Governance

Nissan caused legitimate concern to its stakeholders in 2018 due to misconduct by former management. We recognize this was caused by an excessive concentration of authority and a lack of transparency in governance. Nissan continues to work towards preventing such a reoccurrence through increased and sustained awareness and education amongst employees around corporate governance. It is crucial for employees to fully understand the current state of Nissan’s corporate governance and how we are tackling challenges in order to improve.

In December 2018 we established the Special Committee for Improving Governance which consisted of three independent outside directors and four independent third-party committee members. In June 2019, based on the committee’s recommendations, we transitioned from a company with auditors to a company with three statutory committees (nomination, compensation and audit). These committees serve to ensure transparency in Nissan’s decision-making and enhance agile and flexible execution.

The majority of our Board of Directors and the three statutory committees are made up of outside directors. Of the three, the Compensation Committee consists of 100 percent outside directors. Such external input and insight fosters diverse viewpoints in management and further strengthens supervisory functions. We are committed to regaining the trust of our stakeholders by changing our corporate culture, acting with transparency, respect and deference, from executives to employees.