Olympus names first international chief since 2011 ousting of Michael Woodford

Olympus has tapped a 54-year-old German to move the Japanese group in its first appointment of a international chief government for the reason that 2011 accounting scandal and the ousting of its then boss Michael Woodford.

Stefan Kaufmann, the group’s chief technique officer who has spent nearly twenty years on the Japanese firm, informed reporters on Friday that his appointment to the highest job from April subsequent yr was a sign of “a brand new Olympus”, pointing to its reworked governance construction and a sharpened give attention to its medical machine enterprise.

“With the change within the government construction and the task of a non-Japanese CEO, we’re actually coming into into a brand new chapter,” Kaufmann mentioned. “The corporate at this time has nothing in frequent with the corporate of 10 or 15 years in the past.” 

Over the previous decade, there was a gradual improve within the variety of international executives operating Japanese corporations. Mitsubishi Chemical appointed a Belgian as chief final yr, whereas Christophe Weber, a Frenchman, has headed pharmaceutical group Takeda since 2015.

However their document is blended. Woodford’s transient spell at Olympus ended abruptly after he lifted the lid on a $1.7bn accounting scandal. Extra not too long ago, Carlos Ghosn, the previous chair of Nissan, made a dramatic escape from Tokyo to Beirut in 2019 after going through monetary misconduct fees that he continues to disclaim.

In preparations to take over as chief, Kaufmann, who has additionally served because the group’s chief transformation officer, mentioned he was involved with different international bosses at Japanese corporations.

Olympus has undergone a radical transformation for the reason that company disaster that adopted the accounting scandal. In 2019, in a case broadly seen as a turning level for activism in Japan, US fund ValueAct satisfied the corporate to simply accept three international administrators on its board.

Along with globalising and diversifying its administration construction, the corporate additionally launched audit, nomination and compensation committees to enhance its governance.

Underneath present chief government Yasuo Takeuchi, Olympus took steps to enhance its profitability by concentrating on medical units and pulling out of its lossmaking digital camera enterprise two years in the past.

“We will now shift to the following part to speed up development and enhance efficiency,” Takeuchi mentioned on Friday. “I’ve full confidence that Stefan will proceed this momentum.”

Regardless of the modifications, nonetheless, Kaufmann mentioned the 2011 scandal continued to weigh on the corporate’s status, notably in Japan.

“I at all times really feel that our firm has modified a lot and that we deserve extra recognition in a constructive method,” he mentioned. “I hope in my new function now, it is going to be sort of a brand new begin.’