:Masaharu Matsushita

Matsushita was born Masaharu Hirata. He was the second son of Count Eiji Hirata (1882–1971) who was a painter and a professor of Tokyo School of Fine Arts and Tatsu, the adopted daughter of Viscount Shinagawa Yajirō.[https://keibatsugaku.com/hirata/ The Hiratas] He originally studied law at the present-day University of Tokyo. Matsushita worked for Mitsui Bank[https://keibatsugaku.com/matsushita-2/ The Matsushitas] before joining Panasonic.{{cite book|last=Kotter|first=John P. |title=Matsushita Leadership: Lessons from the 20th Century's Most Remarkable Entrepreneur|publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=1997|pages=1932|isbn= 9780684834603|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H02ar1hD7nAC&pg=RA2-PA1932 |accessdate=July 22, 2012}} In April 1940, he married Sachiko Matsushita, the daughter of Panasonic's founder, and was adopted into her family, taking their surname.{{cite book|title=A History of Top Management in Japan: Managerial Enterprises and Family Enterprises|editor=Hidemasa Morikawa|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2001 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/historyoftopmana00hide/page/147 147]|isbn= 9780195131659|url=https://archive.org/details/historyoftopmana00hide|url-access=registration|quote=Masaharu Hirata Sachiko.|accessdate=July 22, 2012}} He began working for his father-in-law the following month.

Masaharu Matsushita is credited with turning Panasonic into a global electronics brand. He succeeded his father-in-law as President of Panasonic in 1961 as the company's second president. Under him, Panasonic retained its management philosophy, which emphasized teamwork and promoted the idea that bosses were equal to their employees. High ranking management performed more tasks with their employees, such as cleaning bathrooms. Panasonic's company philosophy has been admired and copied within the Japanese business world. Masaharu Matsushita held the presidency of Panasonic for sixteen years, during a period of worldwide growth for Japan. Toshihiko Yamashita took over the presidency in 1977.{{cite book|title=A History of Top Management in Japan: Managerial Enterprises and Family Enterprises|editor=Hidemasa Morikawa|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2001 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/historyoftopmana00hide/page/149 149]|isbn= 9780195131659|url=https://archive.org/details/historyoftopmana00hide|url-access=registration|quote=1977 Masaharu Toshihiko Yamashita.|accessdate=July 26, 2012}} He was conferred the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure in 1984, and was appointed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 1997.

Masaharu Matsushita died at Matsushita Memorial Hospital in Osaka, a hospital founded by his father-in-law, on July 16, 2012, at the age of 99. He was survived by his wife, Sachiko, and their sons, Panasonic vice-chairman Masayuki Matsushita, and Hiro Matsushita who is a former driver in the Champ Car series and owns Swift Engineering, an aerospace firm in California and in 2018 Swift Engineering formed its subsidiary called Swift Xi located in Kobe.

Panasonic chairman Fumio Ōtsubo said of Matsushita, "I honor from the bottom of my heart his achievements in steering our company toward momentous growth."

• {{flagu|Malaysia}} : Honorary Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (P.S.M.) (1993){{cite web

|url=http://www.istiadat.gov.my/index.php/component/semakanlantikanskp/|title=Semakan Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat}}

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{{Tree chart| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | MHS |MHS=Matsushita Uemon}}

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{{Tree chart| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | HKI |~| HTE |y| MMS | | HTS | | | | MTA | | | | | | MTM | | |HKI=Yasuda Koichiro|HTE=Tokue Matsushita|MMS=

Masakusu Matsushita|HTS=Hirata Tosuke|MTA=Maeda Toshiaki
(前田利昭|MTM=Mitsui Takamine10th head of the Mitsui family}}

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{{Tree chart| NTJ |~| NYS | | IKA | | IYU | | ITO | | MMN |y| MKS | | | | HEJ |y| SZK | | MTS | | KIK | | MHR |ITO=Toshio Iue|IYU=Yurou Iue|IKA=Jun Iue|NYS=Yasue|NTJ=Tetsujiro Nakao|MMN=Mumeno|MKS=Konosuke Matsushita|HEJ=Hirata Shodo|SZK=Shizuko Maeda|MTS=Maeda Toshisada|KIK=Keiko|MHR=Mitsui Takakimi11th head of the Mitsui family}}

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{{Tree chart| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | IUT | | | | STK |y| MSJ | | | | | | HKM |~|~|~|~|~| NRK | | | | |IUT=Satoshi Iue|STK=Matsushita Sachiko|MSJ=Masaharu Matsushita|HKM=Hirata Katsumi|NRK=Nobuko}}

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{{Tree chart| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ITM | | | | HMS | | MMY | | AKK | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |ITM=Iue Toshimasa|HMS=Hiro Matsushita|MMY=Masayuki Matsushita
(松下正幸|AKK=Atsuko Matsushita}}

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{{Panasonic}}

{{Kōnosuke Matsushita}}

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Category:1912 births

Category:2012 deaths

Category:Japanese businesspeople

Category:Panasonic

Category:University of Tokyo alumni

Category:Honorary commanders of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia