Yanmar Compact Equipment has appointed Ryu Kudo as its new CEO to replace Jose Cuadrado who resigned earlier this month after about 15 months in the role.
Kudo will continue in his current role as the president and representative director of Yanmar Construction Equipment to which he was appointed in April 2024.
Other positions Kudo has held at Yanmar Construction Equipment since he joined the company in 2019 include deputy general manager of the strategy department and general manager of the development department. Kudo also serves as a director of the Japan Construction Machinery Manufacturers Association.
Prior to his time at Yanmar, Kudo spent over 20 years in the construction equipment industry, including as a designer of small wheel loaders and head of customer support at a dealership.
Kudo replaces Jose Cuadrado, a 20-year equipment industry veteran, who became the global CEO of Yanmar Compact Equipment and chairman of the board in March 2024 before resigning earlier this month. Cuadrado joined Yanmar Compact Equipment in early 2023 as managing director of the company’s Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
Cuadrado’s prior experience includes leadership positions at companies like CNH Industrial, Doosan, Bobcat and Ingersoll Rand.
Cuadrado had replaced Giuliano Parodi, who served as the global CEO of Yanmar Compact Equipment from 2018 to 2024 and currently serves as Yanmar’s chief strategy officer.
Kudo’s appointment comes only two months after Yanmar Compact Equipment appointed former construction equipment distributor leader Anna Christine Sgro as the new head of its North American division. Sgro spent five years as the senior executive vice president of Canadian Volvo distributor Strongco (now Nors) and nearly four years as the president of Royal Reesink Canada, which primarily distributes agricultural equipment.
