He holds a B. L. degree from the Faculty of Law, Keio University. Nakao started his career at Terumo Corporation in 1970. Then he successively assumed the posts of Chairman & CEO of Terumo Medical Corporation (US), and Director, Vice President, and Executive Officer at Terumo Corporation. He was then elected as Chairman of the Board of the company in 2011. Since 2016, he has been the Corporate Adviser of Terumo Corporation.