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Business and
Performance Review
Special FeatureMessage/Vision
Management and
Corporate Information
Financial Section and
Investor Information
President’s Message
Akio Toyoda, President
I would like to begin by offering thanks for the continued support and
understanding of all of our stakeholders. In addition, on behalf of
everyone at Toyota I would like to express my wishes for the restful
peace of all those we lost to the Great East Japan Earthquake, and to
offer our sincerest sympathies to all who have suffered through this
great tragedy.
When I reflect on the past year, I am touched by the support
offered by so many of our customers and stakeholders as we dealt
with the ongoing effects of the global financial crisis, as well as
product quality and safety issues. I offer my sincerest gratitude.
Learning from these experiences, I continued to ask myself,
“What kind of company do we want Toyota to be? What kind of
company should Toyota be?” I realized that Toyota should strive to be
a company that people choose, and that people are happy to have
chosen. The Global Vision we announced in March is strongly imbued
with these ideas.
The Great East Japan Earthquake struck two days after we
announced our Global Vision. Our employees entered the stricken
areas in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and began
providing support, working together with local residents to reconstruct
and restore communities. Upon viewing the situation after the disaster,
our support teams assessed the situation, quickly worked out what
was best for the communities and immediately set about their tasks
accordingly. This represents the very spirit of Toyota’s “power of the
workplace”—an asset built up and handed down through 70 years of
Toyota history. Priority was given to rescuing and preserving life, then
to the restoration of the communities, with restarting production only
considered after the situation stabilized.
Thanks to these tremendous frontline efforts, the work to get
production back to normal proceeded at a feverish pitch. After a
short delay, we were able to announce our financial, production, and
sales forecasts in June.
When we announced our Global Vision, we noted the need to
quickly establish a revenue base that provides operating income of
around ¥1 trillion, even with an exchange rate of ¥85 to the U.S. dollar
and sales of 7.5 million units. With our breakeven point now more
than 1 million vehicles lower compared to what it was at the time of
our worst reported loss, we are now on pace to reach that income
target despite the effects of the disaster. Compared with our past
earnings of more than ¥2 trillion, this goal may seem insufficient.
However, I believe that being able to make a steady profit while
meeting all tax obligations—no matter the economic situation—is
more meaningful than making a lot of money during the good times.
I believe that the shareholders who keep their shares even during
a difficult business environment are the ones who understand and
truly support Toyota. I want to meet the expectations of those
shareholders, so the course I am charting is one that I strongly believe
will lead to continuous growth.
Toyota will continue to work to be a company that exceeds the
expectations of all our stakeholders and brings smiles to the faces of
our customers. We ask for your continued support of our efforts.
July 2011
0822
Chairman’s Message
President’s Message
Toyota Global Vision
8TOYOTA ANNUAL REPORT 2011