Canon’s current president decided to step down even though his departure leaves faltering company behind. His position will be taken by Canon’s 76-year-old chairman and CEO who plans to strengthen the future earnings of the $60 billion Japanese camera and printer maker, says Reuters.
The Japanese company was strongly affected by last year’s floods in Thailand which led to the destruction of a printer plant and several other supply lines. The export industry is the main source of income for the company which makes 80 percent of its revenue overseas.
Based on a recent announcement made by Canon’s spokespersons, the current president, Tuneji Uchida will resign on March 29. Fujio Mitarai will be named president of the company in his place. The latter served as the company’s president between 1995 and 2006. Afterwards, he became the chairman and the CEO of the firm.
Managers told reporters that they have chosen Mitarai because he is already familiar with the management of the company. Moreover, the new president will not make any sudden changes to the already troubled camera producer. Despite this, Naoki Fujiwara, a fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management claims that Canon needs to get ready to handle the business to the next generation.
According to Chief Financial Officer Toshizo Tanaka, the Japanese company would work towards handing over to the next generation during the following next three years. For now, they have chosen one of the company’s veterans because he can offer the stability that Canon needs in order to regain its financial power.
Mitarai was forced to step down from Canon’s presidency in 2006 because he was appointed head of Japan’s biggest business lobby, Nippon Keidanren. Even so, he continued to play an important part in the management of the camera and printer manufacturer.
Canon forecasts a rise in 2012 earnings; however, the profit remains unchanged because of the impact of exchange rates. The competition is also very strong as Canon is threatened by powerful camera makers like Nikon and Sony. The Japanese company announced that they plan to sell 22 million compact cameras and 9.2 million interchangeable lens cameras this year, up from last year’s 18.7 million and 7.2 million.
