Makoto Uchida

Makoto Uchida
Born	Makoto Uchida 20 7, 1966
Birthplace	Japan
Nationality	Japanese
Occupation	Business executive
Title	CEO of Nissan Motor Company (2019–2025)
Known for	Leading Nissan Motor Company as CEO during a period of corporate crisis and attempted restructuring
Education	Doshisha University

Makoto Uchida (Template:Lang, Uchida Makoto; born July 20, 1966) is a Japanese business executive who served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Nissan Motor Company from December 2019 until April 1, 2025. Appointed in the turbulent aftermath of the arrest and ouster of former chairman Carlos Ghosn, Uchida was tasked with stabilizing one of Japan's largest automakers during a period of deep corporate crisis, declining profitability, and strained alliance relations with Renault. A relatively little-known senior vice president overseeing Nissan's China operations at the time of his appointment, Uchida rose to the top of the company at a moment when few within its executive ranks were willing or able to take on the role. His tenure was marked by ambitious restructuring plans, the exploration and ultimate failure of a merger with Honda Motor Company, and his eventual departure as Nissan continued to face severe financial difficulties. He was succeeded as CEO by Ivan Espinosa, Nissan's chief planning officer, on April 1, 2025.

Early Life

Makoto Uchida was born on July 20, 1966, in Japan. Details regarding his family background and upbringing have not been widely reported in public sources. Uchida grew up during a period of rapid economic growth in Japan and came of age in an era when the Japanese automotive industry was establishing itself as a dominant global force.

Education

Uchida attended Doshisha University, a private university located in Kyoto, Japan, where he completed his undergraduate studies. Doshisha University, founded in 1875, is one of Japan's leading private institutions of higher education. Further details about his specific area of study or any additional academic qualifications have not been widely documented.

Career

Early Career and Rise at Nissan

Prior to his appointment as CEO, Uchida built a long career within the Nissan organization. He held various positions within the company's operations, developing expertise in international markets. By the late 2010s, Uchida had risen to the position of senior vice president and was serving as the head of Nissan's business operations in China, one of the company's most important markets globally. His role in managing Nissan's Chinese joint venture gave him significant experience in overseeing large-scale operations in a complex and competitive market environment.

Despite his seniority, Uchida was not widely known outside of Nissan's internal leadership circles prior to his appointment as CEO. His relatively low public profile would become a defining characteristic of his selection — he was viewed as an insider capable of navigating the company's internal politics while also possessing substantive operational experience.

Appointment as CEO

Uchida's appointment as CEO was announced on October 8, 2019, by Nissan's board of directors. The appointment came approximately ten months after the dramatic November 2018 arrest of Carlos Ghosn, the powerful chairman who had led the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi Alliance for nearly two decades. Ghosn's arrest on charges of financial misconduct had plunged Nissan into a protracted governance crisis, damaged its alliance relationships, and exposed deep divisions within the company's leadership.

The process of selecting a new CEO had been tumultuous. Hiroto Saikawa, who had initially taken over as CEO following Ghosn's arrest, was himself forced to resign in September 2019 after admitting to receiving excess compensation. The search for a successor involved a special committee of the board, which ultimately settled on Uchida as a consensus candidate.

As reported by The New York Times, Uchida's selection was accompanied by the appointment of Ashwani Gupta as chief operating officer (COO). This leadership structure was designed to distribute executive authority more broadly, a deliberate departure from the highly centralized power that Ghosn had wielded. The Globe and Mail also reported on the dual appointment, noting that the new leadership team was expected to repair the strained relationship with alliance partner Renault while simultaneously addressing Nissan's deteriorating financial performance.

Uchida officially assumed the CEO role in December 2019, just months before the global COVID-19 pandemic would further disrupt the automotive industry worldwide.

Restructuring Efforts and the Nissan NEXT Plan

Upon taking office, Uchida inherited a company in significant distress. Nissan was suffering from declining sales, falling profits, excess production capacity, and an aging vehicle lineup — problems that many analysts attributed to the aggressive expansion strategy pursued under Ghosn's leadership. The company's global sales had been declining, and its profit margins were under severe pressure.

In a 2020 interview, Uchida discussed his vision for the company's turnaround and the challenges of leading Nissan through a period of transformation. Under Uchida's leadership, Nissan launched the "Nissan NEXT" transformation plan, which aimed to rationalize the company's global operations, reduce costs, close underperforming plants, and refocus its product lineup on core markets and models where Nissan could compete effectively.

The restructuring plan included significant cost-cutting measures and a reduction in global production capacity. Uchida sought to shift Nissan's strategy away from the volume-focused approach of the Ghosn era toward one that prioritized profitability and sustainability. The plan also emphasized the development of electric vehicles and advanced technology as key pillars of Nissan's future competitiveness.

