CEO Today Hall of Fame

HALL OF FAME 3 www.ceotodaymagazine.com Tell us about the goals and objectives that you’re arriving with as the new President and CEO of Canon EMEA? What excites you about your new role? As one of three global regions for Canon, our contribution in EMEA is critical in ensuring the overall success of our organisation. Regardless of leadership style, most people understand that goals and objectives must lead towards growth with profit. My overall objective is to make sure we do that whilst staying agile and adapting to changing market trends and dynamics both in our core and new growth areas. I often talk about my personal philosophy. These are a set of words that summarise lessons I have learned throughout my career and shape me as the person I am today. I think they accurately describe who I am. They are: Respect, Fairness, be effective & efficient, customer orientated, and teamwork. Regardless of what part of the world you live in and what culture you come from, in my experience if you keep these things front of mind, you’ll be heading in the right direction. What was the process of transitioning from your role as a President and COO for Canon USA to your new role like? What were some of the challenges that you were faced with? Whenever I heard stories about Canon in EMEA, I drew my own conclusions about how business was conducted and on how it differed from my business in the United States. The reality is – what has really stood out for me – has been the real passion for the company; most people I meet genuinely care about Canon and the state of the business, and want to contribute to that. Getting up to speed with the diverse markets, cultures and management styles across Europe, Middle East and Africa is an obvious challenge however it’s also an opportunity to find the commonalities and best practises that exist with our businesses in other regions around the world. There are many leadership styles, good and bad. I keep it simple; stick to your beliefs and principles and just ‘be yourself’. Have a vision and a passion and then do things your own way, because if you don’t, you will not be authentic and without that, you can’t gain trust. What are your tips for a smooth and effective CEO transition? Very straightforward in some ways. There are many people in Canon EMEA (approx. 17,000), and many of those have been with the company for a long time. I’ve spent most of my career in Canon USA, but I am still hungry to learn new things; so, whilst I can bring innovative ideas and best practices from other parts of the world, I can also learn from my colleagues who have always worked in Europe and I’m excited to get to know and understand the region. Listening to and trusting your team is a good place to start. I would also add that leadership transitions present a good opportunity to question things. New leaders have a short but unique opportunity to ask ‘Why?’ Why are we doing things in a certain way? Just because we’ve always done things one way, doesn’t mean that we should continue to them the same way if they are not effective. New leaders should question everything. Yuichi Ishizuka began his Canon career in 1981 with the Camera Division and has since served in a variety of roles, most recently as President & COO of Canon USA. He’s spent 33 years of his career in North America which has given him a unique perspective on the importance of our international business and global footprint. Four months ago, he moved to London where he now serves as President and CEO for Canon in EMEA. Most people are familiar with the Canon brand: they are a global provider of digital imaging technologies for consumers, businesses and industry with almost 200,000 employees across the globe. Innovation is always at the top of their agenda, they invest approximately 7% of revenues annually in R&D, consistently make the top three in US registered patents and have a global ‘always on’ R&D network. We at CEO Today were delighted to speak with Mr. Ishizuka about his work and experience, Canon’s history, and what’s in sight for the future. DEVELOPING INNOVATION AT CANON