PETALING JAYA: Perodua today announced the appointment of Datuk Zainal Abidin Ahmad (pix) as its new President and CEO to replace Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh who will be retiring on Dec 31 after nine years at the helm.
The group said in a statement that Zainal was previously the vice-president of Perodua Auto Corp Sdn Bhd. His appointment will take effect from Jan 1, 2019.
"He is expected to further efforts to work on improvements in efficiency and competitiveness, with the aim of expanding Perodua’s export business," Perodua said.
Perodua chairman Tan Sri Asmat Kamaludin said Zainal has proven his ability to work well with all shareholders, including Daihatsu Motor Company of Japan in bringing new technology to Perodua and encouraging investment within the country.
“With the manufacturing knowledge shared by Daihatsu, we were able to stay competitive domestically, and with their guidance, we are looking to further grow our business beyond Malaysia,” he added.
Zainal, 52, holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Management Information Systems and Accounting from the Pacific Lutheran University, Washington, US. He began his career in Perodua in 1995 in the cost control department, and was directly involved in creating Perodua’s manufacturing cost structure.
He will also be the first President and CEO selected from within Perodua.
Meanwhile, Perodua said under Aminar's leadership, the company not only expanded its market share from 31.2% in 2010 to above 37% as of year-to-date 2018, but also started the much-needed transformation initiative within the group.
“The Perodua board of directors wishes to thank Aminar for his contributions to Perodua and to the Malaysian automotive industry as a whole,” said Asmat.
