AKIO MARITA

Introduction

Akio Morita was born on January 26, 1921, in the city of Nagoya, to a family of sake
brewers. He was born as the eldest son in one of Japan’s finest and oldest sake
brewing families. In addition to sake brewing, the Morita family also produced soy
sauce and Miso paste. Leadership in business was hereditary to the Morita family.
Akio Morita in his book Made in Japan wrote, “Being in a business so central to the
community, the Morita family has always taken a position of civic leadership as well”.
Akio Morita was groomed to become the heir to the family business.
His childhood experience of being involved in business laid a strong foundation for his
future. His frequent visits to the company’s office and sake brewery ( It is kind of
Wine) exposed them to various procedures of conducting business. He accompanied
his father to the long board meetings. His father taught him how to talk to the people
who worked for them. Morita was well-equipped with almost all the tactics of business
by the age of ten. Morita was always told by his father “you are the boss from the start.
You are the eldest son in the family, don’t forget that.” In that learning process with his
father, Morita imbibed the traits and characteristics of a manager. In Morita’s words
“these concepts have stayed with me and helped me develop the philosophy of
management that served me very well in the past and continues to serve me and my
company today”.

One more thing that helped him in expanding his business was that the Morita family
had, in those days, already embraced the latest in Western culture, like the automobile
and the electric phonograph.
From an early age, Akio had his heart in electronics. He was fond of tinkering with
electronic appliances, and Mathematics and Physics were his favorite subjects during
his elementary and junior high school days. After graduating from High School Number
Eight, he entered the Physics Department at Osaka Imperial University. During his study
at the university, Morita decided to get into the Navy by way of continuing his study in
Physics. In 1945, Morita was assigned to the office of Aviation Technology at
Yokosuka. After he finished his four-month period of military training, he received the
rank of lieutenant and was placed in the optical division at Yokosuka. There, Morita
met Masaru Ibuka, who was working as a civilian representative. Masaru Ibuka was
an electronics engineer, who was in charge of his own company then. After Japan was
bombed, Morita was sent to Nagoa (his home town) on duty.

Morita was 24 when he quit the Navy and returned home after the war. He chose academics as
his next profession. He taught at Tokyo institute of Technology. In 1946, Akio Morita came into
contact with Masaru Ibuka. Morita discontinued teaching and along with Masaru Ibuka, co-
founded Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (which later came to be known as Sony).
 Greatest Achievements

Achievement Description Leadership Skill Shown Remarks

Use of Transistor Secure patent from Great Negotiator Use of transistor in
technology Bell Laboratory radio put sony ahead
of its competitor.
Walkman Pocket radio Innovator Changed
entertainment
industry
Discman Compact disc player Innovator
Digital Camera Best marketed Great marketing Skills Many brands were
Product better but sony
succeeded selling
maximum products.
Trinitron Picture tube Flat color Television Brilliant idea Gave birth to the idea
of digital TV.
Sony Pictures Expansion of Out of box Thinking, As competition
Entertainment survival instinct. become tough
Industry leadership found new
way
First Japanese In 1972 sony build Global thinker Efforts of Akio Marito
company to build factory in USA it was
factory in USA first Japanese
company

Greatest Failures

Failure Description Reasons (Business) Remarks

(Leadership issues)
Pace of development On many front Thrust on best of best Technocrat
competitor launch
technology before
sony
Product Price R&D cost was 20% of Technocrats Partial treatment to
Sales leadership business priorities by
leader.( 80%
technology and 20%
economics)
Heavy liability Too employee friendly Akio was too Over nourishing the
policy employee friendly employees became
burden.
Akio Morita a bright side.

Akio morita was a very successful business man. He has his own management style to handle
the things.

He always said that “No theory or government plan can make business successful , Only
people who can do it:”

He advice to managers that only the healthy relations with employees can be success key in
business.

He faced only one strike in his life and he successfully handle it because of support of his
employees.

He always said that manager can be very good on bottom lines but if he don’t invest in future
he will destroy the organisation one day. And that is why sony invest almost 20% of its earning
in R&D.

He believed that the profit need to make in long haul and not in short run. This was against the
western concept of that time and akio’s own managers from USA opposed it. Which turn to be
bad sales in USA. But after few years his techniques were followed by many other companies.

He equally respect the shareholders and try to give maximum returns on their investments.

He introduced entry to the experience people in organisation, he introduced the flexible

holdiays to employees and many such schemes.

He always try to avoid the arguments and quarrels, he accepts that his learning curve has been
affected by USA very positively.

He changed his approach many occasion to make the successful deals. In Europe and in USA
he make separate strategy to sale the products.

Akio Morita a dark side.

Akio morita always carried the image of head of family, head of company and it is said that no
one has seen him unmasked.( like a normal human being)

Akio was believer of Japanese tradition and was very strict on all the fronts. Sometimes the
strictness was beyond acceptable level.

He did not like to change his decisions easily and what he said was his decision.

Many times he used to apply his sixth sense which was beyond logic and acceptable and
surprisingly majority time it worked.

He was too fast and anxious which people could not cope up.
References: the book from Akio Morita “ Made In Japan” but could not finish till date of
submission as I received it late.

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