Nissan announces management appointments

Published: March 17, 2026

© 2026 Nissan North America, Inc.

Nissan today announced a series of organizational and leadership updates effective April. The progress under Re:Nissan has been driven by the commitment and resilience of Nissan’s employees worldwide. With the plan in its final year, the company’s focus is on maintaining clarity, stability, and disciplined execution to ensure consistent delivery and sustainable results. Over the past period, Re:Nissan has strengthened financial discipline, sharpened priorities, and reinforced execution across the organization. With these foundations firmly in place, Nissan is focused on completing the plan as intended and embedding its impact beyond the recovery phase. The organizational and leadership updates announced today support this objective. They are designed to strengthen continuity, reinforce accountability, and ensure the company remains focused on delivery as it completes Re:Nissan. Key Management Appointments Richard Candler, currently vice president (VP), Global Product Strategy, will be promoted to corporate executive (CE) of Family, Product & Components Strategy. Candler will report to Ivan Espinosa, President and CEO. Yuichi Shibukawa, currently general manager, Powertrain and EV Engineering Division, will be promoted to CE, Research Division. Shibukawa will report to Eiichi Akashi, chief technology officer (CTO). Kazuhiro Doi, Research Division will retire after 40 years of service. Kinichi Tanuma, currently CE, Product Development Division No.3, & Division No.4, will transfer to a leadership role within the Nissan Group. The current responsibilities of Tanuma will be split between CE, Product Development Division No.1 Kazuyuki Yamaguchi and Product Development Division No.2 Masayuki Fukuda. Eiji Iguchi, currently plant director, Yokohama Plant, will be promoted to CE, Powertrain and EV Component Production Engineering and Development Division, reporting to Teiji Hirata, chief monozukuri officer (CMZO). Kazuhiko Murata, currently CE, Powertrain and EV Component Production Engineering and Development Division, will transfer to a leadership role within the Nissan group. Toshihiro Fujiki, currently president, ASEAN and Thailand, will be promoted to CE, Global Aftersales, reporting to Guillaume Cartier, chief performance officer (CPO). Fujiki will support the execution of the Re:Nissan recovery plan in ASEAN. Keiichi Sato will retire after 35 years of service. Hirofumi Eta, currently chief vehicle engineer (CVE), will be promoted as regional senior vice president (RSVP), R&D, China. Eta will report to Stephen Ma, chairperson, Management Committee (MC) for China. Eta will have dual reporting to Isao Sekiguchi, managing director of Dongfeng Nissan, in his role as senior GM of the Dongfeng Nissan Technical Center (DNTC). Yoshihiro Fujita, currently regional vice president (RVP), Finance Japan-ASEAN, will be promoted to RSVP, Finance for Japan/ASEAN & Affiliate Companies. Fujita will report to Shohei Yamazaki, chairperson, Management Committee for Japan/ASEAN & Affiliate Companies (AFL). Anish BAIJAL, CE, Global HR Strategy, Transformation and Regional Operations has chosen to retire after 19 years of service. Hari NADA, CE, Special Projects has chosen to retire after 35 years of service. Nissan expresses sincere thanks to retiring colleagues for their dedicated service. Nissan today announced a series of organizational and leadership updates effective April. The progress under Re:Nissan has been driven by the commitment and resilience of Nissan’s employees worldwide. With the plan in its final year, the company’s focus is on maintaining clarity, stability, and disciplined execution to ensure consistent delivery and sustainable results. Over the past period, Re:Nissan has strengthened financial discipline, sharpened priorities, and reinforced execution across the organization. With these foundations firmly in place, Nissan is focused on completing the plan as intended and embedding its impact beyond the recovery phase. The organizational and leadership updates announced today support this objective. They are designed to strengthen continuity, reinforce accountability, and ensure the company remains focused on delivery as it completes Re:Nissan. Key Management Appointments Richard Candler, currently vice president (VP), Global Product Strategy, will be promoted to corporate executive (CE) of Family, Product & Components Strategy. Candler will report to Ivan Espinosa, President and CEO. Yuichi Shibukawa, currently general manager, Powertrain and EV Engineering Division, will be promoted to CE, Research Division. Shibukawa will report to Eiichi Akashi, chief technology officer (CTO). Kazuhiro Doi, Research Division will retire after 40 years of service. Kinichi Tanuma, currently CE, Product Development Division No.3, & Division No.4, will transfer to a leadership role within the Nissan Group. The current responsibilities of Tanuma will be split between CE, Product

Quick Q&A

Who is involved in the management appointments at Nissan?

Nissan announced several management appointments, including Richard Candler, Yuichi Shibukawa, Eiji Iguchi, Toshihiro Fujiki, Hirofumi Eta, and Yoshihiro Fujita. Additionally, Anish Baijal and Hari Nada are retiring after 19 and 35 years of service, respectively.

What was announced by Nissan?

Nissan announced a series of organizational and leadership updates, including key management appointments and retirements, effective April.

When do these organizational and leadership updates take effect?

The organizational and leadership updates at Nissan are effective in April, coinciding with the final year of the Re:Nissan plan.

Why do these management appointments matter to Nissan?

These management appointments are significant because they support Nissan's objective to strengthen continuity, reinforce accountability, and maintain focus on delivery as the company completes its Re:Nissan recovery plan.

What are the future implications of these appointments?

The appointments aim to ensure consistent delivery and sustainable results beyond the recovery phase of Re:Nissan, with Toshihiro Fujiki specifically supporting the plan's execution in ASEAN.

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License: Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) with Carve-Outs

Attribution: https://global.nissannews.com/en/releases/260317-02-e