Written by | Ying Liu

Edited by Dalu Huang

Designed by | Youmei Zhen

On June 5, 1950, Kiichiro Toyoda resigned as president. This founder, who brought the family loom business into the automotive industry, could not hand over the company directly to his children.

A labor-management standoff lasting two months ended with large-scale layoffs and executive resignations; 2,146 employees left, and the vice president and executive directors resigned alongside Kiichiro Toyoda on the same day. Over a month later, Juzo Ishida, president of Toyota Automatic Loom Works, concurrently took over as president of Toyota Motor Corporation, while Fumio Nakagawa and others from the banking background entered the new management team.

The turning point occurred on the twentieth day after Kiichiro Toyoda's resignation.

The outbreak of the Korean War brought truck orders from the US military, giving the bankrupt Toyota a reprieve. By March 1951, cumulative orders reached 4,679 units, totaling 3.66 billion yen. Factories resumed operations, and the books once again showed cash flow. By early 1952, the company was preparing to ask the founder to return and resume the presidency. However, just before the official comeback, Kiichiro Toyoda suddenly passed away at the age of 57.

Succession moments for Toyota have frequently undergone changes.

In 1967, President Fumio Nakagawa suffered a sudden heart attack after returning from a business trip to Tokyo; the presidential position remained vacant until after his funeral. In 1995, Shoichiro Toyoda was hospitalized for six months due to illness, interrupting the period of family control once again. In 2009, Akio Toyoda took charge amidst the company's predicted first annual operating loss since inception, later became involved in one of Toyota's most severe recall crises, and testified before the US Congress alongside Yoshimi Inaba, head of Toyota North America, in 2010.

Toyota also once had a secret succession.

In late 2022, at the Buriram Circuit in Thailand, Akio Toyoda asked Koji Sato, an engineer beside him, if he was willing to assume the presidency. Sato officially took office in April 2023. In April 2026, he transferred to the position of Vice Chairman and Chief Industry Officer, with Kenji Kondo succeeding him as President and CEO.

In 2026, another personnel change sparked external attention to the fifth generation of the family, but Toyota did not define it as a succession plan.

On August 1, 2026, Daisuke Toyoda, 38-year-old son of Akio Toyoda, will leave Woven by Toyota, the software company he co-created, and the first phase of Woven City, which has already been launched, as well as the second phase still under construction, to return to Toyota Motor Corporation. He will not join the board of directors, nor will he receive an executive title; instead, he will enter a department close to the vehicle development "frontline" (genba) as a project manager. Toyota has not disclosed the specific department or model.

Toyota has not publicly announced any successor. The company's history of nearly ninety years repeatedly proves that a name can provide credit during a crisis but may also raise doubts during a power transition.

The Fifth Generation Returns to the Vehicle Development Frontline

Woven City is built on the site of the old Toyota East Fuji factory, testing autonomous vehicles, robots, and logistics equipment in a real urban environment. In September 2025, Phase 1 officially launched, and the first residents began moving in, with multiple partner enterprises entering the co-creation phase; Phase 2 is currently still under construction.

As a founding member of Woven by Toyota, Senior Vice President, and core head of Woven City, Daisuke Toyoda once turned his gaze beyond automobiles. In a 2025 interview, he compared this city to his great-grandfather Kiichiro Toyoda entering the automotive industry and posed a question: "When we truly become a mobility company, will Toyota Motor still be the group's core? We don't know."

Less than a year later, he began to move back.

On June 1, 2026, Woven announced that Daisuke Toyoda would transfer to Toyota Motor Corporation on August 1. The company announcement did not disclose the new position. A Toyota spokesperson subsequently confirmed to Reuters that he would serve as a project manager, entering a department close to the vehicle development "frontline" (genba), but refused to specify the specific business division and model.

This means his work focus will shift from a city-level testing platform to vehicle development. However, since Toyota has not yet explained specific duties, it is currently impossible to judge whether he will independently be responsible for a specific model, nor can this confirm it is a succession training arrangement.

This is not his first time entering Toyota Motor Corporation. In 2016, he worked in the Electronic Control Engineering Department; in 2018, he transferred to Toyota's Advanced R&D subsidiary. Since then, his work has mainly focused on software, autonomous driving, and future mobility.

Counting from Sakichi Toyoda, he is the fifth generation of the family. Counting from Kiichiro Toyoda, the founder of Toyota Motor, he is the fourth generation of the automotive business.

However, Toyota's succession history has never followed a bloodline straight line since the first president.

1937: The First President Was Not a Blood Relative of Sakichi Toyoda

At the founding conference in August 1937, the person appointed as the first president was not Kiichiro Toyoda, who opened the automotive business, but Riichiro Toyoda. Kiichiro served as vice president and only assumed the presidency in 1941.

Riichiro was originally Riichiro Kodama. After marrying Aiko Toyoda, the eldest daughter of Sakichi Toyoda, in 1915, he was adopted by the family and changed his surname to Toyota. He came from the cotton textile industry, managed the family business for years, and naturally took the presidential seat upon the company's establishment.

In other words, the first president of Toyota Motor was both a family member and not a blood relative of Sakichi Toyoda. Marriage, adoption, management ability, and family trust, several forces together decided where this position would fall.

The early family boundaries of Toyota were inherently wider than a straight-line genealogy.

In 1936, the automotive business intentionally distanced itself from the family name. The logo solicitation received about 27,000 submissions, and finally, the brand name was changed from the Katakana writing of the family surname "トヨダ" (Toyoda) to "トヨタ" (Toyota), and the Roman alphabet spelling was also changed to "Toyota". 

Toyota's official reasons included: the new name uses unvoiced sounds, sounding clearer than the voiced sound of "Toyoda"; the Katakana writing of "トヨタ" is exactly eight strokes, and eight strokes are considered related to wealth and good fortune. This name change also symbolized the enterprise moving from a small independent company to a larger-scale company.

 

In Chinese, both "Toyoda" and "Toyota" are written as "Toyota", a subtle distinction that is easily overlooked. But this rewrite of the Japanese and English names drew a clear line: the enterprise comes from the Toyota family but does not belong solely to the Toyota family.

Even so, the Toyota surname remains deeply embedded in the company's DNA. Sakichi Toyoda left the automatic loom and the concept of "Stop at anomaly," while Kiichiro Toyoda turned family technical accumulation toward automobiles and bred the prototype of just-in-time production. Later, Eiji Toyoda, Shoichiro Toyoda, and Akio Toyoda passed the torch to mature the production system, expand globally, and drive product transformation.