However, the implementation of these plans was complicated by external headwinds, including the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions affecting the global semiconductor supply, and intensifying competition in the electric vehicle market from both established automakers and new entrants such as Tesla and Chinese manufacturers.

Alliance Management and Honda Merger Discussions

A critical dimension of Uchida's tenure was managing Nissan's relationships within the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, the global automotive partnership that had been forged by Ghosn. The arrest and flight of Ghosn — who eventually fled Japan to Lebanon in late 2019 — had severely damaged trust between the alliance partners, and Uchida was charged with rebuilding these relationships on a more equitable footing.

During the later years of Uchida's tenure, as Nissan's financial performance continued to struggle, the company entered into discussions with Honda Motor Company about a potential merger or deep strategic partnership. The talks, which were publicly disclosed, represented one of the most dramatic potential consolidations in the history of the Japanese automotive industry. A combination of Nissan and Honda would have created a formidable global automotive group, potentially better positioned to compete in the era of electric and autonomous vehicles.

However, the merger discussions ultimately collapsed. According to multiple reports, the negotiations failed to produce an agreement that was acceptable to both parties. The failure of the Honda merger was widely reported as a significant factor in the subsequent leadership changes at Nissan, with WardsAuto reporting that Uchida was effectively "ousted" following the failed talks.

Continuing Financial Challenges

Despite the restructuring efforts under the Nissan NEXT plan, Nissan continued to face serious financial challenges throughout Uchida's tenure. The company's competitive position was eroded by several factors, including the rapid rise of Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers, a loss of market share in key markets including China and the United States, and an inability to bring competitive new electric and hybrid models to market quickly enough to match consumer demand trends.

By late 2024 and early 2025, Nissan's financial situation had become increasingly precarious. The company reported significant losses and declining revenues, raising questions about the effectiveness of the turnaround strategy and Uchida's continued leadership. The collapse of the Honda merger talks compounded these concerns, as the partnership had been seen by many investors and analysts as a potential lifeline for the struggling automaker.

Departure from Nissan

On March 11, 2025, Nissan announced that Uchida would step down as CEO effective April 1, 2025. The announcement was part of a broader leadership shakeup in which five senior executives departed the company. Uchida was succeeded by Ivan Espinosa, Nissan's chief planning officer, who had overseen global product planning and motorsports operations since April 2024.

The official announcement from Nissan's newsroom confirmed the appointment of Espinosa as representative executive officer, president, and CEO.

AP News reported that Uchida relinquished his position after the company had reported significant financial losses. CarScoops reported that Uchida stepped down "after failing to secure the automaker's future," characterizing his departure as a consequence of the company's inability to find a sustainable path forward during his tenure.

Reuters reported in May 2025 that Uchida's successor, Ivan Espinosa, announced plans that doubled the cost-cutting targets set under Uchida's leadership, describing Espinosa's route as "more credible" than the plans of his predecessor.

Post-Departure Compensation

In May 2025, Kyodo News reported that four former Nissan top executives, including Uchida, received a combined total of 646 million yen (approximately $4.5 million) in severance pay. The report attracted attention given Nissan's continuing financial difficulties and the scale of losses the company had reported prior to the leadership change.

Personal Life

Uchida has maintained a relatively private personal life throughout his career. Detailed information about his family, personal interests, or activities outside of his professional responsibilities has not been widely documented in publicly available sources. During his tenure as Nissan's CEO, he was based in Yokohama, Japan, where Nissan's global headquarters are located.

Legacy

Makoto Uchida's tenure as CEO of Nissan is defined by the extraordinary circumstances under which he assumed the role and the formidable challenges he faced throughout his time leading the company. Appointed in the aftermath of one of the most dramatic corporate scandals in recent Japanese business history, Uchida was charged with simultaneously stabilizing Nissan's governance, repairing alliance relationships, and reversing the company's financial decline.

His leadership of the Nissan NEXT transformation plan represented a significant strategic pivot away from the volume-driven expansion model of the Ghosn era, emphasizing instead profitability, operational efficiency, and investment in electrification and advanced technology. However, the company's financial performance continued to deteriorate during his tenure, and the failure of the Honda merger talks underscored the difficulty of finding a viable strategic path for Nissan as an independent entity in an increasingly consolidated global automotive industry.

The scale of the challenges Uchida faced — including a global pandemic, semiconductor shortages, the rapid ascent of Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers, and the legacy of Nissan's governance crisis — was extraordinary by any measure. His successor, Ivan Espinosa, inherited a company still in significant financial distress and announced plans for more aggressive cost reductions than those pursued under Uchida.

Uchida's departure marked the end of a period of leadership transition at Nissan that began with the arrest of Carlos Ghosn in November 2018 and lasted more than six years. His tenure illustrated the difficulties inherent in leading a major global corporation through a period of simultaneous internal crisis and profound industry transformation.