Leadership Team

Tadashi Wakamatsu

Managing Director, General Motors Japan Ltd.

Tad Wakamatsu leads the Japan unit of General Motors as Managing Director, General Motors Japan Ltd.  He was appointed on August 1, 2016. 

Tad has over 30 years of experience in the automotive industry with extensive experience in product planning, alliance strategies and sales and marketing in multiple countries with diverse backgrounds. He joined GM in 2000 as International Product Manager at the GM International Product Centre.  

In 2009, Tad was appointed Director of Product and Portfolio Planning, GM International Operations, based in Shanghai, overseeing product and portfolio planning in developed markets such as Japan, Korea and Australia to emerging markets such as China, India, ASEAN, Eastern Europe, Andean, Mercosur and Africa. He also led negotiations for joint product development and joint venture projects.  

In 2014, was appointed General Director, Distributor Operations and Business Planning for Southeast Asia, based in Singapore.  In this capacity, Tad managed operations in Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and other Southeast Asian distributor markets. 

Prior to joining GM, Tad was Chevrolet brand manager for GM’s distributor in Japan, Yanase & Co., Ltd, where he started his automotive career in 1989. 

Tad serves the Chair of the American Automotive Industries Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan and as a Vice-Chairman of the Japanese Automobile Importers Association. 

Tad received a Bachelor of Law degree in political science from Keio University, Tokyo, Japan and a Master of Business Administration from University of Leicester, the UK.