This family has never provided a stable majority shareholding, but rather an industrial narrative spanning generations. Whenever the company intrudes into unfamiliar fields or hits major crises, the Toyota surname is always pushed back to the forefront. However, after experiencing the first true life-and-death test, it proved the company could actually invite the founding family off the driver's seat.

1950: The Founder Was Forced to Leave the Management Frontline

In the spring of 1950, Toyota's cash flow had reached the breaking point. Post-war economic tightening crushed automotive demand, and steel and non-ferrous metal prices soared; bank negotiation representatives sat across the conference table, demanding business restructuring, downsizing layoffs, and spinning off the sales department separately.

In April 1950, Toyota Motor Sales Co., Ltd. was established, separating manufacturing and sales, a split that lasted 32 years.

The split failed to put out the crisis immediately.

Starting from April 11, labor and management clashed over wages, layoffs, and reconstruction plans. People at both ends of the negotiation table almost met every day, negotiating for two months straight. The company eventually closed its Shibaura and Kameido factories in Tokyo; 2,146 people left, and the total number of employees plummeted from 8,140 to 5,994. The vacant workstations in the factory area were temporarily unfilled, and those who stayed had to accept pay cuts.

On June 5, Kiichiro Toyoda, Vice President Kazuo Kumabe, and Executive Director Takahachi Nishimura resigned on the same day. After the extraordinary general meeting on July 18, Juzo Ishida, president of Toyota Automatic Loom Works, concurrently assumed the presidency of Toyota Motor Corporation, while Fumio Nakagawa from the Imperial Bank entered management.

 

Toyota Motor had been established for only 13 years when the founder already lost control of operations.

20 days after Kiichiro Toyoda's resignation, the Korean War broke out. The US military quickly procured trucks from Toyota, issuing a first batch of 1,000 units on July 31, followed by additions of 2,329 and 1,350 units, totaling 4,679 units and 3.66 billion yen. War orders stabilized Toyota's operations after layoffs, split, and management changes.

 

Kiichiro Toyoda did not return immediately.

After leaving office, he continued to privately follow passenger car development, with sketches and parts lists on his desk. By early 1952, with the company's operations improving, Juzo Ishida began arranging for his comeback. Facing the invitation, he only said: "A company that doesn't build passenger cars is not a car manufacturer."

This statement sounded tough, but Eiji Toyoda later recalled that he was actually very happy inside.

The company originally planned to officially announce his comeback at the July 1952 shareholder meeting, and the new passenger car project had already launched in January of that year. However, on March 27, Kiichiro Toyoda suddenly passed away, abruptly ending the comeback plan, and the planned welcome ceremony was never held. The development of the Crown, which later became Toyota's representative model, also launched during this period.

The founder created the automotive business himself but was forced to leave during the company's most difficult moment. Orders flooded in after he left, and when the company was ready to welcome him back, he suddenly passed away.

Toyota's first succession was not completed. The company continued to be managed by professional managers, while the founding family retreated to the edge of power for a long time, waiting for the next turning point.

1967 to 1995: Sudden Succession

On October 13, 1967, Toyota President Fumio Nakagawa attended all-day meetings in Tokyo and was driving back to Nagoya. In the dead of night, he suffered a sudden heart attack and did not wait until dawn.

The company did not announce a successor on the second day. Since other representative directors were still maintaining operations, the president position remained temporarily vacant. It was not until October 30, after the funeral ended, that Vice President Eiji Toyoda officially assumed the role.

Eiji Toyoda was the cousin of Kiichiro Toyoda. He had long been rooted in the factory and technical system, promoting the Toyota Production System to maturity together with Taiichi Ohno and others. Before being pushed to the highest position, he had worked in the company for decades.

He later recalled that the position itself did not make him feel strange, "what surprised me was the change in the attitude of people around me."

This sudden succession reflected a typical way of Toyota family influence: Family members would never sit in the highest position solely based on bloodline. However, when the company suddenly lost a leader, someone with deep internal experience who could represent the company's tradition was easier for management to accept.

Eiji Toyoda served as president for 15 years until 1982, when the manufacturing and sales companies were recombined.

At that time, Japan-US automotive trade friction intensified, and Toyota began considering overseas production. Communication costs resulting from the separation of manufacturing and sales rose higher and higher. The company urgently needed to unify products, funds, personnel, and international decision-making. In January 1982, the two signed a merger memorandum, then immediately handled merger ratios, board seats, and organizational structure.

At 9:30 AM on July 1, 53 executives attended the establishment ceremony of the new company at headquarters. Eiji Toyoda and Shoichiro Toyoda unveiled the company sign for "Toyota Motor Corporation," recombining the manufacturing and sales system separated for 32 years into one.

At the subsequent board meeting, Eiji Toyoda served as chairman, and Shoichiro Toyoda, son of Kiichiro Toyoda, became president. Eiji Toyoda wrote in a letter to employees: "Toyota's post-war era has ended."

This was a true return of the family, but still not a direct baton handover between father and son. After Kiichiro Toyoda left in 1950, three presidents passed: Juzo Ishida, Fumio Nakagawa, and Eiji Toyoda. 32 years passed before his son sat in the presidency of the merged Toyota.

Shoichiro Toyoda subsequently promoted North American localization production. In 1983, Toyota and General Motors established the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI). His younger brother, Daigo Toyoda, deeply participated in the North American production system and succeeded to the presidency in 1992.

Family continuous control lasted only three years.

Daigo Toyoda had long suffered from health issues. He resigned after being hospitalized for about six months in 1995 and transferred to Vice Chairman. Toyota did not look for another family member to fill the position but appointed Minoru Oda, who had worked in the company for about 40 years, as president.

After that, Minoru Oda, Fujio Cho, and Takeo Hashimoto successively led Toyota, and professional managers held power for 14 years.

The family did not truly leave. Shoichiro Toyoda continued to serve as chairman and honorary chairman, retaining a voice in group relations and major directions, while daily operations were handed to internal professional managers.

Toyota thus formed a structure that repeatedly appeared: the family was responsible for preserving history, sense of direction, and symbolic meaning during crises, while professional managers were responsible for maintaining operational continuity in a huge organization. The boundaries between the two were not clear, but they checked and balanced each other for a long time.

2009: The Family Returns in a Crisis

In late 2008, the global financial market was full of alarm bells, and Akio Toyoda's name began to appear frequently in succession rumors.

