JAPAN: EPSON FIRES IT'S PRESIDENT

[Anonymous]

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/11893b64-54b8-11df-8bef-00144feab49a.html
JAPAN: EPSON FIRES IT’S PRESIDENT 
Seiko Holdings, the creator of the world’s first quartz
wristwatch, sacked its president yesterday for a “tendentious management
style” in a move that could herald a new vogue for candour in corporate
Japan.Seiko’s blunt explanation for why Koichi Murano was sacked
suggests that it has learnt a lesson from the ousting of Kuniaki Nozoe
as president of Fujitsu last September.Fujitsu initially said Mr Nozoe
had resigned for health reasons, but after Mr Nozoe demanded his job
back this March, it said that he actually agreed to resign after being
threatened with dismissal over links to a company of “unfavourable
reputation”.

Mr Nozoe and Fujitsu are now embroiled in a legal
dispute about the circumstances of his resignation.By contrast, Seiko
pulled no punches in explaining Mr Murano’s exit. “[Mr Murano] has
brought unstable corporate governance by his tendentious management
style, reflecting only the opinions of some major shareholders and
directors, and neglecting the reasonable exercise of executive power,”
the company said.”As a result, [he] has raised distrust of the company
management among our business partners and employees. To avoid this
critical condition, the company determined to dismiss the former
president.”

Mr Murano could not be reached for comment.
It is
rare for a Japanese company to dismiss a top executive, let alone in
such robust language.However, the Seiko case has involved a disagreement
between the senior management and was decided on a 3-2 vote by the
eligible board directors, according to local media reports. That
suggests a quiet resignation was not an option.

Mr Murano will be
replaced by Shinji Hattori, the deputy president and a scion of the
family that founded Seiko in 1881. Seiko has become one of Japan’s
largest watchmakers and is the official timekeeper for the World
Athletics Championships. It also makes golf clubs, metronomes and
electronic components.Seiko Epson, which makes printers and scanners, is
a separate company that started from the same corporate group.Seiko
Holdings expects to have made a net loss of Y7.3bn ($78m) on sales of
Y234bn in the year to March 2010. That follows a Y5.8bn loss last year.
Seiko blames poor economic conditions in Japan, Europe and the US.After
it bought full control of Seiko Instruments last year the group is in a
relatively weak financial condition. Equity amounted to less than 10 per
cent of total assets at the end of December 2009.

[Author]

May 17, 2010 at 1:41 PM