Newly appointed Universal Music Japan president/CEO Kazu Koike is wasting no time in making his mark on the company, starting with the Dec. 15 announcement that Tomotaka Hoshiai will take over from Nobuko Suzuki as chief financial officer effective Jan. 1.

Hoshiai, 51, is a newcomer to the music industry who began his professional career at Nissan Motor’s accounting department in 1981. He later worked at Nissan Finance of America and then at British unit Nissan Motor (GB).

Hoshiai moved to Nihon Delphi Automotive Systems in 2000, and Godiva Japan in 2002 to serve as board member and finance director of the chocolate maker. He joined Universal Music on Dec. 1 as general administration chief.

“Amid the changing business and market environment, Universal Music is aiming to transform itself from a traditional 'record company' to a 'music service enterprise,' which will operate various businesses using content as its base,” said Koike in a statement. “We expect Mr. Hoshiai, who has experiences of promoting management reforms at Nissan and creating new businesses at Godiva, will help enhance our profitability and serve as a strong driving force to lead our transformation toward the future."

Suzuki -- described by UMJ Chairman Kei Ishizaka as a "superwoman" -- is one of the few high-profile female executives in the Japanese music industry. On joining UMJ in 1995 she worked closely with Ishizaka in building up UMJ into one of Japan’s biggest labels. She will serve as vice chairman of the company from Jan. 1.