At that time, the global financial crisis rapidly suppressed automotive demand. Toyota had just surpassed General Motors to become the global sales champion but was expected to face its first annual operating loss since inception. Whether to have the founding family retake the helm at this moment, there were different opinions within the company.

According to Reuters reports at the time, key figures such as Fujio Cho, Minoru Oda, and Shoichiro Toyoda weighed whether to arrange a transitional manager first to let Akio Toyoda accumulate a few more years of experience. Ultimately, Toyota chose to have 52-year-old Akio Toyoda assume the role directly.

His surname was both a talisman and a shackle.

When Akio Toyoda joined the company in 1984, his father Shoichiro Toyoda warned him that no one wanted to become "the president's son's subordinate." Many employees kept their distance from him for a long time. He rotated through production, sales, North American joint ventures, and Asian and Chinese businesses, moved his desk time and time again, only entering the board of directors in 2000 and officially assuming the presidency in 2009.

Soon after taking office, a large-scale recall crisis came head-on. Between 2009 and 2011, over 10 million Toyota vehicles were recalled due to issues such as accelerator pedals and floor mats. In 2010, Akio Toyoda testified before the US Congress alongside Yoshimi Inaba, head of Toyota North America.

At that hearing, he linked his family identity with personal responsibility: "I am the grandson of the founder, and all Toyota cars carry my name. When the car gets hurt, I feel hurt too."

After this, Akio Toyoda served as president for 14 years but did not hand the position to his son. In late 2022, at the Buriram Circuit in Thailand, he asked Koji Sato, head of Lexus and GR: "Would you be willing to assume the presidency?"

Koji Sato officially took office in April 2023, and Akio Toyoda transferred to Chairman. According to his own words, an important reason for selecting Sato was that he was young, loved cars, and demonstrated Toyota's philosophy and way of doing things on the vehicle development frontline.

2026: Kenji Kondo Assumes Presidency

In February 2026, Toyota announced that Sato would transfer to Vice Chairman and Chief Industry Officer in April, with Kenji Kondo succeeding him as President and CEO.

This adjustment occurred amidst Toyota facing multiple pressures. The certification violation incident of 2024 is still testing the group's governance. At the same time, uncertainty in trade policy, costs, and industry competition is rising. Toyota listed improving profitability and reducing break-even sales volume as urgent tasks in official explanations and stated that Sato still needs to devote more energy to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association and industry collaboration.

Therefore, the change of command should not be simply understood as a negation of Sato's three-year term but more like a reorganization of responsibilities for operations and industry affairs.

Kenji Kondo's most important resume is serving as Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Toyota Motor Corporation. He has long engaged in finance and operation management, having served as Akio Toyoda's secretary early on, and later concurrently served as a Woven director and CFO.

These experiences concentratedly reflect his trust relationship with Akio Toyoda, financial expertise, and cross-departmental experience. According to Toyota's published division of labor, Sato will mainly be responsible for industry cooperation and external affairs, while Kenji Kondo will be responsible for corporate operations, profitability improvement, and reducing break-even sales volume.

From Akio Toyoda stepping down to Koji Sato and Kenji Kondo succeeding one after another, the presidential position was handed to non-family members twice. Akio Toyoda still serves as Chairman and Representative Director, continuing to exert influence in products, culture, group relations, and manager training.

This influence cannot be explained solely from shareholding ratios.

Akio Toyoda's personal shareholding is less than 0.2%, and the total family shareholding is also lower than 2%, making it impossible to influence the board of directors with majority shareholding. Toyota's current major shareholders are mainly trust banks, financial institutions, and group enterprises; family members don't even squeeze into the top ten shareholder seats.

Scholars researching Japanese family enterprises call names, reputation, internal relations, social networks, and long-term accumulated management knowledge "soft family assets." At Toyota, it is precisely these assets that allow the family to influence corporate culture and strategy even after shareholding is constantly diluted.

This influence is also constrained by shareholders. In 2024, dragged down by certification violations and corporate governance controversies, Akio Toyoda's shareholder support rate once fell to about 72%. In 2025, the support rate rose back to 96.72%. A surname can bring authority within the company but cannot exchange for unconditional support in the capital market.

Beyond the Surname, There Is Also a System

In Toyota's current company documents, there are no clauses like "Family Priority," "Primogeniture," or "Founding Family Reserved Seat."

According to Japanese company law and Toyota's governance structure, shareholder meetings are responsible for electing directors, and the board of directors selects representative directors from them and appoints positions such as Chairman and President. Akio Toyoda personally does not possess legal "power of transmission," and Daisuke Toyoda cannot directly inherit the presidency by a surname.

Toyota did not start disclosing president training and selection mechanisms only in 2026. As late as 2023, its comprehensive report and shareholder meeting notices had already listed links such as talent training, evaluation feedback, candidate determination, and external director participation. The 2026 shareholder meeting notice, combined with the appointment of Kenji Kondo, once again and more centrally explained how this mechanism works.

Potential candidates will be sent to serve as internal company presidents, regional CEOs, and functional heads, taking on management responsibilities in product, regional, and professional posts. Candidates will also demonstrate judgment, skills, and working style through regular operational discussions and frontline work. Independent external directors observe their execution through listening to internal heads and regional executive reports and visiting business sites.

 

Toyota also conducts interviews with over 40 management executives and senior management talents each year to understand their personal characteristics. Candidates receive comprehensive evaluations and 360-degree feedback from multiple superiors and relevant personnel annually, with evaluation results continuously accumulated for several years. Finally, candidates must also undergo individual interviews.

Final choices are deliberated by the executive appointment meeting.

This meeting currently has three members, including two independent external directors and one internal director, with external directors holding the majority. The meeting is responsible for discussing executive and director candidates, forming appointment plans, and then submitting them to the board of directors for a vote; director candidates must finally be handed to the shareholder meeting for formal election.

 

Toyota told The Financial Times that the company will not be subjected to "inappropriate influence" from the Toyota family, and family members joining the company must go through the same procedures as other employees. 

Beyond the system, personal trust still truly exists.

The fact that Koji Sato received the inquiry by the race track indicates that the formal nomination procedure cannot completely present the entire process of succession brewing. Long-term observation and personal trust still affect when candidates enter the formal procedure.

Akio Toyoda's arrangement for his son is constrained by company systems but also carries the consideration of family heritage.

When asked in 2025 whether Daisuke Toyoda would continue the family business, Akio Toyoda said: "He is my son, but also a completely different person." He does not want his son to replicate the path he walked but still hopes something can be passed down.

