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New president takes the reins at Kubota Canada Ltd. following veteran’s retirement

Kubota Canada Ltd. has a new company president.

Yannick Montagano is succeeding Bob Hickey at the end of June.

A 25-year veteran of Canada’s industrial sector, Montagano steps into the role from his current position as Kubota Canada’s vice-president of sales, marketing, service and engineering – a role he’s held since December 2018. Hickey will continue to work closely with Montagano until the end of the month to ensure an orderly transition in Kubota Canada’s leadership. 

“Kubota Canada has cemented itself as one of the country’s premier tractor and compact equipment distributors during our proud 47-year history, and I am thrilled and honoured to have been selected to lead this great company into the future,” Montagano said. “It is crucial that we at Kubota Canada continue to honour our commitment to innovation and to our customers and dealers, both of which remain at the heart of our business. I look forward to working with the rest of the executive team as we continue to build on the exceptional growth Kubota Canada has seen under Bob’s guidance.”   

Hickey’s retirement comes after a more than 40-year career with Kubota Canada – having first joined the company in 1981 as controller – where he took on several leadership positions before stepping into the role of president in 2013. In this time, Hickey contributed to an unprecedented period of growth for Kubota Canada, leaving the company in a strong position, with more than $1 billion in sales projected for 2022. 

“I am very proud to have had a lifelong association with such a world class organization,” Hickey said. “Kubota Canada has been such an important factor in my life, and it feels so good to be leaving with the company still at the top of its game. I look forward to watching Yannick and the executive leadership team steer Kubota Canada to continued growth and success.” 

This leadership transition comes at a time of substantial investment for Kubota in Canada, including more than $80 million for a new state-of-the-art corporate office and 500,000 square foot warehouse space in Pickering, Ont. The grand opening is planned for October 2022. Kubota also recently opened a new 280-acre research and development centre in the state of Georgia, built to meet the needs of Canadian and American customers. The facility represents a more than $85 million USD investment by Kubota and is 100 per cent powered by renewable energy and built on the sustainable principles that are in keeping with the company’s global mission to use technology and efficient operations and practices.