- In news that’ll shock no one, the chairman of an automotive juggernaut earns millions.
- However, Akio Toyoda’s compensation is way less than that of GM and Ford’s CEOs.
- Still, his paycheck is twice that of the company’s CEO and president Koji Sato.
Akio Toyoda may have stepped down as Toyota’s CEO over two years ago, but he is still very much in charge, at least in spirit, as he continues to serve as chairman. And, according to the most recent fiscal data, he’s certainly not hurting for cash. For the fiscal year ending March 31, Toyoda pocketed a cool 1.95 billion yen, which translates to about $13.5 million at current exchange rates, making him the highest-paid executive in Toyota’s history.
His salary saw a 20% increase compared to the 2023 fiscal year, coinciding with Toyota’s shift to base compensation on global standards. On top of that, the automaker decided to ditch individual performance evaluations for both Toyoda and the president.
Read: Stellantis CEO To Earn More In His First Year Than Most Will In A Lifetime Yet Still Trails Rivals
The spike in pay for Toyoda came despite the automaker’s consolidated operating profit falling 10% to 4.8 trillion yen ($28 billion). Additionally, expenses at the world’s largest carmaker increased, and production decreased.
For some perspective, Toyota’s president and current CEO, Koji Sato, received a considerably smaller sum of 826 million yen ($5.67 million). And just to give you a sense of how things stack up for Toyota’s higher-ups, a regulatory filing reported by Nikkei Asia revealed that at least seven senior executives, including a retired board member, were paid over 100 million yen (~$687,000) each.
It’s Nice Being The Boss
While Toyoda’s compensation might seem eye-watering by mere mortals’ standards, it’s not outside industry norms. In fact, it’s far less than some others. For example, GM boss Mary Barra earned $29.5 billion in total compensation last year, while Ford chief executive Jim Farley received $24.9 million.
Why, former Stellantis boss Carlos Tavares received $23.9 million to lead the company in 2024 – and he resigned before his contract ended due to the company not performing as it was expected to. His replacement, Antonio Filosa, could earn as much as $10.2 million in his first year in the job. Guess if he succeeds where Tavares failed, he won’t feel short-changed when the time comes for the board and the shareholders to evaluate his work…
Detroit’s CEOs may be getting paid huge sums, but it’s not like their counterparts at other companies are struggling to make rent. VW CEO Oliver Blume, for instance, earned approximately €10.35 million (~$11.8 million) last year, Hyundai’s Eusion Chung netted 11.5 billion won or ~$8.8 million, and the Renault Group’s head honcho, Luca de Meo, who’ll leave the company next month, received €5.5 million ($6.2 million).