"The driver decides the flavor of the brand." 

Daisuke Toyoda has participated in endurance races and also participated in the vehicle evaluation of the Toyota GR GT flagship sports car from the concept stage. Official materials list him as one of the drivers involved in development evaluation. He has provided feedback to the engineering team on vehicle performance alongside Akio Toyoda, professional drivers, and internal evaluation drivers.

 

These experiences can prove he understands driving and products but cannot replace a complete management resume. In public materials, he has not yet independently been responsible for a global mass-produced model, nor has he managed a large factory, a major regional market, or a business requiring profit responsibility.

The position of Project Manager is therefore worth attention. Woven and Woven City gave him experience in software, partners, and future mobility. After returning to Toyota Motor, whether he can supplement the vehicle development and operation management resume depends on specific duties and actual results.

In 1936, Toyota proactively distanced itself from the family surname in brand spelling, hoping the automotive business would grow into a socially broader enterprise. Nearly ninety years later, the Toyota family has never truly exited this company, but they also did not guard a stable hereditary channel.

The founder was once forced to resign, professional managers held power for consecutive years, and family members also left the scene in disgrace due to illness. The presidential seat can be temporarily filled after a funeral or decided with a question by the side of a track, but finally, everything must go through corporate governance procedures and the test of operational results.

The Toyota surname offers an earlier opportunity to be seen and brings a more difficult responsibility to shoulder.

On August 1, 2026, Daisuke Toyoda will enter a department close to the vehicle development frontline as a project manager. For him, this is a position transition. Whether it is also a path to higher management positions, there is no answer yet.

Ditulis oleh | Liu Ying

Dikemaskini oleh | Huang Dalu

Reka bentuk oleh | Zhen Youmei

5 Jun 1950, Kiichiro Toyoda meletakkan jawatan Presiden. Pengasas yang membawa perniagaan loom keluarga ke dalam industri automotif ini, gagal menyerahkan syarikat terus ke tangan anak-anaknya.

Perdebatan antara pekerja dan majikan yang berlangsung selama dua bulan berakhir dengan penurunan kakitangan besar-besaran dan meletak jawat pengurusan, 2,146 orang pekerja meninggalkan syarikat, Timbalan Presiden dan Ahli Lajm Tetap juga meletak jawat pada hari yang sama dengan Kiichiro Toyoda. Lebih sebulan kemudian, Presiden Toyota Automatic Loom, Jiro Ishida, memegang jawatan Presiden Toyota Motor serentak, orang-orang seperti Mikio Nakagawa dari bank masuk ke dalam pasukan pengurusan baru.

Titik tolak berlaku pada hari ke-20 selepas Kiichiro Toyoda meletak jawatan.

Perang Korea pecah, tempahan trak tentera Amerika memberi pernafasan kepada Toyota yang hampir bangrap. Pada Mac 1951, tempahan terkumpul 4,679 unit, jumlah 3.66 bilion Yen. Kilang kembali beroperasi, akaun ada tunai semula. Awal 1952, syarikat bersedia memohon pengasas kembali memegang jawatan Presiden. Namun, sebelum pelantikan rasmi, Kiichiro Toyada meninggal dunia secara tiba-tiba, pada usia 57 tahun.

Momen pengganti Toyoda sering berlaku perubahan.

1967, Presiden Mikio Nakagawa sakit jantung ketika pulang dari perniagaan ke luar negara, jawatan Presiden hanya diambil selepas pengebumian berakhir. 1995, Akio Toyoda dihospijal selama setengah tahun kerana sakit, fasa kuasa keluarga sekali lagi terganggu. 2009, Akio Toyoda menerima tugas pada masa genting ketika syarikat dijangkakan kerugian operasi tahunan pertama sejak penubuhan, kemudian terlibat dalam satu krisis recalled paling serius dalam sejarah Toyota, dan pada 2010 menyertai Ryo Inaba, ketua Toyota Amerika Utara, mengahadungi Kongres Amerika.

Toyota juga pernah mengalami penyampaian yang tersembunyi.

Awal 2022, di litar Buriram, Thailand, Akio Toyoda bertanya kepada jurutera di sisinya, Koji Sato, sama ada dia bersedia mengambil jawatan Presiden. Sato rasmi dilantik pada April 2023. April 2026, dia berpangkat Timbalan Pengerusi dan Ketua Pengurusan Industri, Kenta Kondo mengambil jawatan Presiden dan Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif.

2026, satu lagi pergerakan人事 yang menyebabkan pihak luar berminat kepada generasi kelima keluarga, tetapi Toyota tidak mendefinisikannya sebagai persediaan penggantian.

1 Ogos 2026, anak lelaki 38 tahun Akio Toyoda, Taichi Toyoda, akan meninggalkan syarikat perisian yang dikajinya, Woven by Toyota, serta Woven City yang fasa pertama sudah digunakan, fasa kedua sedang dibina, kembali ke Toyota Motor. Dia tidak akan masuk ke Lembaga Pengarah, dan tidak mendapat gel eksekutif tinggi, tetapi masuk ke jabatan yang hampir dengan "tapak" (genba) pembangunan kenderaan sebagai pengurus projek. Toyota tidak mendedahkan jabatan dan model kereta spesifik.

Kini Toyota tidak mengumumkan sesiapa pengganti. Sejarah hampir sembilan puluh tahun syarikat ini membuktikan, nama boleh memberikan kredit ketika krisis, tetapi juga menimbulkan syak wasangka apabila peralihan kuasa.

Kembali ke Tapak Pembangunan Kenderaan Generasi Kelima

Woven City dibina di tapak kilang lama Toyota East Fuji, menguji kenderaan automotif, robot dan peralatan logistik dengan persekitaran bandar sebenar. September 2025, fasa pertama rasmi dibuka, penduduk pertama mula tinggal, syarikat kerjasama juga masuk fasa penciptaan bersama; fasa kedua masih sedang dibina.

Sebagai ahli pengasas Woven by Toyota, Timbalan Pengerusi dan ketua utama Woven City, Taichi Toyoda pernah memfokuskan mata ke luar industri kereta. Ditemui wawancara 2025, dia membandingkan bandar ini dengan pengasas perindustrian automotif, Kiichiro Toyoda yang dimasukkan ke fasa itu, dan mengajukan satu soalan: "Apabila kita benar-benar menjadi syarikat pengangkutan, adakah Toyota Motor masih menjadi teras kumpulan? Kita tidak tahu."

