Hiroshi Okuda, Who Led Toyota's Global Rise, Dies at 93

Hiroshi Okuda, the former chief executive of Toyota Motor Corp. who guided the Japanese automaker's rise into a global powerhouse, has died at 93, the company confirmed Wednesday.

Company spokeswoman Shino Yamada said Okuda had died but that the date and cause of death were not immediately available. Major Japanese companies are on summer break this week.

Okuda served as president and then chairman of Toyota from 1995 through 2006, during a 45-year career at the company. He is especially remembered for leading development of the gas-electric hybrid Prius, introduced in 1997, a groundbreaking model at the time that became a symbol of the auto industry's push toward greener driving.

Born in central Japan, near Toyota's headquarters, Okuda graduated from Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo in 1955 with a degree in business. He was unusual among Toyota's top leadership in not being a member of the founding Toyoda family.

Okuda oversaw Toyota's global expansion, including new manufacturing plants in the United States and Europe, as the company's growth contributed to the decline of the American "Big Three" automakers — General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. He often spoke of the auto industry's global interconnectedness, using the word "harmony" to describe his vision.

He also pushed for promoting younger managers within Toyota's traditionally hierarchical corporate culture. "A company must change when things are going well. There's no point in trying to change after things start going bad," he told reporters in 2005.

Okuda later led major Japanese business organizations, including the Japan Business Federation, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, the Prime Minister's Economic Strategy Council and the Japan Federation of Employers' Associations.

Toyota did not immediately release details on surviving family. Funeral arrangements are being handled privately, with a public ceremony possibly to follow, the company said.