In a year that has witnessed several surprising executive power transfers among the manufacturer community, Monday’s announcement that Scott Maccabe was retiring as president and CEO of Toshiba America Business Solutions (TABS) raised not a single eyebrow among the company’s employees and client base. In fact, Maccabe’s official June 30 retirement had been in the succession plan when he re-signed an extension with the corporate parent company (Toshiba Tec) in Japan three years ago.
In tandem with the 2018 succession planning, Larry White—who had been elevated from chief revenue officer to chief operating officer—was groomed to slot into Maccabe’s roles. White, a 25-year veteran of the company, was long viewed as the obvious choice. The transition—as smooth as it was choreographed—was built to ensure as little disruption as possible, and both executives feel this passing of the baton is utterly seamless.
Maccabe, who turned 67 in March, had chosen this age specifically so that he could retire and pursue non-business and personal opportunities (he will remain in an advisory capacity with Toshiba Tec). One of those duties will be a role on the chancellor’s executive forum board at the University of California-Irvine.
“Sixty-seven was always the target timeframe I had given my wife,” said Maccabe, who took over as president and CEO in 2013. “I wanted to be able to have the flexibility at a young enough age that if other things came up that I might be interested in, I could do them. My wife and I have a great partnership, and we plan on enjoying our time together.
“Many of our employees, as well as our dealer partners, knew this transition was in process because we didn’t want to surprise anybody. We wanted them to be comfortable with the transition.”
Extensive Background
Maccabe, who also served as president and CEO for Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions—the global retail business—during a five-year stretch that ended in 2020, joined the company in 2002 and managed the day-to-day operations of the computer storage products business unit under Toshiba America Electronic Components. His 46-year career began with Storage Technology Corporation in 1976, and he held a number of executive sales positions with companies such as Fujitsu, Vangard Technology, ATL Corporation and Quantum.
He is proud of what Toshiba has been able to accomplish during his 18 years with the firm, which included guiding the global retail business, which had been acquired from IBM. That represented one of the most significant challenges for Maccabe, but he credits utilizing many of his TABS’ partners to create a synergy.
“The most significant and fulfilling for me has been the partnership we have with Japan and the partnership with have with each other at TABS,” he said. “I’m so proud of this organization; every executive is a quality person who cares about the staff, cares about the good of the whole and not their own, egotistical careers. That makes me happiest, and I learned that lesson throughout my career in having to work in different environments that weren’t always that way.”
White joined TABS as vice president of operations and acquisitions in 1996. Prior to becoming chief revenue officer in 2017, he spent 21 years as senior vice president of sales for the Americas. During his year-long stint as COO, he oversaw strategic planning across Toshiba’s business operations throughout North and South America.
Smooth Sailing
Ordinarily, such a move represents a significant transition, but the mapped-out succession plan is such that White will not have to implement any appreciable changes. His main focus is to “keep this ship moving in the right direction,” though he acknowledges that issues within the supply chain—a product of the pandemic—will need to be addressed.
“Scott is the consummate planner—he set up a direction for the company and massaged it over the past year, so we’re going to continue the execution of that plan,” White said. “We’ll make some changes as the business changes. For example, we’ll be doing some interesting things on the solutions side of the business that will come to light over the next 12 months. The barcode side of the business is growing rapidly. We have some of the biggest names in logistics and the retail spaces as customers. That’s an advantage for us right now. We’ve moved into a lot of adjacent areas as an organization, and that’s been part of the plan for a long period of time.”
In White, Maccabe believes Toshiba has the ultimate candidate to guide the company in the next phase of its evolution. “Larry has the relationships in Japan and the knowledge base of the industry,” Maccabe said. “From an executive-level skillset standpoint, he’s been not only the chief revenue or chief salesman, but he also has those critical, personal relationships with our customer base. Larry’s also been able to evolve through the company with broader sets of responsibilities and be immersed with all the functional groups.
“In my experience with 46 years of technology, it’s so critical to have a broad breadth of knowledge and to be able to be resilient and have foresight for business in setting strategy. A leader is just a catalyst, a facilitator, and Larry knows that. We both know you have to have a level of humility in leadership; otherwise, you put a business at risk.”
