Given that India is reportedly the fifth largest market for Sony India (after Japan, the US, China and Brazil), Kenichiro Hibi has a huge responsibility to shoulder as managing director (MD) of the company. Responsible primarily for the sales, marketing and after-sales functions of the company’s consumer durables and telecom products, Hibi is confident of enhancing Sony’s position in the Indian telecom space.

“Sony India is a pioneer in introducing innovative technological products for the telecom and consumer durables industries. Powered by a strong distribution network and efficient customer service support, Sony continues to enhance its customer base and sales across the Indian market,” he comments.

After picking up Ericsson’s 50 per cent stake in their joint venture Sony Ericsson, the company shifted its focus to the smartphone segment, which it considers one of its main growth pillars in India. In line with this, the company has been focusing on expanding its handset portfolio in the past few months. It recently launched the Xperia Miro, the Xperia J and the Xperia SL smartphones in the country. All three devices function on the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system.

Hibi started his career with Sony in 1998 and served as MD of Sony CIS. In this position, he was responsible for the company’s sales function in 12 countries including Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus. He rates his stint with Sony CIS as the most memorable assignment of his career. “Though professionally challenging, the time I spent at Sony CIS was extremely satisfying as my team managed to double the sales from the time I joined as MD.”

He hopes to replicate this success in India as well and has chalked out an ambitious road map to achieve this. “Sony India achieved a total sales turnover of Rs 63.13 billion in financial year 2011. We plan to increase the company’s overall sales turnover by 30 per cent in financial year 2012,” he says.

A graduate in economics from Takasaki City University, Hibi describes himself as an energetic leader who goes all out to encourage his team to deliver their best. Given the cut-throat competition in the Indian handset space, this seems to be the right approach. Besides, Hibi counts on his sound understanding of various global markets to help him navigate India’s crowded handset market.

Hibi has eclectic interests, which range from karate (he is a black belt) to swimming and basketball. He also has an impressive collection of sitars and Qurans.