Dalam masa kurang setahun, dia mulakan langkah balik.

1 Jun 2026, Woven mengumumkan Taichi Toyoda akan berpindah ke Toyota Motor pada 1 Ogos. Pengumuman syarikat tidak mendedahkan jawatan baru. Penyampai Toyota kemudiannya mengesahkan kepada Reuters, dia akan menjadi pengurus projek, masuk jabatan dekat dengan "tapak" (genba) pembangunan kenderaan, tetapi menolak menjelaskan jabatan dan model kereta spesifik.

Ini bermakna fokus kerjanya akan berpindah dari platform ujian tahap bandar ke pembangunan kenderaan. Namun, kerana Toyota belum menjelaskan tanggungjawab spesifik, kini tidak dapat menilai sama ada dia akan bertanggungjawab secara bebas terhadap satu model kereta, juga tidak boleh mengesahkan ini adalah persediaan penggantian.

Bukan kali pertama dia masuk Toyota Motor. 2016, dia pernah bekerja di jabatan kejuruteraan kawalan elektronik, 2018 berpindah ke Toyota Research Institute. Selepas itu, kerjanya terutamanya fokus pada perisian, automotif dan pengangkutan masa depan.

Mulai dari Sakichi Toyoda, dia adalah generasi kelima keluarga. Jika mulai dari Kiichiro Toyoda pengasas Toyota Motor, dia adalah generasi keempat perindustrian kereta.

Tetapi sejarah pengganti Toyota, mulai dari Presiden pertama, tidak pernah diwarisi terus melalui garis keturunan.

1937, Presiden Pertama Bukan Kerabat Toyota Saji

Pada persidangan penubuhan Ogos 1937, bukan Kiichiro Toyoda yang membuka perniagaan kereta yang menjadi Presiden pertama, tetapi Toshiro Toyoda. Kiichiro memegang jawatan Timbalan Presiden, sehingga 1941 baru mengambil jawatan Presiden.

Toshiro asalnya bernama Rikurou Tamura, setelah kahwin dengan puteri sulung Sakichi Toyoda, Toyoda Aiye pada 1915, diadopsi oleh keluarga, baru bertukar nama kepada Toyoda. Dia berasal dari industri tenunan, lama menguruskan perniagaan keluarga, syarikat ditubuhkan duduk dengan mudah di jawatan Presiden.

Maksudnya, Presiden pertama Toyota Motor, adalah ahli keluarga, tetapi bukan keturunan langsung Sakichi Toyoda. Perkahwinan, adopsi, keupayaan pengurusan, kepercayaan keluarga, beberapa kekuatan bersama menentukan jawatan mana yang diterima.

Sempadan keluarga Toyota awal, memang lebih lebar daripada satu senarai keluarga garis lurus.

1936, perniagaan kereta secara aktif menarik diri dari nama keluarga. Logo yang dihantar ketika itu menerima kira-kira 27,000 hantaran, akhirnya nama jenama ditukar dari tulisan Katakana nama keluarga "トヨダ" (Toyoda) kepada "トヨタ" (Toyota), ejaan Rumi juga ditukar kepada "Toyota".

Alasan rasmi Toyota termasuk: nama baru menggunakan fonetik jelas, terdengar lebih jelas daripada "Toyoda"; tulisan Katakana "トヨタ" tepat lapan lukisan, sedangkan lapan lukisan dianggap berkaitan dengan kekayaan dan nasib baik. Perubahan nama ini juga melambangkan perusahaan akan bergerak dari syarikat bebas kecil ke syarikat berskala lebih besar.

 

Dalam bahasa Cina, "Toyoda" dan "Toyota" sama ditulis "Toyota", perbezaan halus ini mudah diabaikan. Tetapi penulisan semula nama Inggeris dan Jepun ini, membentuk garisan jelas, perusahaan datang dari keluarga Toyota, tetapi tidak boleh hanya milik keluarga Toyota.

Walaupun begitu, nama Toyota masih tertanam dalam darah syarikat. Sakichi Toyoda meninggalkan loom automatik dan konsep "hentikan jika terdapat anomali", Kiichiro Toyoda membawa pengumpulan teknologi keluarga ke kereta, dan melahirkan asalan produksi tepat masa. Selepas itu, Eiji Toyoda, Akio Toyoda, Akio Toyoda menyambung memajukan sistem produksi, pelan global dan perubahan produk.

Keluarga ini tidak pernah menyediakan pegangan majoriti yang stabil, tetapi naratif perindustrian yang merentasi beberapa generasi. Setiap kali syarikat masuk ke bidang asing atau menghadapi krisis besar, nama Toyota, akan kembali didorong ke hadapan. Namun setelah ujian sebenar pertama yang melibatkan nyawa dan hidup, membuktikan syarikat sebenarnya boleh memohon keluarga pengasas turun dari kerusi pemandu.

1950, Pengasas Dipaksa Keluar Dari Barisan Pengurusan

Berikot musim bunga 1950, aliran tunai Toyota sudah mencapai had pecah. Selepas perang, ketegangan ekonomi menindas permintaan kereta, harga keluli dan bukan ferus naik tinggi, wakil bank duduk di meja mesyuarat bertentangan, menetapkan syarat重组 perniagaan, penurunan kakitangan, pisahkan jabatan jualan.

April 1950, syarikat jualan kereta Toyota ditubuhkan, pembuatan dan jualan berpisah, berpisah sehingga 32 tahun.

Pemisahan tidak segera memadam krisis.

Dari 11 April, antara majikan dan pekerja bersekolah gaji, penurunan dan penyelesaian pembinaan semula, orang di kedua-dua hujung meja perundingan hampir bertemu setiap hari,整整谈了两个月 (dibual selama dua bulan). Syarikat akhirnya menutup kilang Shibaura dan Kamata di Tokyo, 2,146 orang keluar, jumlah pekerja menurun dari 8,140 orang ke 5,994 orang, tempat kerja kosong di kawasan kilang sementara tiada orang mengisi, orang yang tinggal mesti menerima potongan gaji.

5 Jun, Kiichiro Toyoda dan Timbalan Presiden Kazuo Kumabe, Ahli Lajm Tetap Kihachiro Nishimura meletak jawat pada hari yang sama. Selepas mesyuarat khas 18 Julai, Presiden Toyota Automatic Loom Jiro Ishida memegang jawatan Presiden Toyota Motor serentak, Mikio Nakagawa dari bank masuk ke pengurusan.

