Masataka Shimizu shuffled his way excruciatingly through repeated apologies -- to shareholders, customers and the public -- for the disaster his company's leaking Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has unleashed.

But time and again he refused to go into details on when the runaway reactors would be tamed, on what compensation would be offered to those affected, or on how he might ensure the disaster is not repeated.

He promised to make "every effort" to resolve the problem and said he was "examining" how he could help those forced out of their homes "soon".

Even veteran Japanese journalists used to surviving on scraps of information from venerated company bosses found it too much to cope with.

"I don't quite see why you held this press conference. I don't see what you want to say to whom," one reporter blasted. "You keep saying 'as soon as possible', but that's what a noodle delivery driver would say."

The president of Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) has appeared in public only a handful of times since the March 11 tsunami swamped the plant on Japan's northeast coast.

Cooling systems were disabled, sending atomic core temperatures soaring and sparking the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years, which has also left the country facing crippling power shortages.

After a brief apology in front of the cameras on March 13, Shimizu, 66, took to his sickbed and was not heard of again until he resurfaced for a repeat performance on April 11 in Fukushima prefecture.

He made no effort to visit the tens of thousands of people made homeless by the radiation spewing from his power plant, a group whose numbers will swell as more areas are added to the 20-kilometre (12-mile) exclusion zone around the plant because of fears over the long-term effects of exposure.

At Wednesday's press conference, one reporter asked why he did not go to see local residents and offer a personal apology.

"My plan was to visit the regional government office," Shimizu said. "I will decide when to go to see the disaster victims, soon."

"You didn't have a plan see them in the first place?" the reporter pressed.

"It was difficult, timewise," the president said.

Shimizu's underwhelming performance at the head of one of Japan's biggest companies has annoyed not just journalists and members of the public.

"It is the nature of a utility firm that the president does not usually have to make major managerial decisions or changes," said a senior government official, who declined to be named.

"So in the normal course of events, Shimizu probably is a capable man.

"But we are in the middle of an emergency now and it seems to have been difficult for him to take control."

This inability to lead from the front is not unique to Shimizu, says one risk management specialist, who thinks it is not unusual for Japanese corporate heads and even senior politicians to find themselves floundering when the going gets tough.

"In a critical situation, you first must offer a roadmap showing you will take certain action in so many months, a year, 10 years and so on," said Tomohiro Takanashi, chairman of the Crisis and Risk Management Society of Japan.

"In the meantime, you also have to give good explanations for why you are doing what you are doing, for example ensuring that you prioritise people when considering the impact of your actions.

"But it is not just Shimizu who has failed to present a clear roadmap and list of priorities. So did the government."

Prime Minister Naoto Kan has come under fire from foreign capitals for failing to inform the world early enough over the release of radioactive water into the sea.

Tokyo has also been criticised for taking a month to acknowledge the severity of the disaster, only this week regrading the crisis as a maximum level seven on an international scale of nuclear events.

And on Thursday the political gloves came off at home for the first time since the crisis began, with open calls by the conservative opposition for the centre-left Kan to resign.

The lack of dynamism in Japan's corporate culture has seen some of the country's leading firms -- including Sony and Nissan Motor -- look to foreigners to take the helm.

Others, such as top online retailer Rakuten, have made English their official operating language in a bid to become more competitive.

But corporate Japan is often not keen on things being done a different way, and the average company president is likely to be a Japanese man of advancing years.

Takanashi said the key to leaders dealing successfully with a crisis is getting things going "now" rather than "soon".

"They may be afraid of causing a panic, having their positions threatened or making mistakes. But they have no time to debate," he said, adding few post war Japanese corporate leaders have any experience of dealing with a crisis.

"It's easy to criticise Shimizu, but was there anyone else who could have handled it better?"

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