Nissan Senior Management Shake-up
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YOKOHAMA, Japan March 10, 2021; Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. today announced senior management appointments aimed to further Nissan NEXT business transformation plan supporting Nissan’s progress towards profitability and its pursuit of new innovation-driven opportunities accelerating the pathway to electrified future and carbon neutrality.
The following senior management changes will be effective April 1, 2021.
In addition to his current role as chief financial officer, Stephen Ma will assume responsibility for Investor Relations, previously under Joji Tagawa senior vice president (SVP) and chief sustainability officer.
Guillaume Cartier, currently vice chairperson and SVP of marketing and sales of the AMIEO region (Africa, Middle East, India, Europe & Oceania) & president for AMI, will assume the role of chairperson of AMIEO replacing Gianluca de Ficchy. Cartier will report to vice-chief performance officer and chief quality officer, Christian Vandenhende.
De Ficchy takes on a new senior role within the Alliance which is a subject of separate release.
Jeremie Papin, currently vice chairperson of the management committee and chief financial officer for North America, is promoted as SVP & chairperson for Americas.
Leon Dorssers, currently SVP in charge of Global Sales, Customer Quality, Dealer Network and Product Marketing, will be SVP and regional SVP of marketing and sales of AMIEO replacing Cartier. He will continue to hold his current responsibilities till his successor is announced. Dorssers will report to Cartier.
Atul Pasricha, SVP will be in charge of Product Program Profitability Management, Global R&D Control, M&A and Partnership Finance and Alliance Costing Organization. Pasricha will report to Ma.
Yasuhiko Obata, who is VP in charge of Oppama Plant, will be promoted as SVP in charge of Japan-ASEAN Manufacturing, SCM Operation Division and Global Operation Management. Obata will report to EVP Sakamoto. Seiji Honda, currently SVP in charge of Japan Manufacturing and SCM Operation Division, will be appointed to a leadership position within the Nissan Group.
Hiroki Hasegawa, currently CVP and Alliance global VP, will be promoted to SVP and Alliance SVP, Purchasing. Hasegawa will have dual reporting to chief operating officer, Ashwani Gupta and Alliance EVP Purchasing.
Manabu Sakane, currently vice president (VP) in charge of Corporate Governance and Corporate Management, and BOD office is appointed as CVP and Alliance global VP of Purchasing. Sakane will report to Hasegawa. Yoshihiro Kawai, currently VP of Purchasing will leave Nissan as of March 31, 2021.
Carlos Servin, CVP in charge Global Revenue Control and Regions’ Performance Optimization will assume additional responsibility for Global Monozukuri and CAPEX Control previously under Atul. Servin will report to Ma.
Naoya Fujimoto, corporate officer in charge of product development for Engineering at Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, is appointed CVP and Alliance global VP in charge of customer performance & CAE (Computer Aided Engineering) and Test Engineering replacing Takeshi Yamaguchi. Fujimoto will report to Kunio Nakaguro, EVP.
Yamaguchi, currently CVP and Alliance global VP in charge of customer performance & CAE (Computer Aided Engineering) and Test Engineering, will assume a new position as CVP for special projects reporting to COO Gupta.
Hideki Kimata, currently VP in charge of corporate strategy, is appointed as VP, president of Nissan (China) Investment Co., Ltd. (NCIC) replacing Takashi Nishibayashi. Kimata will report to Shohei Yamazaki, SVP & chairperson of the China region. Nishibayashi will be retired and transferred to advisor position for China.
Eiji Kikuchi, currently Alliance global director for Vehicle Production Engineering in Manufacturing & SCM, is appointed VP in charge of Tochigi Plant replacing Takuya Nakamura. Kikuchi will report to Obata. Nakamura will be appointed to a leadership position within the Nissan Group.
Takuji Hisamatsu, currently regional VP of Monozukuri AMI, is appointed VP in charge of Oppama Plant. Hisamatsu will report to Obata.
Toru Ihara, currently CVP in charge of Japan HR, Diversity Development, Global Strategic Workforce Planning, Global Compensation & Benefits, Secretariat, is appointed as Acting Head of HR, CVP, Diversity Development, Organization Development and Secretariat. He will report to CEO Makoto Uchida. Yusuke Takahashi, currently SVP in charge of global HR, will be retired as of March 31, 2021.
Groupe Renault, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Mitsubishi Motors Corporation announce today new appointments within the Alliance as of April 1st, 2021.
Véronique Sarlat-Depotte, currently Alliance EVP, Purchasing and Managing Director of Alliance Purchasing Organization (APO), is appointed Alliance General Secretary. She remains a member of the Board of Management (BoM) of Groupe Renault.
