Collision Course: Carlos Ghosn and the Culture Wars That Upended an Auto Empire

"The officious agent did a double take at his papers. "We have a problem with your passport. Can we move please to another room to discuss something?" Ghosn never saw it coming. In Japan it's called the "Ghosn Shock"-the stunning arrest of Carlos Ghosn, the jet-setting CEO who saved Nissan and made it part of a global automotive empire. Even more shocking was his daring escape from Japan, packed into a box and put on a private jet to Lebanon after months spent in a Japanese detention center, subsisting on rice gruel. How did it come to this, and why? This is the sprawling story of what led to the Ghosn Shock and what was left in its wake. The book chronicles Ghosn's two decades building a colossal partnership between Nissan and Renault. To the world it looked like a new model for a global business, but the alliance's shiny image fronted an unsteady, tense operation. Culture clashes, infighting among executives and engineers, dueling corporate traditions, and government maneuvering constantly threatened the venture. Tokyo-based journalists Hans Greimel and William Sposato have followed, up close, Ghosn's two-decade career in Japan and have witnessed the end of the Japanese bubble economy and botched attempts at opening Japan Inc. to the world. They've seen the fraying of keiretsu, Japan's traditional skein of business relationships, and covered a number of corporate scandals, of which the Ghosn Shock ranks number one. Expertly reported, Collision Course explores the complex suspicions around what and who was really responsible for Ghosn's ouster. It explains how economics, history, national interests, legal traditions, and hubris converged on arguably the most important foreign businessman ever to set foot in Japan. This gripping narrative serves as part cautionary tale, part object lesson, and part forewarning of the increasing complexity of doing global business in a nationalistic world"--
Two Tokyo-based journalists recount what led to the arrest of Carlos Ghosn, the most important foreign businessman ever to set foot in Japan, exploring the complexity of doing global business in a nationalistic world. 50,000 first printing.
Greimel, a business journalist based in Japan, and Sposato, a correspondent and consultant based in Japan, describes the story of Carlos Ghosn, an auto executive who created the world’s largest auto group through an alliance between Nissan, Renault, and Mitsubishi and was arrested in Japan for violating financial laws by failing to report deferred income and misappropriation of Nissan funds for personal use. He spent months in a Japanese detention center, escaped in a trunk, and was smuggled out of the country by a team of operatives led by a former Green Beret. They examine what and who was really responsible for his arrest, why he risked everything to escape the country, and how he now lives as a fugitive in Lebanon, showing how economics, history, national interests, legal tradition, and hubris intersected in the story. Annotation ©2021 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
In Japan it's called the "Ghosn Shock"&the stunning arrest of Carlos Ghosn, the jet-setting CEO who saved Nissan and made it part of a global automotive empire.Even more shocking was his daring escape from Japan, packed into a box and put on a private jet to Lebanon after months spent in a Japanese detention center, subsisting on rice gruel.This is the saga of what led to the Ghosn Shock and what was left in its wake. Ghosn spent two decades building a colossal partnership between Nissan and Renault that looked like a new model for a global business, but the alliance's shiny image fronted an unsteady, tense operation. Culture clashes, infighting among executives and engineers, dueling corporate traditions, and government maneuvering constantly threatened the venture.Journalists Hans Greimel and William Sposato have followed the story up close, with access to key players, including Ghosn himself. Veteran Tokyo-based reporters, they have witnessed the end of Japan's bubble economy and attempts at opening Japan Inc. to the world. They've seen the fraying of keiretsu, Japan's traditional skein of business relationships, and covered numerous corporate scandals, of which the Ghosn Shock and Ghosn's subsequent escape stand above all.Expertly reported, Collision Course explores the complex suspicions around what and who was really responsible for Ghosn's ouster and why one of the top executives in the world would risk everything to escape the country. It explains how economics, history, national interests, cultural politics, and hubris collided, crumpling the legacy of arguably the most important foreign businessman ever to set foot in Japan.This gripping, unforgettable narrative, full of fascinating characters, serves as part cautionary tale, part object lesson, and part forewarning of the increasing complexity of doing global business in a nationalistic world.