Aquamarine
Member
god the trash around. Iwata is beholden to shareholders, if they want him gone he is going. the approval rating thing is due soon.
There aren't enough shares to out Iwata in public hands. Simple as that.
The only way he can be removed is by the Board of Directors. And they're all long time friends of Iwata's. It's not happening.
A CEO who's at risk of being ousted, who staunchly continues course despite rising disapproval from shareholders, who has clearly been ensuring the board of directors becomes less and less independent of him, doing all he can to stay in his position? There are enough clues in Iwata's actions to raise the suspicion that he is effectively ensuring there are no clear choices within Nintendo to replace him.
I would venture a bet that there are plenty of people following Nintendo's stock professionally who think the same. Anyway, it wouldn't be out of the ordinary at all, it happens very often, whether it's Nintendo or Goldman Sachs.
That being said, it is speculation at this point, though nothing tinfoil-hatish are you're making it sound.
Your entire argument falls apart in the first few words. Iwata isn't at risk of being ousted. Not even close. There is basically no way, except (literally) violent revolution within Nintendo that Iwata is in danger of losing anything.
That isn't how things work in Nintendo. The board are all friends of his. He won't step down until he decides to.
Did I seriously just read that Iwata is at risk of being ousted?
Do people legitimately, honestly believe this?
Iwata election rates:
Iwata, 2010:
Approve: 952,201
Oppose: 19,072
Approval Rating: 96.74%
Iwata, 2011:
Approve: 932,379
Oppose: 48,339
Approval Rating: 92.89%
Iwata, 2012:
Approve: 913,453
Oppose: 83,740
Approval Rating: 90.60%
Iwata, 2013:
Approve: 772,384
Oppose: 218,960
Approval Rating: 77.26%
If it doesn't hit majority approval, Iwata doesn't get re-elected to the Board of Directors. I do believe that non-Nintendo-employee investors, if acting together, have a sufficient potential to block Iwata's re-election to the Board of Directors, supposing the institutional investors who are primarily into it for the dividends no longer believe in Iwata's ability to reward shareholders. Personally I'm not optimistic that Iwata will be ousted in this way in June 2014. But the possibility exists.
But yes, only the Board of Directors has the power to remove Iwata from the CEO position. It's very clear that Iwata has stacked the Board with his friends and a bunch of yes-men, so yeah, it's quite unlikely for Iwata to be forcibly pushed out of office by June.
Now if the votes of the other Board members run contrary to the desires of shareholders...