People: James E. Miller

YANK IN HIROSHIMA

One company with Spartan leadership is Ford Motor Co., whose Chairman and CEO is Alexander Trotman, MBA '72 (see Winter 1994, p. 11). Mazda Motor Corp., Hiroshima, Japan, of which Ford owns a controlling share, can boast Spartan leadership as well with the naming of James E. Miller, 71, MBA '73, as Mazda president. 'This is very unique,' says Miller, who is the first American--and currently the only non-Japanese--to head a major corporation in Japan. 'I'm loving it. This place is absolutely sensational. When I was 15, my parents moved to Taiwan for three years, so I was exposed to the Orient, and the multitude of cultures here, at a young age.'

Serving concurrently as a Ford vice president, James has worked for Ford since leaving MSU, with recent stints as head of the New Zealand assembly operation. In the last nine years, he was associated with Mazda as head of a joint Ford-Mazda venture, and as both a customer and supplier. Mazda, the world's 12th largest auto company, pioneered the rotary engine, and more recently made news with the Miata. 'In recent years Mazda has developed a reputation for being a company of outstanding engineers and designers,' notes James. 'We need to grow our business, rebuild our supplier and dealer organizations, and continue to build bridges between corporate and country cultures.'

A former resident of Okemos, James touts MSU as a place where one can receive very valuable 'practical training' in business. 'MSU served me extremely well,' he says. 'I have fond memories. The business classes included a practical component where we had to solve real world problems. That was invaluable. I remember Dick Lewis, who later became dean. He always had time for his students one-on-one, and to me he was invaluable as a mentor and a coach.'