Common Room: Ratan Tata could have been designing buildings

Author: Ramesh Nirmal
In Jamshedpur, JRD Tata suffered from heart disease and was admitted to the hospital. Ratan Tata was abroad in those days. When he/she returned to India, he/she came to know about JRD’s illness. Every Monday he/she would go to the hospital to meet JRD. Apart from this, we talked on phone every day. One such day, JRD revealed his/her plans regarding the legacy of Tata Sons. he/she said that he/she wants to step down and appoint Ratan Tata in his/her place.

surprise at appointment
Ratan Tata was a part of the Tata Group since 1962. he/she had worked at many levels, but when it came to becoming the chairman, he/she too was surprised. Ratan Tata explained the reason for this in the interview, ‘Different people were JRD’s preferred successors at different times. I had no objection to it. I believed that one of them would be his/her successor. I told JRD Tata only this – do not give rights to different people. To step down in favor of just one person so that that person has power. That’s why I was a little surprised when I was selected.

New role, old office
Ratan Tata took over the group in the year 1991. Returning from the meeting in which he/she was appointed chairman, he/she went to JRD Tata’s office along with him/her. As soon as he/she entered the office, JRD said to his/her secretary, ‘We have to move away from here now.’ But, Ratan Tata was not ready for this. he/she told JRD that this office still belonged to him/her. On this JRD had asked, ‘Where will you sit?’ And Ratan replied, ‘Where I sit now. My office is down the hall and it’s fine.

real choice
After the arrival of Ratan Tata the identity of the group changed. But, all this might not have happened if he/she had been doing the work of his/her choice. his/her profession of choice was architect. Ratan Tata went to America on the advice of his/her father to study mechanical engineering. he/she also studied engineering for two years at Cornell University, but then changed the course. he/she pursued a five-year degree course in Architecture with a two-year structural engineering program. After this he/she started working as an architect in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, when he/she returned to India after his/her grandmother fell ill, one day he/she got a call from JRD Tata, asking him/her to work in the Tata Group.

suspicious eyes
Ratan Tata got his/her first assignment in Telco (now Tata Motors). he/she was sent to Jamshedpur. he/she had told, ‘Those 6 months in 1962-63 were very terrible. Looking back now, that time was very useful. I spent time in various departments on the shop floor of a telco. There was nothing for me to do. Whenever I went to any employee, he/she would feel that I was keeping an eye on his/her work. They didn’t know that I was just trying to learn something myself.

nano’s dream
Lakhtakia car Nano was a dream of Ratan Tata which he/she put all his/her strength to fulfill. he/she actually wanted to fulfill the dream of common Indian families to have their own car. The initial ideas that came about Nano were completely different. Since the cost of the car had to be kept to a minimum, the first thought was to make a car that would have no doors or would have curtains instead of windows. Ratan Tata liked this idea because it is better to travel in a cheap four-wheeler than having the entire family travel on a two-wheeler. However, as the idea progressed, it became clear that people wanted to buy a car, not a hi-fi auto rickshaw. Everyone knows that Ratan Tata had the idea of ​​making a cheap car after seeing a family riding on a scooter, so initially he/she wanted to make a car like a scooter. But, scooter parts have a limit, so he/she started thinking afresh.

(Courtesy of the book Corporate Trinity)