Nissan to dismiss Carlos Ghosn after nearly 2 decades of leadership

TOKYO, Apr 8, 2019, Kyodo. Nissan Motor Co. was poised to remove Carlos Ghosn from its board after it secures approval at a shareholders’ meeting that started Monday, putting an end to nearly two decades of his leadership that saved the company from the brink of collapse and led to its re-emergence as one of the biggest global carmakers, reported the Kyodo News.

At an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting, Nissan will propose the dismissal of Ghosn as a director, after ousting him as chairman following his arrest. Its two alliance partners, Renault SA and Mitsubishi Motors Corp., have said Ghosn will step down as director in June.

Nissan will also ask shareholders to approve the removal of Ghosn’s close aide Greg Kelly as director and the appointment of Renault Chairman Jean-Dominique Senard as a board member, in the first such meeting since Ghosn and Kelly were arrested in November over alleged financial misconduct.

Ghosn’s removal will mark a dramatic break for Nissan from the growth strategy pursued under his charismatic leadership and pose a challenge for its future success in an industry that is experiencing a rapidly changing competitive environment.

The new management team will start working on measures to enhance its corporate governance as an urgent task. A third-party committee has made proposals including tapping outside directors as board members and creating committees to oversee executive remuneration and appointments.

The committee said earlier in a report that “the primary root cause” of the alleged misconduct “was the concentration of all authority in Mr. Ghosn, including those regarding human affairs and compensation issues.”