Doko Toshio

▪ Japanese businessman

born Sept. 5, 1896, Okayama prefecture, Japan

died Aug. 4, 1988, Tokyo

      Japanese businessman who was instrumental in revitalizing Japanese manufacturing after World War II, notably with the Toshiba Corp. and as chairman of Keidanren (1974–80), one of Japan's four main business organizations, which comprised about 110 industry-wide groups that represented 800 corporations.

      After graduating from Tokyo Technical Higher School (1920; renamed Tokyo Institute of Technology), Doko worked for the Ishikawajima Shipyard Co. (renamed Ishikawajima Heavy Industries) first as a turbine designer and later as president (1950–60), during which time he revamped the firm in order to benefit from heavy U.S. procurement during the Korean War. He later presided over the newly merged Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. and oversaw the construction of the Idemitsu maru, the world's largest tanker in the 1960s. As president (1965–72) and chairman (1972–76) of Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation), he raised the morale of both workers and management and steered the company to prosperity. Doko was named chairman of the prime minister's advisory council on administrative reform (1981), a group that recommended the privatization of the state-run Japan National Railways (1983); the measure was implemented in 1987.

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