TOKYO -- Honda's incoming CEO, Toshihiro Mibe, said he wanted to use external alliances to speed up the automaker's growth.
Mibe will be taking over from Takahiro Hachigo on April 1, Honda said in a statement on Friday.
"We would consider using external insight or potential alliances among other actions to make decisions without hesitation," Mibe told a news conference at which he called for Honda's "major transformation at great speed."
Honda in the past has sought to do everything internally, but as the company faces once-in-an-era changes, "time is of the essence and I would opt to use alliances and external insight to accelerate our shift," he said.
Mibe, 59, has worked with Hachigo to push through structural reforms. He has been president of the R&D unit since 2019, following stints in engine development and the drive-train business after joining the company in 1987.
Hachigo told the conference that Mibe has been looking into the future direction that Honda should be taking. He attributed Mibe's expertise in environmental technology and energy and his attentiveness to changes as reasons for his promotion to CEO. Hachigo will remain on Honda's board.
Mibe's appointment comes as Honda races to catch up in the field of all-electric cars and faces competition from new entrants and tech giants such as Tesla, Apple and Amazon.