Ratan Tata : A Life

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NOMINATED FOR desertcart POPULAR CHOICE BOOK AWARD, 2025 To create an Indian environment with fresh air to breathe, clean water to drink, nutritious food with no one left hungry, and a way to care for everyone’s health should be the priority for you and me.—Ratan Tata Ratan Tata (1937–2024) was one of the most influential and inspirational personalities of our times—an iconic business leader who was instrumental in transforming independent India’s industrial landscape. Established in 1868, the Tata Group spans a gamut of industries, from salt to steel to software, and is synonymous with quality and trust. It operates in more than 100 countries, impacting the lives of billions of people around the world. The abiding goodwill and respect that the Tata brand carries today can be traced back largely to the vision and integrity of one individual who spearheaded the conglomerate for over two decades—Ratan Tata. Starting out as a novice on the shop floor of a Tata company, Ratan Tata achieved an unequalled growth rate for the Tata Group as chairman and took India to the world through global acquisitions, overcoming many serious challenges along the way. This fascinating biography traces Ratan Tata’s years in immaculate detail, from his lonely childhood to his irrepressible youthful exuberance, from his first major job in the conglomerate to being appointed chairman of Tata Sons in 1991 to his role as the head of Tata Trusts, India’s largest philanthropic enterprise. It is as much a story of determination and an unwavering commitment to enduring principles and values as it is a testament to achieving unprecedented corporate success. Drawing on hundreds of hours of interviews with Ratan Tata, his family, friends, former colleagues and business associates, and filled with previously unknown facts, anecdotes and the author’s insights, this is a comprehensive account of a life the likes of which the world has seldom seen Review: Exemplary book on an exemplary human being - An exemplary book about an extraordinary human being. It is difficult to fathom that a person like Ratan Naval Tata Sir walked on this planet and it is indeed a privilege to be born in the same country as him, and to have breathed the same air. The book starts with his early life, born to Naval Tata and Soonoo Tata on 28th Dec, 1937. It sheds light on how his formative years were shaped by his Paternal Grandmother, Lady Tata who imbibed in him the quality to assess what is right vs wrong and to do the right thing. She led by example to accept when one is wrong with accountability and grace, helping him understand that being able to graciously accept one's mistakes is a sign of strength. RNT Sir deeply admired his Father from whom as written in the book he learnt value systems, kindness and humility. The book then touches upon his schooling, his college years at Cornell from wherein he received a BSc in architecture. After working for a few years in the US with a design firm, he returned to India in Aug 1962 and joined IBM. But thankfully, he was convinced by JRD Tata Sir, to join the Tata Group. That is how his magnificent journey with the Group started, starting from the shop floors of TELCO (Tata Motors) and TISCO (Tata Steel), to the Chairmanship of the Group. The book highlights how Ratan Tata Sir's affable personality, ability to mix with all and a constant desire to learn, endeared him to the shop floor employees who after the initial apprehension of training the US returned apprentice, immediately opened the treasures of knowledge for him. On 26th Mar, 1971 RNT Sir was appointed as a director in NELCO (National Radio & Electronics Company Limited) and later was made director in charge of operations. NELCO was financially shrinking and his appointment shackled his reputation to an organization hurtling towards closure. He focused on increasing sales, clearing unsold stock, expanding the product range, and raising funds. His leadership provided NELCO, the sense of direction it sorely needed. Its turnover increased over 62 times from 1971 to 1992. In 1977, NELCO suffered a lockout for seven months, when the workers made some unreasonable demands. He stood firm. RNT Sir always believed that the NELCO experience was filled with learning. In 1974, RNT Sir was made a director in Tata Sons. Even till the mid 1970s he was still at the periphery of the Tata Group. During that time, Amar Bose, the founder of Bose Corporation offered the post of the President of the Corporation. RNT Sir declined because he wanted to bring NELCO back on track before leaving and second, his grandmother had impressed upon him the values that the Tatas were sworn to uphold and he too was committed to them. In 1978, RNT Sir alongwith Jamshed J. Bhabha and S.A. Sabavala sent a note to JRD Sir on the challenges faced by the group and the steps needed. The part authored by RNT Sir was remarkable for its overarching group perspective. A meeting was immediately scheduled, for which RNT Sir prepared two additional documents - The Tata Plan: Strategic Plan for Tatas and Issues which Need to Be Addressed. The study undertaken by RNT Sir alongwith his recommendations made him an ideational leader, separating him from the rest of the heads of the Group Companies. On 