LEAVING: Cooke to exit Konica Minolta after 15 years

Konica Minolta chairman and managing director Dr David Cooke is set to leave the business, seven years after breaking the mould and becoming the first non-Japanese to head one of the big Japanese tech companies.

During his tenure at the top Konica Minolta has dramatically expanded its production printing portfolio, with a growing range of high productivity digital and monochrome toner based systems joined by digital embellishing, digital label printing and digital inkjet print systems.

Cooke's leadership also saw the business develop a reputation as a company that cares about its employees, customers and the community, and one that is committed to ethical leadership and creating societal value, in a reflection of his owbn committment to human rights advocacy.

In 2018 Konica Minolta was awarded the Human Rights Award for Business by the Australian Human Rights Commission, for the work the company has done to promote and support human rights within its business and supply chain.

Cooke said, “As I am sure you can imagine I have mixed feelings about leaving, with the greatest challenge being leaving behind the friends I have made during my nearly fifteen years at Konica Minolta. The choice of replacement however, gives me considerable confidence with regards to the future success of the company.”

Konica Minolta has appointed a new managing director from Japan, Yohei Konaka who is planning to commence on April 1. Yohei is currently in the office business planning division of Konica Minolta headquarters. He has extensive experience in the business holding roles in both the US and Canada in his 19 year career with the company.

Cooke said, “I am confident that Yohei will continue to build on the reputation Konica Minolta Australia has as a leader in areas such as human rights and ethical sourcing in line with the company strategy aimed at creating value for business, customers and society and meeting our commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and delivering that into the future.”

Cooke has no definitive plan for the the future, save continuing his pioneering work in the human rights field, which has seen him on the board of various NGOs, and inspire staff at Konica Minolta to engage with under pressure communities here and overseas.