Keizai Doyukai Picks IBM’s Yamaguchi as Chief

Tokyo, Dec. 16 (Jiji Press)–The Japan Association of Corporate Executives, or Keizai Doyukai, decided Tuesday to appoint IBM Japan Ltd. General Manager and President Akio Yamaguchi as its new chairman. Yamaguchi, 61, will assume the post, which has been vacant since Takeshi Niinami resigned on Sept. 30 over a police investigation into supplements he bought. The appointment, approved at an extraordinary executive meeting, will take effect on Jan. 1 next year. “I hope to present (policy proposals) to achieve people’s well-being through the use of technology,” Yamaguchi told a press conference in Tokyo. The new chairman will face the challenge of rebuilding the association following the turmoil caused by Niinami’s abrupt resignation, while also strengthening the association’s influence in revitalizing the Japanese economy. Yamaguchi, who has served as vice chairman of the association since April 2022, will be the first Keizai Doyukai chairman from IBM Japan since Kakutaro Kitashiro, who took the post in 2003. A native of the western prefecture of Wakayama, Yamaguchi joined IBM Japan in 1987 before becoming president in May 2019. He is a member of the Fiscal System Council, which advises the finance minister. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]