21st October, 1981 JRD Sir announced RNT Sir as the new Chairman of TIL, to the surprise of many. RNT Sir, with his characteristic humility, said that he was pleasantly surprised. The legendary JRD Sir explained later that RNT Sir was chosen because of his long term vision and his highly perceptive mind. RNT Sir’s Mother, Soonoo Commissariat, got diagnosed with lung cancer and breathed her last on 7th Oct, 1982 in the US. Throughout those last few months of her life, RNT Sir provided her strength and even in such a deeply emotional situation of her death, he always maintained his composure, grace and stoicism. RNT Sir prepared a strategic plan for the Group, revealed in Dec 1983, which became the blueprint for the group over the next 3 decades and more. However some of the powerful executives within the Group ignored the plan as they saw it as a threat to their independence. But, since the outlining of the plan and its adoption in TIL, there was an unprecedented momentum and energy in the group towards technology adoption and modernization. The wider business community and the press started to take notice of RNT Sir. In Dec 1988, RNT Sir was appointed as the Chairman of TELCO (today’s TATA Motors) but not by design. Sumant Moolgaokar played a key role in the same (yes, TATA Sumo is named after him!). In Apr 1988, on the insistence of Mr Moolgaokar, RNT Sir was appointed as the deputy chairman of TELCO with the responsibility of the day to day operations. This put a hurdle to the plans of Russi Mody, who was also gunning for the post of TELCO Chairman. JRD Sir and Russi Mody thought that RNT Sir could be persuaded to declare that he would not work under Mr Moolgaokar, only Mody. But this proved to be the inflection point, not only did he refuse to do the same, he also offered his resignation instead of going against his principles, from the directorship of TELCO and TATA Sons. He only took his resignation back after a letter request from Mr Mody, requesting him not to resign and also acknowledging the importance of Mr Moolgaokar, and on being persuaded by JRD. Ultimately RNT Sir became the Chairman of TELCO and soon had to deal with a labour strike. Many had thought that the shy RNT Sir, will not be able to handle the strike where the union leaders could use militant methods. But RNT Sir, held his nerves and combined with his sincerity of purpose was able to break the strike in a way that made TELCO stronger without meeting any of the strike demands. The question of the Chairmanship of TATA Sons was imminent, with JRD Sir’s advancing age. There were several contenders in the fray: Darbari Seth, Ajit Kerkar, Naval Tata, Nani Palkhivala, Russi Mody and RNT Sir. Russi Mody was JRD’s favourite but ultimately on 25th Mar 1991, RNT Sir was made the Chairman of TATA Sons. The most identifiable factors were his opinion on the License Raj and the imminence of its dismantlement, his young age, courage, enterprise, group outlook, emphasis on technology and global outlook, compassion and unwavering commitment to ethics, and honesty of purpose. His appointment did not go down well with the Group’s veterans. While facing resistance from the satraps, he went about institutionalizing reforms starting with introducing a new retirement policy for the directors and chairmen of the Group companies. In Jan 1990, RNT Sir had sent a note to JRD Sir mentioning his intent to update the original Strategic Plan. The goal of The Strategic Plan 2.0 was to further strengthen the group spirit and to make the group along with the group companies ready for a liberalized economy. When JRD Sir, was The Chairman, he had held the Group together through the sheer dint of his personality and informal relationships, even though the holding of TATA Sons in many group companies was very low. But as the leadership guard was about to change, this informal matrix could not continue and it was needed that the Group be held together through a more formalized structure without relying on individual personalities. RNT Sir took several steps in that regard and by 1999, he increased TATA Sons stake in most of the key companies to around 20%. In addition, he formulated other initiatives to achieve the group spirit. RNT Sir in parallel empowered the heads of the major companies. From increasing TATA Sons’ stake in its companies, to divesting from non-core companies such as detergents, cement, cosmetics and textiles to strengthening the existing ones, the transformation was all-encompassing. For Tata Steel, his strategy focused on 4 pillars: cost-cutting, modernization, customer focus and overseas expansion. At Tata Power, he helped it achieve scale by first merging Tata Hydro-Electric Power Supply and Andhra Valley Power with Tata Power Company in Jun 2000. Via this merger, the company was able to go after mega projects. At Tata Chemicals the focus was on the product portfolio - concentrating on 3 core businesses: soda ash, salt and fertilizers. The other key focus area was overseas expansion. At Tata Motors his first emphasis was on modernization and upgradation of technology to benchmark the company’s products and to have a keen focus on becoming more cost-efficient, productive and increased total quality. Current Tata Motor employees credit him for its current design and engineering prowess. To increase the quality