 

Toyota Motor baru ditubuhkan 13 tahun, pengasas sudah kehilangan kuasa pengurusan.

20 hari selepas Kiichiro Toyoda meletak jawat, Perang Korea pecah. Tentera Amerika dengan cepat membeli trak Toyota, pada 31 Julai mengeluarkan 1,000 unit tempahan pertama, kemudiannya menambah 2,329 dan 1,350 unit, terkumpul 4,679 unit, jumlah 3.66 bilion Yen. Tempahan perang membuat Toyota yang baru mengalami penurunan, pemisahan dan perubahan pengurusan stabil.

 

Kiichiro Toyoda tidak segera kembali.

Selepas keluar, dia masih secara peribadi mengawal pembangunan kereta penumpang, meja kerja ada lakaran dan senarai bahagian. Awal 1952, operasi syarikat baik, Jiro Ishida mula mengatur memulihkannya. Menghadapi jemputan, dia hanya berkata: "Syarikat yang tidak membuat kereta penumpang, tidak layak sebagai pengeluar kereta."

Ucapan ini terdengar keras, Eiji Toyada kemudian mengingat, dalam hatinya sebenarnya sangat gembira.

Syarikat pada mulanya merancang pada Mesyuarat Umum 1952 Julai secara rasmi mengumumkan dia kembali, projek kereta penumpang baru juga sudah dimulakan pada Januari tahun itu. Namun 27 Mac, Kiichiro Toyoda meninggal dunia tiba-tiba, pelan pemulihan henti tiba-tiba, majlis sambutan yang dirancang akhirnya tidak dijalankan. Kereta Crown yang kemudian menjadi model utama Toyota, pengembangan juga dimulakan pada tempoh ini.

Pengasas mewujudkan sendiri perniagaan kereta, tetapi pada ketika paling sukar syarikat dipaksa keluar, tempahan datang selepas dia pergi, syarikat bersedia menariknya kembali, dia meninggal dunia secara tiba-tiba.

Penggantian pertama Toyota, gagal diselesaikan. Syarikat diteruskan oleh pengurus profesional, keluarga pengasas pada masa panjang menarik ke pinggir kuasa, menunggu titik tolak seterusnya.

1967-1995, Penggantian Tiba-tiba

13 Oktober 1967, Presiden Toyota Mikio Nakagawa selesai mesyuarat seharian di Tokyo, menaiki kenderaan pulang ke Nagoya. Tengah malam, sakit jantung tiba-tiba, tidak menunggu pagi.

Syarikat tidak mengumumkan pengganti pada esoknya. Karena masih ada direksi perwakilan lain menjaga operasi, jawatan Presiden sementara kosong. Sehingga 30 Oktober setelah pengebumian berakhir, Timbalan Presiden Eiji Toyoda baru rasmi mengambil jawatan.

Eiji Toyoda adalah sepupu Kiichiro Toyoda. Dia lama bekerja di kilang dan sistem teknologi, bersama Ono Norio memajukan Toyota Production System menjadi matang. Sebelum didorong ke jawatan tertinggi, dia sudah bekerja di syarikat selama puluhan tahun.

Dia kemudian mengingat, jawatan本身 tidak membuat dia tidak selesa, "yang membuat saya terkejut, adalah perubahan sikap orang di sekeliling".

Penggantian tiba-tiba kali ini, tepat mencerminkan satu cara pengaruh keluarga Toyota yang tipikal: ahli keluarga tidak akan hanya凭借 keturunan duduk di jawatan tertinggi, tetapi ketika syarikat tiba-tiba kehilangan pemimpin, seseorang dengan pengalaman dalaman yang mendalam dan mewakili tradisi syarikat, lebih mudah diterima oleh pengurusan.

Eiji Toyoda menjadi Presiden 15 tahun, sehingga 1982 kedua-dua syarikat pembuatan dan jualan disatukan semula.

Waktu itu, gesaran perdagangan kereta Jepun-Amerika makin bertambah, Toyota mula mempertimbangkan produksi luar negara. Kos komunikasi yang dibawa pemisahan pembuatan dan jualan semakin tinggi, syarikat perlu menyatukan produk, modal, orang dan keputusan antarabangsa. Januari 1982, kedua-dua pihak tandatangan memorandum penyatuan, kemudian terus-tentangan memproses nisbah penyatuan, kerusi dewan, struktur organisasi.

Pukul 9.30 pagi 1 Julai, 53 eksekutif di ibu pejabat mengikuti majlis penubuhan syarikat baru. Eiji Toyoda dan Akio Toyoda bersama-sama mendedahkan papan tanda syarikat "Toyota Motor Corporation", sistem pembuatan dan jualan yang terpisah 32 tahun kembali menjadi satu.

Selepas dalam dewan direksi, Eiji Toyoda menjadi Pengerusi, Akio Toyoda anak Kiichiro Toyoda menjadi Presiden. Dalam surat untuk pekerja, Eiji Toyoda menulis: "Zaman pasca perang Toyota tamat."

Inilah satu pulangan sebenar keluarga, tetapi masih bukan penyerahan terus antara bapa dan anak. Selepas Kiichiro Toyoda keluar 1950, melalui Jiro Ishida, Mikio Nakagawa, Eiji Toyoda tiga Presiden, 32 tahun berlalu, anaknya baru duduk di jawatan Presiden selepas penyatuan.

Akio Toyoda kemudian memajukan produksi tempatan Amerika Utara. 1983, Toyota dengan General Motors menubuhkan syarikat pembuatan kereta gabungan baru (NUMMI). Adik dia Toyoda Tokuro mendalam menyertai sistem produksi Amerika Utara, dan 1992 mengambil jawatan Presiden.

Kuasa keluarga secara berurutan hanya bertahan tiga tahun.

Tokuro Toyoda lama terganggu masalah kesihatan, setelah dihospijal hampir setengah tahun 1995 meletak jawat, berpangkat Timbalan Pengerusi. Toyota tidak mencari ahli keluarga lain mengisi, sebaliknya orang yang bekerja di syarikat kira-kira 40 tahun, Shu Ohkura mengambil jawatan Presiden.

Seterusnya, Shu Ohkura, Fujio Cho, Takeo Hashimoto secara berurutan menguasai Toyota, pengurus profesional kuasa mencapai 14 tahun.

Keluarga tidak benar-benar keluar. Akio Toyoda terus memegang jawatan Pengerusi dan Pengeri Kehormat, dalam hubungan kumpulan dan arah besar mempunyai hak suara, operasi harian diserahkan kepada pengurus profesional yang dilatih dalaman.

