Career Profiles of Directors and Executive Officers

Referring to the career profiles and reasons for the selection of Directors, as well as the career profiles of Executive Officers (as of April 1, 2025).
*For the composition of our Executives, including Corporate Officers, please refer to the page of Company Profile, Officers, and Organization Chart .

Directors

  • Director and Chairman

    Michiya Kadota

    Member of the Nominating Committee
    Member of the Compensation Committee

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1983 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • April 2006 General Manager of Business Process Reengineering Dept., Corporate Planning Division
    • April 2008 General Manager of Internal Auditing Dept.
    • April 2012 General Manager of Finance and Accounting Dept., Administrative Division
    • June 2013 Corporate Officer
    • June 2014 Director
    • June 2014 Executive General Manager of Administrative Division
    • April 2016 President and Representative Director
    • April 2023 Chairman and Representative Director
    • June 2023 Director and Chairman (to present)

    Commissioned Duties

    None

    Reasons for Election

    Mr. Michiya Kadota has a career mainly in the area of general affairs such as finance and accounting at the Company and assumed office as Representative Director in 2016. After the assumption of office, he engaged in a business process change and business model transformation through the provision of social value, establishment of a global business foundation, and promotion of corporate governance reforms. Based on his experience of leading the management of the Company, he strives to increase the effectiveness of the Board of Directors, through appropriate deliberations and discussions on the Company's direction over the medium- to long-term, support for risk-taking, progress of the management plan, etc. He has also fulfilled his responsibilities adequately as the member of the Nominating and Compensation Committees. He is well-versed in the Group, and the Company believes that he is an individual capable of continuously contributing to quality discussions at, and strengthening the supervisory function of, the Company's Board of Directors.

  • Director

    Hirohiko Ejiri

    Member of the Nominating Committee
    Member of the Compensation Committee

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1985 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • April 2005 President of KURITA EUROPE GmbH
    • April 2011 General Manager of Sales Dept. for Heavy Industries, Group II, Chemicals Division
    • June 2013 General Manager of Business Management Dept., Chemicals Division
    • April 2014 Corporate Officer
    • June 2014 Senior General Manager of Sales Group I, Chemicals Division
    • April 2016 Executive General Manager of Corporate Planning Division
    • June 2016 Director（to present）
    • April 2018 Executive General Manager of Engineering Division
    • April 2019 Managing Director
    • April 2020 Executive General Manager of Engineering Division and Chief Business Officer for Facility Operation
    • June 2021 Executive Senior Managing Director and Representative Director
    • April 2022 Executive General Manager of Japan Sales Business Division and Chief Business Officer for Chemical Operation
    • April 2023 President and Representative Director
    • June 2023 President and Representative Executive Officer (to present)

    Commissioned Duties

    None

    Reasons for Election

    Mr. Hirohiko Ejiri has considerable insight in the market and onsite operations accumulated through his years of experience at the sales departments of the Water Treatment Chemicals business. After his assumption of office of Director in 2016, he led the initiative for expansion of the Kurita Group's business fields and transformation of revenue structure, as well as transformation of the production structure including utilization of DX. He assumed the office of President and Representative Executive Officer in 2023, and has promoted construction of a strong business, and creation of solutions that offer shared value with society, and new businesses, toward the achievement of the medium-term management plan. Having the candidate, who is well-versed in the Water Treatment business, double as a Director would continue to contribute to strengthening the supervisory function of the Company's Board of Directors, while enabling the status of business execution to be shared in an appropriate manner, and he also fulfills his responsibilities adequately as the member of the Nominating and Compensation Committees.

  • Director

    Shuji Shirode

    Career Backgrounds

    • January 2016 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • April 2018 Corporate Officer
    • April 2018 Deputy Executive General Manager of Corporate Planning Division
    • April 2019 Deputy Executive General Manager of Corporate Control and Administration Division
    • April 2020 Chief Financial Officer (CFO)（to present）
    • June 2021 Director（to present）
    • June 2021 Executive General Manager of Corporate Control and Administration Division (to present)
    • June 2023 Managing Executive Officer
    • April 2025 Representative Senior Managing Executive Officer（to present）

    Commissioned Duties

    None

    Reasons for Election

    Mr. Shuji Shirode has a wealth of experience at a corporate group with global operations, including time spent working overseas, as well as high expertise related to finance, tax affairs, and accounting. As the officer in charge of finance (CFO) at the Company from 2020, he has focused on strengthening the foundations of the Group's finance and accounting functions. He has also reviewed the Group's growth strategies in terms of capital markets at the Board of Directors. The Company believes that he can continue to contribute to strengthening the supervisory function of the Board of Directors by utilizing his high expertise from serving concurrently as the officer in charge of finance (CFO), where he played a central role in execution, and as Director.

