Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran took to professional networking platform LinkedIn on Monday to pay tribute to Ratan Tata, who passed away last week at the age of 86. Reminiscing his time with the chairman-emeritus, Chandrasekaran, highlighted Tata’s humanity whether in business or personal life.
“We discussed interests ranging from cars to hotels, but when our conversations turned to other matters—those of daily life—he would show how much he noticed and felt. He was someone to be discovered, over time and through experience,” wrote in the post accompanied by a picture of the two sharing a laugh on a garden bench.
Tata took over as chairman of Tata Sons in 1991 and was at the helm for two decades till he retired in 2012. During his tenure, the group’s revenue grew 46 times to Rs 4.75 lakh crore and net profit grew 51 times to Rs 33,500 crore. The group’s market cap grew 33 times during this period.
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He returned in 2016 for a brief period as the interim chairman after Cyrus Mistry’s exit from the company and before Chandrasekaran took over in 2017.
“Our relationship grew over the years, first focusing on business and eventually evolving into a more personal connection,” the Tata Sons chairman wrote, adding that anyone who met Tata came away with a story about his humanity, warmth, and dreams for India. “There really was no one like him,” he wrote.
Chandrasekaran recounted two incidents from his experience with Tata in his post – both bringing into focus the compassion the man displayed in his personal and professional life.
In the first incident, he describes Tata’s approach to resolving conflict between Tata Motors and employees’ union over wages which had been on for over two years back in 2017. Chandrasekaran and Tata met the union leaders in March of the year where Tata relayed three messages – he regretted the delay in finding a resolution, explained that the company was passing through hardship, and committed that this dispute would be concluded within a fortnight.
The Tata Sons chairman added that Ratan Tata’s direction “squarely focused on making sure employees were well taken care of—not just to resolve the dispute, but to ensure they and their families’ well-being” and he showed this attitude for all employees across all Tata Group companies.
“It is something that has shaped a number of our leaders across the group,” Chandrasekaran said.
The second incident he narrated was around the renovation of Bombay House – the Tata Sons headquarters in the Fort area of Mumbai. He recollected that he had been met with discouragement from colleagues when he mentioned wanting to renovate the premises, and was specifically told that Ratan Tata would not like the idea.
“Bombay House is a temple,” I was told, emphasising its sanctity, he wrote.
Chandrasekaran recollected that when he mentioned his intentions to Tata he (Tata) asked if ‘renovate’, meant ‘vacate’ to which Chandrasekaran explained everybody would be moved to a nearby office.
To this, Chandra wrote, Tata clarified that he meant to ask where the dogs would go in the event of a renovation. Tata’s love for dogs was well-known and it is not an uncommon sight to find strays taking shelter at the Tata Group company premises, including Bombay House and the Taj Hotels.
Chandrasekaran assured that a kennel would be built for them, which prompted Tata to consider the proposal.
When the renovation was completed, Tata first wanted to see the kennel and was happy with its design, Chandrasekaran recalled.
“Seeing his happiness with the kennel and his priorities was a reminder that while big projects are important, it’s the details that reveal how we think, what we prioritise, and how we are perceived. His joy was confirmation that we had done the right thing,” he wrote.
Chandrasekaran’s post ended with him recalling Tata’s attention to detail and “photographic memory” which allowed him to recall everything—from the placement of smallest piece of furniture, the lighting, colours, and so on. He added that Tata was always observing and processing, from large ideas to minute details.
“There is so much else to say about who he was, but for now, as I process his absence, this will have to do: His eye received everything clearly, as his mind perceived everything clearly,” he signed off.
From: financialexpress
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