Jim Aota has been with Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. since 2017 and currently serves as Chief Strategy Officer. He manages the Corporate Strategy Center, overseeing Sustainability, Corporate Planning, Digital Strategy, and New Business Development. He also holds the position of Chairman of Yamaha Motor Ventures.

Before joining Yamaha Motor, Jim worked at Mitsui & Co., Ltd. in Tokyo, Detroit, New York, and London, focusing primarily on business development and investment/financing in the mining industry.

He received a PLD from Harvard Business School and graduated from the Faculty of Political Science at Keio University.