  • Director

    Yukihiko Mutou

    Member of the Audit Committee

    Career Backgrounds

    • October 1991 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • June 2005 General Manager of Finance and Accounting Dept., Administrative Division
    • April 2012 General Manager of Personnel and Labor Relations Dept., Administrative Division
    • April 2014 General Manager of General Affairs Dept., Administrative Division
    • April 2016 Corporate Officer
    • April 2018 Executive General Manager of Group Administrative Division
    • June 2018 Director（to present）
    • April 2019 Deputy Executive General Manager of Corporate Control and Administration Division
    • June 2019 Member of the Audit & Supervisory Board (full time)

    Commissioned Duties

    None

    Reasons for Election

    Mr. Yukihiko Mutou has abundant knowledge and experience in the field of business management as he held important posts such as those at the finance, accounting and human resource departments. He assumed the post of Director of the Company in 2018 and a member of the Audit & Supervisory Board in 2019, and is well-versed in the fields of the Group's governance, internal audit and audits. He has also actively expressed his opinions on strengthening the management foundations at the Board of Directors, while fully performing his duties as a member of the Audit Committee. The Company believes that he is an individual capable of continuously utilizing his deep understanding of the Group and high expertise in the field of audit to strengthen the supervisory function of the Board of Directors.

  • External Director

    Kenjiro Kobayashi

    Chairperson of the Audit Committee
    Member of the Nominating Committee

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1977 Joined Japan Development Bank (current Development Bank of Japan Inc.)
    • July 2004 Managing Director of CITIC Provident Management Ltd.
    • June 2006 Executive Officer of Johnson Diversey(current CxS Corporation), General Manager of Corporate Strategy Planning Office
    • April 2008 General Manager in charge of the Co-Creation Business Promotion Project of City of Yokohama
    • November 2010 Representative Director and Executive Vice President of Japan Industrial Solutions Co., Ltd.
    • May 2013 Director of Japan Industrial Solutions Co., Ltd.
    • June 2016 Member of the Audit & Supervisory Board of Kurita Water Industries Ltd. (full time)
    • June 2023 External Director of Kurita Water Industries Ltd.（to present）

    Commissioned Duties

    None

    Reasons for Election

    Mr. Kenjiro Kobayashi has played an active role in different areas of the Kurita Group's businesses and has high expertise and a wealth of international experience in the areas of finance, corporate planning, new business development and M&A, etc. Based on this expertise and experience, he has expressed his opinions on growth strategies and financial strategies from a medium- to long-term perspective at the Board of Directors. He has also had appropriate discussions and deliberations on results of audits, visits for audits, and hearings on the execution of duties of the Company's officers as a chairperson of the Audit Committee. The Company believes that he is an individual capable of continuously increasing the rationality and transparency in the Kurita Group's management from an outside perspective and strengthening the supervisory function of the Board of Directors.

  • External Director

    Keiko Tanaka

    Chairperson of the Nominating Committee
    Member of the Compensation Committee

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1984 Joined NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.
    • April 2011 Seconded to JATCO Ltd.
    • April 2013 Treated as equivalent to Vice President, JATCO Ltd
    • September 2014 Retired from NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD. and JATCO Ltd
    • October 2014 Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Uruguay
    • April 2018 Vice President, Nissan Financial Services Co., Ltd.
    • June 2019 External Director of Kurita Water Industries Ltd. (to present)
    • April 2020 Outside expert of Sustainability Committee of NH Foods Ltd.
    • April 2022 Corporate Vice President of Nissan Financial Services Co., Ltd.
    • June 2024 Outside Director, Nissui Corporation (to present)

    Commissioned Duties

    Outside Director, Nissui Corporation

    Reasons for Election

    Ms. Keiko Tanaka has been active in business fields that differ from those of the Kurita Group and possesses a great deal of knowledge on public relations, marketing and HR management as well as an experience of having held the position of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Uruguay. Based on this experience, she has actively expressed her opinions on corporate management and business administration in corporate groups with global operations at the Board of Directors. She also gave advice on group-wide human resource development, through appropriate discussions and deliberations on successor candidate development planning for president, etc. as a chairperson of the Nominating Committee. The Company believes that she is an individual capable of continuously expressing opinions from an outside perspective to increase the rationality and transparency of the Kurita Group's management and utilizing her expansive knowledge and international experience for strengthening the supervisory function of the board of Directors.