of the products, under his leadership the company laid a significant focus on exports. He diversified the portfolio from just commercial towards passenger vehicles and vehicles at the intersection of pure passenger and commercial. At Tata Consumer Products Limited, similar themes of achieving scale and having an overseas outlook continued. He underscored the need for the company to transform itself from being ‘a manufacturer of a commodity’ into ‘a consumer products manufacturing company’. At TCS (Tata Consultancy Services), a doyen of the Indian software industry, his leadership proved extremely crucial for both the company and the group. From a group perspective, his decision to not give stock options in Tata Sons was monumental - not only it prevented the dilution of the stake of Tata Trusts in Tata Sons but also prevented the possibility of any competitors acquiring shareholding in Tata Sons. Many veterans commended him for having the strength to not take such a decision. He was however supportive of greater autonomy for TCS and public listing of the same separately, which was crucial for the company. TCS also benefited from his urge to go global. He wanted to fill the gaps in India’s defence production capability and this led to the creation of Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL). For the Taj group of hotels, his pioneering contribution came in the light of creating a cohesive brand story and growth strategy around it. As the Group Chairman, RNT Sir would always be remembered as the ‘architect of the group’s global expansion policy.’ RNT Sir looked at the global markets for 2 main reasons - the cross pollination of technology, and to attain the presence and scale to tide through difficult times in India. This was later emulated by other Indian companies. The first major acquisition was that of Tetley by Tata Tea in 2000. It was the largest overseas acquisition by an Indian company until then and was crucial for Tata Tea from a scale, technology and brand positioning perspective. One of the other major acquisitions was that of Corus by Tata Steel. In the initial phases the discussion was around a JV but RNT Sir was clear - “It is inconceivable that Tata Steel could give up a part of its sovereignty.” Tata Steel acquired Corus for $ 12.1 B in Jan 2007. In terms of output, this acquisition catapulted Tata Steel to be the world’s 5th biggest steel maker. With the global financial meltdown, the Tata Group did all they could to keep the English facilities going. As reported by The Telegraph, ‘Given the state of Tata Steel UK’s finances, it is a wonder the Indian conglomerate kept the operations running for as long as it did’. Across the globe, all lauded RNT Sir not only for the acquisition but the way he spearheaded the operations. RNT Sir led Tata Motors to acquire the iconic automotive brands Jaguar and LandRover from Ford Motor Company on 25 Mar 2008. In 2015, RNT Sir was inducted into the hallowed Automotive Hall of Fame, for returning ‘Jaguar and Range Rover to eminent status and profitability, preserving the auto industry in the UK.’ RNT Sir had to tackle unforeseen and grave challenges. A deputy general manager of Tata Tea’s Guwahati office was kidnapped in the 1990s and there was a ransom demand of $ 15 M but RNT Sir refused to yield to the demands. Ultimately after 11 months the employee was released with no money being transferred. Tata Tea continued to focus on welfare investments. The company was unfairly targeted as having links with terror outfits. The targeting continued and also threats emanated from ULFA. But RNT Sir remained steadfast and handled the situation with his grace, his public outreach, his reliance on procedures and clarifying the Group’s stand with the Government. RNT Sir decided to create a people’s car for India, ‘Nano’. The idea came from him thinking about how to make the scooter safer. Tata Motors initially finalized setting up of the Nano plant in Singur, West Bengal but was caught in the political unrest. Seeing his employees’ safety at stake he decided to move the plant out to Sanand, Gujarat. True to his word, the car’s dealer price for the base model was kept at Rs 1 lakh without compromising on the quality. The car was launched at Auto Expo 2008. The car put the Group and India’s automobile engineering capabilities onto the world map. It brought about a streak of innovation in the organization, received universal praise for design and was an inspiration on frugal engineering for companies all over. In 2008, the Financial Times wrote, ‘The project has led some to dub the Tata Group’s chairman as a latter-day Henry Ford.’ One of the most emotionally challenging ordeals faced by RNT Sir, the Group, and our country was the 26/11 terrorist attacks on Mumbai, with the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel being one of the main targets. But in less than 21 months, the Taj reopened and was back in business. On that fateful night, RNT Sir stood on the footpath in front of the hotel, looking up in horror with ‘tears in his eyes’ as the landmark was engulfed in flames. He was effusive in his praise for the approximately 600 employees of the Taj for their handling of the situation. Some 3 years later, he said, ‘The Taj, despite its solidarity, its majestic being, could never be what it has turned out to be without that spirit, without the selfless spirit, embodied in the staff and the management. They stood by at great risk to themselves and in some cases at the cost of their lives to protect the people who were here. And that became the symbol of the strength of Mumbai, the strength of the city. They did get hurt, but they did not fail. I [pay] my tribute to the edifice and the people of the Taj who are the light and spirit of this great institution.’ RNT Sir and Krishna Kumar Sir were very dedicated during the siege. Noshir Sanjana, the group security manager of the Taj, remarks, ‘Ratan Tata and Krishna Kumar are heroes’; they were closely involved in the salvage operations and rendered virtually every type of assistance to those affected. RNT Sir displayed indomitable and unflinching courage during the 3 days and also demonstrated exemplary empathy in how he stood by those who were affected. His unparalleled handling and support for the rebuilding phase of peoples’ lives, led many to describe him as ‘their God’. One person said, “I have not seen God. But that day I saw God in him. God was in front of me.” Another said’ “All this happened because of Sir Ratan Tata. He is God.” In 2010, RNT Sir declared his intention to step down as the Chairman in 2012 when he turned 75 and appointed a committee to select a successor. Mr Cyrus Mistry was chosen. Quite a few Tata veterans were uneasy, especially given the past history of how Pallonji Mistry had gone about acquiring Tata shares from JRD Tata Sir’s siblings. RNT Sir, however, gave his full backing to Mr Mistry based on the recommendation and genuinely wanted him to succeed. Serious issues started to develop when Mr Mistry stopped consulting Tata Trusts - which has a 66% stake in Tata Sons - on important decisions. Mr Mistry’s tenure was ‘marked by repeated departures from the culture and ethos of the group,’ commented the Financial Times. The other issue was that while there was an agreement that Mr Mistry will dissociate himself from his family business but even after repeated prodding, it was not done. In Oct 2016, RNT Sir inclined towards the decision to replace Mr Mistry as the Chairman. RNT Sir knew that he would be misunderstood, but he was willing to sacrifice some of his reputation to do the right thing. Post his removal as the Chairman of Tata Sons, by Dec 2016, Mr Mistry was not the chairman of three companies: TCS, Tata Steel and TGBL. The shareholders, the trade unions and the employees were overwhelmingly in support of RNT Sir. Finally on 5th Feb, 2017, in the EGM convened for Tata Sons, a resolution to remove Mr Mistry from the directorship of Tata Sons was passed. Mr Mistry filed cases against the Tata Group on the decisions taken at the NCLT. A 5 year legal battle ensued across NCLT, NCLAT and the Supreme Court. On 26th Mar, 2021 the Supreme Court set aside the NCLAT order and virtually upheld the NCLT’s decision - stating that Mr Mistry’s removal could not be termed as prejudicial or oppressive. This five year long battle took a toll on RNT Sir’s health. Mr N Chandrasekaran (then CEO of TCS) was appointed as the new Chairman on 12th Jan 2017. One of the major factors, apart from his adherence to ethics and humility, was increased digitalization. Chandrasekaran’s appointment restored dignity, growth, and energy rekindling innovativeness. Since then, Tata Sons has seen a phase of sterling growth and smooth relations with Tata Trusts. In 2017, the Government decided to divest the loss-making Air India and the Tata Group saw an opportunity. In 2020, the Government invited expressions of interest for a 100% sale of the airline and on 8th Oct 2021, Tata Sons emerged as the winner. As the Chairman of Tata Trusts, RNT Sir continued the legacy he inherited. RNT Sir’s focus was always on ‘making a difference’, through philanthropic efforts. His belief was that communities do not require ‘handouts - they need prosperity and dignity’. RNT Sir continued to receive praises and accolades from all sections of the society throughout his life. Many have described RNT Sir’s personality as being easy to misjudge. As much as Sir was genteel, he was unbending in his resolve to stop what he saw as wrong. But he was a man of equableness and of great depth. This book deserves a place on every bookshelf. While technically it is a biography, one can also think of it as a self help book or a business book or a book on patriotic values or a book on ethics and character building. It is many genres rolled into one, such was the personality of RNT Sir. A note for the author - he might be another Walter Isaacson in the making. An extremely well researched and highly lucid book. Review: A deep dive into Sir Ratan Tata’s life - An amazing book indeed. No other biography has perhaps been as deeply researched as this work. Better than Steve Jobs' book by Walter Isaacson. I was also amazed by the author's commitment. He has so thoughtfully given one full page for the photo of Tata Sir’s Grandmother, whom Tata has described as his guiding light. And the paperback edition that I bought has this interesting information. The author himself took this photo. He must have been emotionally committed to his work. Thank you, author, for doing such detailed work on an Indian icon and for bringing to light the facts virtually no one knew.