Toshiba top executive decides to step down

TOKYO

Toshiba’s Chief Executive Satoshi Tsunakawa is stepping down, as the embattled Japanese technology giant seeks to restructure and restore its reputation.

Tsunakawa will be replaced by Taro Shimada, an executive officer and corporate senior vice president, under a decision made at a Toshiba board meeting yesterday, the Tokyo-based company said.

Shimada was an executive at Siemens, both in Japan and the U.S., before joining Toshiba Corp. in 2018.

He faces the challenge of leading a restructuring plan that’s drawn criticism from shareholders.

In February, Toshiba said it plans to split into two companies, one focused on infrastructure and the other on devices.

The proposal is still subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. An extraordinary shareholders’ meeting is set for March 24, when the reform plan will be put to a vote.

Toshiba scrapped its earlier proposal for a three-way split, which was not popular with shareholders, including foreign funds.

Toshiba was one of Japan’s most revered brands but has been struggling since the Fukushima nuclear disaster in March 2011. A tsunami sent three reactors into meltdowns, spewing radiation over an area that’s still partly a no-go zone.

The company’s reputation was also tarnished by an accounting scandal, which involved books being doctored for years.

Founded in 1875, Toshiba was a manufacturing pioneer for everything from electric rice cookers to laptop computers.

It also invented flash memory, although that division was sold off as its fortunes tumbled.