  • External Director

    Masahiro Miyazaki

    Chairperson of the Compensation Committee
    Member of the Nominating Committee

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1977 Joined Nissei Sangyo Co., Ltd. (current Hitachi High-Tech Corporation)
    • April 2007 Executive Officer, General Manager, Regional Branch Office for West Japan Area and Kansai Branch Office of Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation (current Hitachi High Tech Corporation)
    • April 2010 President & CEO of Hitachi High-Technologies America, Inc. (current Hitachi High-Tech America, Inc.)
    • April 2014 Senior Vice President and Executive Officer, General Manager of Corporate Strategy Div. of Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation
    • April 2015 Representative Executive Officer, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hitachi High Technologies Corporation
    • June 2015 Representative Executive Officer, President and Chief Executive Officer and Director of Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation (current Hitachi High Tech Corporation)
    • April 2021 Advisor of Hitachi High-Tech Corporation
    • June 2022 External Director of Kurita Water Industries Ltd. (to present)
    • June 2023 Outside Director, Astellas Pharma Inc.（to present）

    Commissioned Duties

    Outside Director, Astellas Pharma Inc.

    Reasons for Election

    Mr. Masahiro Miyazaki has experience of holding important positions such as a representative executive officer and president and chief executive officer at corporate groups with global operations mainly in the electronics industry, both in Japan and overseas. Based on this experience, he has actively expressed his opinions on growth strategies from a medium- to long-term perspective with aspects of appropriate risk-taking at the Board of Directors. He also revised the remuneration system through appropriate discussions and deliberations on performance evaluation of officers and remuneration details as a chairperson of the Compensation Committee. The Company believes that he is an individual capable of continuously increasing the rationality and transparency of the Kurita Group's management and strengthening the supervisory function of the Board of Directors from an outside perspective based on his extensive experience in corporate management and global business.

  • External Director

    Yoshiko Takayama

    Member of the Compensation Committee
    Member of the Audit Committee

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1980 Joined Bank of America N.A.
    • December 1990 Vice President, Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc.
    • December 1997 Senior manager, Thomson Financial Investor Relations
    • December 1998 Asia-Pacific Regional Director, Thomson Financial Investor Relations
    • June 2001 Managing Director, J-Eurus IR Co., Ltd.
    • March 2003 Managing Director/Board Member, J-Eurus IR Co., Ltd.
    • June 2010 Governor, International Corporate Governance Network
    • October 2010 Director, Japan Corporate Governance Network (to present)
    • June 2015 Outside Director, AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd.
    • September 2015 Member of the Council of Experts Concerning the Follow-up of Japan’s Stewardship Code and Japan’s Corporate Governance Code, Financial Services Agency and Tokyo Stock
    • October 2015 Representative Director, Japan Board Review Co., Ltd.
    • January 2022 Committee member representing Japan, ISO/PC 337, Guidelines for the promotion and implementation of gender equality, Japanese Standards Association (to present)
    • April 2023 Vice Chairperson, J-Eurus IR Co., Ltd. (to present)
    • April 2023 Director, Japan Board Review Co., Ltd.
    • June 2023 External Director of Kurita Water Industries Ltd. (to present)
    • July 2023 Representative Director, Japan Board Review Co., Ltd.(to present)
    • August 2023 External Member of the Governance Council, Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC（to present）
    • September 2023 Member of the "Committee for Studying Scoring Criteria for Selecting Enterprises as Nadeshiko Brands" operated by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Tokyo Stock Exchange, FY2023 (From 2014 to present, appointed to the committee every fiscal year)

    Commissioned Duties

    Vice Chairperson, J-Eurus IR Co., Ltd.
    Representative Director, Japan Board Review Co., Ltd.
    External Member of the Governance Council, Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC

    Reasons for Election

    Ms. Yoshiko Takayama has abundant experience in different areas of the Kurita Group’s businesses, as well as abundant experience and skills in the field of Investor Relations and high expertise related to corporate governance. Based on this experience, skills, and expertise, she has actively expressed her opinions on sustainability management and engagement with capital markets at the Board of Directors. She also identified issues for increasing corporate value and submitted reports to the Board of Directors, through appropriate discussions and deliberations on initiatives for materiality as a chairperson of the Sustainability Advisory Council, while explaining sustainability management to stakeholders. The Company believes that she is an individual capable of continuously increasing the rationality and transparency of the Kurita Group's management and strengthening the supervisory function of the Board of Directors.

