply: the best is yet to come!
Company is carefully strategizing in the newly dawn financial year to Recover, Re-adjust and Re-direct its pathways in the new normal. Digitalization, 3rd party collaboration and partnerships are welcomed to re-shape the industry connecting new forms of propulsion.
With the years of firm foundation laid long before, Toyota Lanka continues to explore opportunities to create value to customers, dealers, employees and shareholders for a vibrant future, amidst pandemic and “perfect storm” as the auto company describes the current industry situation.
Adding final comments, Manohara Atukorala express how’s the future focus going to be, said “looking at the expansions in global next mobility eco system, Toyota Lanka will assist the necessary government stakeholders in laying the country’s next mobility road map and framework to uplift the economic vitality to be best in Asia whilst preparing Sri Lankan youth to the global skill demand in need”.