Toyota membentuk satu struktur yang berulang: keluarga bertanggungjawab menyimpan sejarah, arah dan makna simbolik dalam krisis, pengurus profesional bertanggungjawab dalam organisasi besar mengekalkan kesinambungan operasi. Sempadan keduanya tidak jelas, tetapi lama saling menjaga keseimbangan.

2009, Keluarga Pulang Di Tengah Krisis

Akhir 2008, pasaran kewangan global penuh kebimbangan, nama Akio Toyoda mula kerap muncul dalam khabar pengganti.

Waktu itu krisis kewangan global dengan cepat menekan permintaan kereta, Toyota baru melebihi General Motors menjadi juara penjualan global, namun dijangkakan menghadapi kerugian operasi tahunan pertama sejak penubuhan. Adakah pada ketika ini memulihkan kuasa keluarga semula, dalam syarikat ada pendapat berbeza.

Berikut Reuters lapor pada ketika itu, Fujio Cho, Shu Ohkura, Akio Toyoda dan orang penting lain pernah menilai, adakah terlebih dahulu susun pengurus peralihan, membiarkan Akio Toyoda kumpulkan pengalaman beberapa tahun. Akhirnya, Toyota memilih langsung membiarkan Akio Toyoda berusia 52 tahun mengambil jawatan.

Namanya, adalah talisman, juga satu rantai.

Akio Toyoda masuk syarikat 1984, ayah dia Akio Toyada mengingatkan dia, tiada siapa yang ingin menjadi "bawahan anak Presiden". Banyak pekerja lama mengekalkan jarak dengannya, dia berpindah produksi, jualan, kilang gabungan Amerika Utara, perniagaan Asia dan China, meja kerja berulang kali pindah, 2000 baru masuk dewan direksi, 2009 rasmi mengambil jawatan Presiden.

Tidak lama selepas naik, krisis recalled besar datang. 2009 hingga 2011, lebih 10 juta unit kereta Toyota di recall kerana masalah pedal gas dan tikar. 2010, Akio Toyoda bersama Ryo Inaba, ketua Toyota Amerika Utara hadir mendengar sidang Kongres Amerika.

Dalam sidang itu, dia mengaitkan identiti keluarga dengan tanggungjawab peribadi: "Saya cucu pengasas, semua kereta Toyota membawa nama saya. Apabila kereta terluka, saya juga merasa terluka."

Akio Toyada kemudian menjadi Presiden 14 tahun, tetapi tidak memberikan jawatan kepada anaknya. Akhir 2022, di litar Buriram, Thailand, dia bertanya kepada Koji Sato, ketua Lexus dan GR: "Adakah anda bersedia mengambil jawatan Presiden?"

Koji Sato rasmi naik jawatan April 2023, Akio Toyada berpangkat Pengerusi. Menurut kata dia sendiri, alasan penting memilih Sato ialah dia muda, cintakan kereta, dan dalam barisan pembangunan kenderaan menunjukkan konsep dan cara beraksi Toyota.

2026, Kenta Kondo Mengambil Jawatan Presiden

Februari 2026, Toyota mengumumkan Sato akan berpangkat Timbalan Pengerusi dan Ketua Pengurusan Industri pada April, Kenta Kondo mengambil jawatan Presiden dan Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif.

Penyesuaian ini berlaku di tengah tekanan berganda Toyota. 2024 peristiwa kelulusan tidak benar masih menguji pengurusan kumpulan. Serentak itu, dasar perdagangan, kos dan ketidakpastian persaingan industri meningkat. Toyota dalam keterangan rasmi menetapkan peningkatan kececahan keuntungan, menurunkan titik impas sebagai tugas genting, dan menyatakan Sato perlu lebih banyak tenaga masuk ke Persatuan Industri Kereta Jepun dan kerjasama industri.

Penukaran komander ini kerana tidak sesuai difahami sebagai penafian terhadap tempoh 3 tahun Sato, lebih seperti penyusunan semula tanggungjawab terhadap operasi dan perniagaan industri.

Pengalaman paling penting Kenta Kondo, adalah memegang jawatan eksekutif Toyota Motor HQ, Ketua Kewangan. Dia lama bekerja dalam kewangan dan pengurusan operasi, awal pernah menjadi setiausaha Akio Toyada, kemudian juga memegang Woven direksi dan Ketua Kewangan.

Pengalaman ini secara berkumpulan menunjukkan hubungan kepercayaan dengan Akio Toyada, kepakaran kewangan dan pengalaman lintas jabatan. Mengikut pembahagian kerja yang diumumkan Toyota, Sato akan terutamanya bertanggungjawab kerjasama industri dan urusan luar, Kenta Kondo pula bertanggungjawab operasi syarikat, peningkatan kececahan keuntungan dan penurunan titik impas.

Dari Akio Toyada meletak jawat, hingga Koji Sato dan Kenta Kondo secara berurutan mengambil jawat, jawatan Presiden dua kali diserahkan kepada bukan ahli keluarga. Akio Toyada masih memegang Pengerusi dan Direksi Perwakilan, dalam produk, budaya, hubungan kumpulan dan latihan pengurus terus memainkan pengaruh.

Pengaruh ini, hanya dari nisbah pegangan saham tidak dapat dijelaskan.

Pegangan saham peribadi Akio Toyada kurang 0.2%, pegangan saham keluarga Toyota juga kurang 2%, tidak dapat melalui majoriti saham mempengaruhi dewan direksi. Pemegang saham utama Toyota kini terutamanya信托银行, institusi kewangan dan syarikat kumpulan, ahli keluarga bahkan tidak masuk 10 pemegang saham teratas.

Ilmuwan yang mengkaji perusahaan keluarga Jepun, menamakan nama, reputasi, hubungan dalaman, rangkaian sosial dan pengetahuan pengurusan terkumpul jangka panjang sebagai "aset keluarga lunak". Dalam Toyota, aset inilah yang walaupun pegangan saham keluarga terus tercair, masih dapat mempengaruhi budaya dan strategi syarikat.

Pengaruh ini juga terhalang oleh pemegang saham. 2024, kerana ditarik turun oleh peristiwa kelulusan tidak benar dan perbahasan pengurusan, sokongan pemegang saham Akio Toyada sekali jatuh ke sekitar 72%. 2025, sokongan pulih ke 96.72%. Nama boleh memberikan autoriti dalam syarikat, tetapi tidak menukar sokongan tanpa syarat pasaran modal.

Luar Nama, Juga Ada Satu Sistem

Dalam dokumen syarikat Toyota semasa, tidak boleh ditemui istilah "prioriti keluarga", "anak sulung mewarisi" atau "keluarga pengasas simpan kerusi" seumpama.

Semenjak undang-undang syarikat Jepun dan struktur pengurusan Toyota, mesyuarat umum memilih direksi, dewan direksi darinya memilih direksi perwakilan, dan melantik Pengerusi, Presiden dan lain-lain jabatan. Akio Toyada tidak mempunyai kuasa "warisan" secara undang-undang, Taichi Toyada juga tidak boleh melalui satu nama mengambil jawatan Presiden secara langsung.

Toyota bukan baru pada 2026 mula mendedahkan mekanisme latihan dan pemilihan Presiden. Paling lewat pada 2023, laporan gabungan dan notifikasi mesyuarat umum sudah menyenaraikan latihan, penilaian maklum balas, penentuan calon dan penyertaan direksi luar. Notifikasi mesyuarat umum 2026, menggabungkan pelantikan Kenta Kondo, sekali lagi, lebih terpusat menjelaskan bagaimana mekanisme ini berfungsi.

Calon berpotensi akan dihantar menjadi Presiden syarikat dalaman, CEO wilayah dan ketua fungsi, memikul tanggungjawab operasi dalam produk, wilayah dan jabatan profesional. Calon juga akan melalui perbincangan operasi berkala dan kerja hadapan menunjukkan pertimbangan, kemahiran dan cara beraksi. Direksi luar bebas melalui mendengar laporan ketua dalaman dan eksekutif wilayah, lawatan lokasi operasi dan lain-lain cara mengobservasi pelaksanaan.

 

Toyota setiap tahun juga akan dengan 40 orang lebih pengurus operasi dan bakat pengurusan senior berbual, memahami ciri peribadi mereka. Calon setiap tahun menerima penilaian komprehensif daripada beberapa atasan dan orang berkaitan serta maklum balas 360 darjah, hasil penilaian terkumpul bertahun. Akhirnya calon juga mesti menerima berbual individu.

Pilihan akhir oleh mesyuarat pelantikan eksekutif dipertimbangkan.

Mesyuarat ini pada saat ini ada tiga orang ahli, termasuk dua direksi luar bebas dan satu direksi dalaman, direksi luar memegang majoriti. Mesyuarat ini bertanggungjawab membincangkan calon eksekutif dan direksi, membentuk pelantikan cadangan, kemudian menyerahkan dewan direksi untuk undian, calon direksi akhirnya diserahkan mesyuarat umum untuk pilihan rasmi.

 

Toyota menyatakan kepada "Financial Times", syarikat tidak akan dipengaruhi "tidak sewajarnya" oleh keluarga Toyota, ahli keluarga masuk syarikat juga perlu melalui prosedur sama seperti pekerja lain.

Selain sistem, kepercayaan peribadi masih wujud nyata.

Kisah Sato menerima soalan di tepi litar menunjukkan, prosedur pelantikan rasmi tidak boleh lengkap menunjukkan keseluruhan proses penyediaan pengganti. Pengamatan panjang dan kepercayaan peribadi, masih akan mempengaruhi bila calon masuk prosedur rasmi.

Pengaturan Akio Toyada kepada anaknya, juga diikat oleh sistem syarikat, juga ada pertimbangan warisan keluarga.

2025 ditanya adakah Taichi Toyada akan meneruskan perniagaan keluarga, Akio Toyada berkata: "Dia anak saya, tetapi juga orang yang sama sekali berbeza." Dia tidak ingin anaknya meniru jalan yang dilaluinya, tetapi masih berharap ada satu perkara yang boleh diwarisi.

"Pemandu utama, adalah orang yang menentukan rasa jenama."

Taichi Toyada pernah mengikuti lumba ketahanan, juga dari fasa konsep menyertai Toyota GR GT kereta sukan utama penilaian kenderaan. Bahan rasmi senaraikannya sebagai salah seorang pembalap penyertaan pembangunan penilaian, dia pernah bersama Akio Toyada, pembalap profesional dan pemacu penilaian dalaman, bersama-sama memberi maklum balas kepada pasukan kejuruteraan tentang prestasi kenderaan.

 

Pengalaman ini boleh membuktikan dia faham memandu, faham produk, tetapi tidak menggantikan satu pengalaman operasi lengkap. Dalam资料 rasmi, dia belum pernah secara bebas bertanggungjawab satu model kereta jualan global, juga belum pernah menguruskan kilang besar, pasaran wilayah utama, atau satu perniagaan yang perlu memikul tanggungjawab keuntungan.

Jawatan pengurus projek ini kerana perlu mendapat perhatian. Woven dan Woven City memberinya pengalaman perisian, rakan kongsi dan pengangkutan masa depan. Setelah kembali ke Toyota Motor, adakah dia boleh melengkapi pengalaman pembangunan kereta keseluruhan dan pengurusan operasi, masih bergantung pada tanggungjawab spesifik dan hasil sebenar.

1936, Toyota dalam ejaan jenama secara aktif menarik diri dari nama keluarga, mengharapkan perniagaan kereta boleh tumbuh menjadi satu syarikat sosial pada makna yang lebih luas. Hampir sembilan puluh tahun berlalu, keluarga Toyota tidak pernah benar-benar keluar syarikat ini, tetapi mereka juga tidak berjaga satu laluan warisan yang mantap.

Pengasas pernah dipaksa meletak jawat, pengurus profesional pernah berkuasa bertahun-tahun berurutan, ahli keluarga juga pernah meninggalkan secara sunyi kerana sakit. Jawatan Presiden boleh diisi sementara selepas pengebumian, juga boleh ditetapkan dengan satu soalan di tepi litar, tetapi akhirnya, semuanya perlu melalui prosedur pengurusan syarikat, dan ujian hasil operasi.

Nama Toyota memberikan satu peluang yang lebih awal dilihat, juga membawa satu tanggungjawab yang lebih sukar untuk dilepaskan.

1 Ogos 2026, Taichi Toyada akan masuk jabatan dekat dengan tapak pembangunan kenderaan sebagai pengurus projek. Baginya, ini adalah peralihan jawatan. Adakah ia juga satu laluan menuju jawatan pengurusan lebih tinggi, kini belum ada jawapan.