Executive Officers

  • President and Representative Executive Officer

    Hirohiko Ejiri

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1985 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • April 2005 President of KURITA EUROPE GmbH
    • April 2011 General Manager of Sales Dept. for Heavy Industries, Group II, Chemicals Division
    • June 2013 General Manager of Business Management Dept., Chemicals Division
    • April 2014 Corporate Officer
    • June 2014 Senior General Manager of Sales Group I, Chemicals Division
    • April 2016 Executive General Manager of Corporate Planning Division
    • June 2016 Director（to present）
    • April 2018 Executive General Manager of Engineering Division
    • April 2019 Managing Director
    • April 2020 Executive General Manager of Engineering Division and Chief Business Officer for Facility Operation
    • June 2021 Executive Senior Managing Director and Representative Director
    • April 2022 Executive General Manager of Japan Sales Business Division and Chief Business Officer for Chemical Operation
    • April 2023 President and Representative Director

  • Representative Senior Managing Executive Officer

    Shuji Shirode

    Executive General Manager of Corporate Control and Administration Division
    Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

    Career Backgrounds

    • January 2016 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • April 2018 Corporate Officer
    • April 2018 Deputy Executive General Manager of Corporate Planning Division
    • April 2019 Deputy Executive General Manager of Corporate Control and Administration Division
    • April 2020 Chief Financial Officer (CFO)（to present）
    • June 2021 Director（to present）
    • June 2021 Executive General Manager of Corporate Control and Administration Division (to present)
    • June 2023 Managing Executive Officer
    • April 2025 Representative Senior Managing Executive Officer（to present）

  • Executive Officer

    Katsuya Amano

    Executive General Manager of Electronics Industry Division and Chief Business Officer for Electronics Industry

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1992 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • April 2014 General Manager of Sales Dept. II, Global Business Group, Facilities Division
    • April 2019 Senior General Manager of Electronics Industries Group, Japan Sales Business Division
    • April 2021 Corporate Officer
    • April 2022 Executive General Manager of Engineering Division and Chief Business Officer for Facility Operation
    • June 2022 Director
    • April 2023 Executive General Manager of Electronics Industry Division and Chief Business Officer for Electronics Industry（to present）
    • June 2023 Executive Officer（to present）

  • Executive Officer

    Kunihiro Kuse

    Executive General Manager of Engineering Division
    and Senior General Manager of Value Engineering Group
    Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

    Career Backgrounds

    • April 1992 Joined Kurita Industries Co., Ltd.
    • April 2013 General Manager of Engineering Dept.Ⅱ, Engineering Group, Facilities Production Division
    • April 2014 General Manager of Engineering Dept. I, Engineering Group, Facilities Production Division
    • April 2015 Senior General Manager of Global Facilities Group, Facilities Division
    • April 2017 Senior General Manager of Engineering Group, Global Business Division
    • April 2018 Corporate Officer
    • April 2018 Senior General Manager of Engineering Group, Engineering Division
    • April 2022 Senior General Manager of Engineering Group I, Engineering Division
    • April 2023 Executive General Manager of Engineering Division（to present）
    • June 2023 Executive Officer（to present）
    • April 2024 Chief Technology Officer (CTO) (to present)
    • April 2025 Senior General Manager of Value Engineering Group（to present）

  • Executive Officer

    Jordi Verdés Prieto

    Executive General Manager of West Division
    and Chief Business Officer for General Industry

    Career Backgrounds

    • January 2015 Kurita Water Industries Ltd. implemented partial business acquisition of BK Giulini GmbH
      Vice President & Business Director of Kurita Europe APW GmbH
    • April 2016 Integration of two German subsidiaries into Kurita Europe GmbH
      Vice President Business of Kurita Europe GmbH
    • January 2017 Senior Vice President Business of Kurita Europe GmbH
    • January 2018 Chief Operating Officer(COO) of Kurita Europe GmbH
    • July 2019 Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of Kurita Europe GmbH
    • April 2023 Head of EMEA & Americas Region, Regional Management Division of Kurita Water Industries Ltd.
    • June 2023 Executive Officer of Kurita Water Industries Ltd.（to present）
    • April 2024 Executive General Manager of West Division of Kurita Water Industries Ltd.（to present）
    • April 2025 Chief Business Officer for General Industry (to present)

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