Under the leadership of Ayao Komatsu, Haas F1 has undergone a profound transformation in the last twelve months following the departure of Guenther Steiner. After finishing dead last in the constructors’ standings in 2023, the American team turned its fortunes around to secure the seventh position in the championship table last season.
Komatsu assumed the role of team principal in January last year after Guenther Steiner, who held the position since the team’s inception, parted ways with the Banbury-based squad. The 49-year-old has been instrumental in not only overseeing Haas’s upward trajectory on track but also providing the much-needed stability off track.
Appearing on the Brazilian Pelas Pistas Podcast, Komatsu shared his thoughts on the small and big changes that have contributed to the transformation of Haas since Steiner’s departure. Furthermore, he addressed the human element in engineering and spoke at length on the factors that helped them produce a faster car in 2024.
Ayao Komatsu says small but effective changes propelled Haas F1 Team forward in 2024
In terms of the performance gains the team made in 2024 in comparison to the previous seasons, Komatsu revealed that the changes contributing to the positive transformation of Haas were not revolutionary.
Highlighting the importance of the tone that the team leader needs to set, the Japanese elaborated on how they established clear medium-term and long-term objectives and relied on effective communication to move forward together.
“Honestly, actually, simple things, you know.
“I think the team’s tone needs to be set from the top, and then the top needs to lead by example. But again, everybody needs to understand the objectives, right? What we need to achieve this year. Where are we going as a team, right? Medium term, long term.
“So having that clear vision and objectives, and then it’s no point just having a target objective saying, ‘I want to be P5 or P6 or P7 this year’. You’ve got to obviously have the substantial strategy to back it up, how to achieve it, having that strategy. And then once you have that clear objectives and strategy, again, communicate.
“Communicate across the company, up and down the company, so everyone in the company knows every day what they’re doing, how they are contributing to the ultimate goal. Because it doesn’t matter if you are an IT person or software engineer or race engineer or designer or aerodynamicist. They’re all in this business because they love Formula 1, they love motorsports, and ultimately want to have a sporting result.”
Transparency, inclusivity, and teamwork important for motivating Haas F1 team
Komatsu acknowledged that he is striving to build a transparent and inclusive atmosphere where the contribution of each member towards the ultimate goal can be understood and duly acknowledged.
Asserting that teamwork plays a particularly consequential role in determining the success of smaller teams on the F1 grid, the 49-year-old stated that it was his responsibility as a facilitator to build and sustain the environment where the team’s talents could thrive after the disappointing streak of results in the past several years.
“So even the guys like, let’s say, IT, who’s programming computers or just building a computer, needs to understand how his work is contributing to the performance, right? I think if everybody feels that, understand how they’re contributing, that’s motivational. So I’m really trying to create that kind of a transparent, inclusive culture. So I’m still doing it.
“But again, just trying to get us working as a team. You know, we are the smallest team by far on the grid. So if we don’t work as a team, it’s clear we have no chance whatsoever.
“But also, I’ve been working since 2016 in this team. I know the individuals, you know. I know how good people are. So the last few years are very frustrating to see that those people’s, let’s say, talents are wasted, you know?
“It’s really a matter of providing the environment where these guys can flourish. And I feel like my job is like a facilitator to provide that kind of environment.”
Biggest changes by Ayao Komatsu that have led to Haas F1 transformation since Steiner’s departure
When asked to pinpoint the two substantial changes that he has introduced since the exit of former team principal Steiner in January 2024, Komatsu responded that Haas has undergone the biggest transformation when it comes to the process of building clarity about objectives, formulating strategies, and honing communication.
“So exactly what I said. The biggest change for me is to clarify objectives, come up with a strategy, and then communicate that bit.
“I know it’s basic, but before there was none of that. You know, there’s objective. ‘Oh, we want to be in the midfield, but there’s no strategy. And how are we going to achieve it’?
“And also the communication in terms of like, what are we doing as a team? You know, Haas F1 team, let’s say one year you finish P8 in the championship. Where are we going? Are we happy just being P8 for the near future? Or are we trying to move up on the grid? If we’re going to move up on the grid, how are we going to do it? None of those are clear. There’s nothing.
“So people are left wondering, you know, what are we doing here? So it’s simple, but simple things matter. I know it sounds almost stupid, right? It’s very, very simple, but I knew what everybody was feeling because I’ve been there, right from ’16 all the way. So that’s the one thing.”
Changes in organisational structure of the technical team for better communication
Elaborating on the different aspects of communication, the Haas team boss specifically addressed how the massive gap in communication between the operations and design teams based in the UK and Italy impacted the overall performance of the team in the previous years.
While admitting that the difference in location is not ideal, Komatsu identified the lack of efficient communication as the root of their troubles. As such, he revealed that he has modified the organisational structure of the technical team and appointed people in certain positions to facilitate productive communication amongst employees on both sides of the English Channel.
“And the next thing is the communication between trackside and our design office and aerodynamicists. So our designers and aerodynamicists, they’re based in Italy. Trackside people, race engineers based in the UK.
“So that communication is very, very important. And then before, honestly, that communication wasn’t going very well. I thought bottleneck is just the location.
“We cannot function as a team having half the team in the UK, half the team in Italy. But once I started talking to the guys based in Italy, I said, ‘okay, actual location, it’s not ideal, but that’s not the bottleneck’.
“Bottleneck is communication, making sure all the information from trackside, the technical director, the chief designer, head of aero goes there, and then close the loop properly.
“So I changed the organisational structure of the technical side to make sure that communication happens, but also put certain people in the place who can promote that kind of communication.”
Ayao Komatsu on the human element in engineering and what produces a fast Haas F1 car
Alongside his comments on the restructuring and functionality of the team, Komatsu also talked about where the car came into this equation and the human element that plays a huge part in its success.
Admitting that disagreements are part and parcel of collaborative projects, Komatsu claimed that they couldn’t build a faster car in the past few years because the different groups within the team failed to reach a consensus when it came to the direction of development they wanted to pursue. Simultaneously, he added that transparency and honesty in communication and the ability to pivot enabled them to produce better machinery in 2024.
“Cars are made by people. It’s all about human being, right?
“Last year, trackside, it was pretty clear what the issue of the car is. But if that’s not fully understood by all the people who’s actually designing the car, how can we make the car go quicker?
“It’s okay to have a disagreement saying, ‘okay, I think the car problem is this’. But as long as we pick the direction, and everyone’s clear why we’re picking that direction, it’s fine.
“Before it was like one group is going in this direction, the other group is going in this direction, so you cannot make the car go faster. So this year, I just made a focus that we all sit on the same table, at least communication is transparent, agree or disagree, and then we agree to go in certain direction.
“We just need to be transparent and honest, assess if that was the right direction or not. If it’s not, just discuss openly, and if we need to correct the direction, we do that. So just really working as a team together, be on the same page. That in turn produces the faster car.”
