Toyota Shareholders Approve First Non-Japanese Board Member
June 22, 2007

Perfunctory yet historic, Toyota Motor Corp. appointed American Jim Press, the first non-Japanese person, to its board of directors.

Toyota had announced the appointment months ago but shareholders made it official yesterday at the company’s annual meeting in Japan.

The appointment comes as Toyota overtakes General Motors in global sales, its Toyota Division surpasses Ford as the No. 2-selling nameplate in the U.S. last month, and sales and market share are growing at the expense of U.S. makers.

In an exclusive one-on-one interview with AutoObserver in April, Press, promoted a year ago to become the first American to head Toyota Motor North America, shrugged off the appointment to Toyota’s board as an evolution and inevitable as the carmaker grows as a global company with the bulk of its sales outside of Japan.

Press said then he saw his role as a conduit for communications between Toyota in North America and back to Japan and from Japan back to North America. What Press didn’t say but is implied in his appointment is his role as dampening political backlash against Toyota.

As head of Toyota Motor Sales, Press saw the birth and growth of the Lexus luxury division, the introduction of hybrids, the invention of Scion and the Camry attain the title of No. 1-selling car in America.

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