At the head of the Alliance Cooperation Office, her mission will be to coordinate the Alliance's major projects, to accelerate and deepen operational cooperation, and to broaden the fields of development and application for the benefit of the three member companies.
Gianluca De Ficchy is appointed Alliance EVP, Purchasing and Managing Director of Alliance Purchasing Organization (APO), replacing Véronique Sarlat-Depotte. He joins the Board of Management (BoM) of Groupe Renault.
Hadi Zablit, currently Alliance General Secretary, will leave his position on April, 1st, 2021:
"I would like to thank Groupe Renault and the members of the Board of the Alliance for trusting me during these many years for the creation and implementation of Renault Digital, for the development and implementation of strategic partnerships and more particularly for the relaunch and reconstruction of the Alliance's new cooperation model. I am handing over the Alliance General Secretariat to Véronique, to whom I wish success".
Jean-Dominique Senard, Chairman of the Alliance Operating Board and of Renault declared:
“I would like to warmly thank Hadi who was able to create this new breath of life at the level of the Alliance and who led these highly strategic cooperations for the three companies. His remarkable work allows us to look to the future with optimism, with a portfolio of projects that matches our ambitions. I welcome the arrival of Véronique and Gianluca, who, during their careers, have held various positions of responsibility at Renault and Nissan and have contributed to the strengthening of the Alliance. Thanks to their experience and their extensive knowledge of the member companies, they will be able to accelerate the transformation and the dynamics of cooperation within the Alliance, while broadening the fields of application.”
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Véronique Sarlat-Depotte, holds an engineering degree from the EPF (École Polytechnique Féminine).
She began her career at Renault in 1989 as part of the Purchasing Division. She has held several positions within Renault and Nissan, in France and Japan, within Purchasing, RNPO and CEO Office.
In 2005, she was appointed Deputy General Manager, Purchasing Strategy at Nissan Motors Limited in Japan before being promoted General Manager in 2007 at the Japan Headquarters. In 2009, she was appointed GM, RNPO Vehicle Body Parts within RNPO. In 2010, she was promoted Vice President, RNPO Body & Electrical. In 2014, she became Alliance Global Director, RNPO Body & Electrical.
On January 2015, Véronique Sarlat-Depotte became Deputy Managing Director of RNPO & Renault-Nissan Senior Vice President, Purchasing.
In November 2016, Véronique Sarlat-Depotte has been Alliance Global Executive Vice President, Purchasing, and President of RNPO (Renault Nissan Purchasing Organization).
Since April 2018, RNPO’s scope has been extended to include Mitsubishi’s purchasing activity. This structure is renamed the Alliance Purchasing Organization and Véronique Sarlat-Depotte takes the lead as Alliance EVP, Purchasing and Managing Director of Alliance Purchasing Organization (APO).
Since March 1st, 2019, Véronique Sarlat-Depotte is member of Groupe Renault Executive Committee which was renamed Board of Management on January 1, 2021.
As of April 1st, 2021, Véronique Sarlat-Depotte, is appointed Alliance General Secretary. She remains a member of the Board of Management (BoM) of Groupe Renault.
Gianluca De Ficchy graduated in Economics from LUISS University in Rome. He started his career at Ernst & Young in 1994 and then joined Groupe Renault in 2001 as Finance Director of RCI Banque in Italy.
In 2004, he was appointed Director of Planning & Management Control at RCI Banque. In 2007, he joined FGA Capital, a joint venture between Crédit Agricole and Fiat S.p.A., of which he became Chairman and CEO in 2013.
In October 2014, Gianluca De Ficchy was appointed Chief Executive Officer of RCI Bank and Services. In April 2016, he became Chairman of the Board of Directors of DIAC S.A., while retaining his position as Chief Executive Officer of RCI Bank and Services. In 2017, he was appointed member of Groupe Renault Management Committee (CDR).
In April 2018, Gianluca De Ficchy joined Nissan as Senior Vice President and Chairman of Management Committee for Europe.
Since October 1st, 2020, Gianluca De Ficchy was Nissan's Chairman for the AMIEO region, which covers the activities of the Group's brands in Africa, the Middle East, India, Europe (including Russia) and Oceania.
As of April 1st 2021, Gianluca De Ficchy is appointed Alliance EVP, Purchasing and Managing Director of Alliance Purchasing Organization (APO) and joins the Board of Management (BoM) of Groupe Renault.
With these moves, Nissan will continue to strengthen its global and regional integration, become more competitive by improving the speed of operations and help deploy latest technologies consistently and quickly to customers the world over.
