December 21, 2006 – New York – Toyota today announced new management
assignments for executives at Toyota Motor North America, Inc. (TMA).
TMA, the North American subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC), is headquartered
in New York, with offices in Washington, D.C. and Miami, Florida, and is the
holding company for Toyota's North American sales, engineering and manufacturing
operating units.
"The changes we're announcing today will allow TMA to better serve Toyota's
North American affiliates and enhance the coordination, speed and productivity
of our North American operations," said Jim Press, president of TMA. "I
commend all TMA associates for their hard work and dedication and look forward
to a successful 2007."
Among the new assignments include:
• Steve Sturm will be joining TMA as Group Vice President of Americas
Strategic Research and Planning and Corporate Communications, effective January
1, 2007. In this role, Steve will be responsible for corporate strategy and
planning, strategic research across the Americas and image research. He will
also have responsibility for corporate advertising and marketing communications,
as well as media and investor relations. (New York, Miami)
• Shigeru Handa will assume a new role as Group Vice President & Coordinating
Officer for Americas Strategic Research & Planning. (New York, Miami)
• Pat Pineda, in her new role as Group Vice President, Philanthropy &
Administration, and General Counsel, will assume responsibility for all administration,
including accounting and finance, legal affairs, facilities, and day to day
IT support, in addition to her current role managing human resources, philanthropy,
and the Toyota USA Foundation.
• Anna Schneider is promoted to Vice President Government Affairs and
Deputy to the Group Vice President. (Washington)
• Bob Wimmer is promoted to National Manager Technical & Regulatory
Affairs – Environment. (Washington)
• Robert Chiappetta is promoted to Manager in the Government Affairs Group.
(Washington)
• Donna Rhudy is promoted to Manager in the Government Affairs Group.
(Washington)
• Thibaut de Barros Conti is promoted to Manager in the Americas Strategic
Planning and Research Group. (New York)
• Trina Ewald is promoted to Assistant Manager in Investor & Media
Relations. (New York)
• Chris Santucci is promoted to Assistant Manager in Technical and Regulatory
Affairs – Safety. (Washington)
Toyota (NYSE:TM) established operations in North America in 1957 and will operate
15 manufacturing plants in North America by 2008. There are more than 1,700
Toyota, Lexus and Scion dealerships in North America which sell more than 2.5
million vehicles a year. Toyota directly employs over 39,000 in North America
and its investment here is currently valued at more than $17.6 billion, including
sales and manufacturing operations, research and development, financial services
and design. Toyota's annual purchasing of parts, materials, goods and services
from North American suppliers totals more than $29 billion. According to a 2005
Center for Automotive Research study, Toyota, along with its dealers and suppliers,
has generated nearly 400,000 U.S. jobs, including jobs created through spending
by direct, dealer and suppliers employees. For more information about Toyota,
visit www.toyota.com.
