Ratan Naval Tata, an Indian businessman and former chairman of Tata Sons, was born on December 28, 1937. He served as the Tata Group’s chairman from 1990 to 2012 and as acting chairman from October 2016 to February 2017. He is still in charge of its philanthropic trusts.
Born Ratan Naval Tata
28 December 1937 (age 85)
Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India
Alma mater Cornell University (BArch)
Occupation Industrialist
Title Chairman Emeritus, Tata Sons and Tata Group
Term 1991–2012
2016–2017
Predecessor J. R. D. Tata
Successor Cyrus Mistry (2012–2016)
Natarajan Chandrasekaran
(2017–present)
Parent Naval Tata
Relatives Tata family
Awards Assam Baibhav (2021)
Padma Vibhushan (2008)
Maharashtra Bhushan (2006)
Padma Bhushan (2000)
Early Life and Family
Ratan Tata is the offspring of Jamsetji Tata, the man who founded the Tata Group, and Naval Tata, who was raised by Ratanji Tata. He earned a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Cornell University College of Architecture. He started working for Tata in 1961, doing shop floor duties for Tata Steel. Once J. R. D. Tata retired in 1991, he later took over as chairman of Tata Sons. To expand the Tata Group beyond its primarily Indian focus and become a global company, the Tata Group bought Tetley, Jaguar Land Rover, and Corus during his leadership.
On December 28, 1937, Ratan Tata was born in Bombay, which is now Mumbai, during the British Raj. He is the son of Naval Tata, a Surat native who was later adopted into the Tata family, and Sooni Tata, Jamsetji Tata’s niece. Hormusji Tata, Tata’s biological grandpa, was a direct descendant of the Tata family. Tata’s grandmother, Navajbai Tata, the widow of Ratanji Tata, nurtured and adopted him when his parents divorced in 1948 when he was 10 years old. He was reared with his older brother Jimmy Tata and his half-brother Noel Tata, who is a product of Naval Tata’s second marriage to Simone Tata. It’s Gujarati that he speaks natively.
He completed his eighth-grade studies at the Campion School in Mumbai. After that, he attended the Bishop Cotton School in Shimla, the Cathedral and John Connon Schools in Mumbai, and the Riverdale Country School in New York City, where he received his diploma in 1955. Tata studied at Cornell University following his high school graduation and earned a bachelor’s degree in architecture there in 1959. Tata gave Cornell $50 million in 2008, making him the biggest foreign donor in school history.
Career and Contribution
Tata was granted a managerial role inside the Tata company in 1970 Tata appointed him as his successor when he resigned as chairman of Tata Sons in 1991.
He ordered the purchases of Tetley by Tata Tea, Jaguar Land Rover by Tata Motors, and Corus by Tata Steel. With the help of these acquisitions, Tata was transformed from a conglomerate that was primarily focused on India into a multinational corporation, with over 65% of revenues coming from operations and sales abroad.
Also, he helped put cars within the reach of the typical Indian consumer by conceptualising and leading the development of the Tata Nano vehicle.
On December 28, 2012, Ratan Tata turned 75 and gave up his position as Tata Group’s chief executive.
Cyrus Mistry, a relative of Tata and the son of Pallonji Mistry of the Shapoorji Pallonji Group, which was the largest individual shareholder of the Tata group, was rejected for the position of his successor by the company’s board of directors and legal department.
On October 24, 2016, Ratan Tata was appointed acting chairman of Tata Sons in place of Cyrus Mistry. Tata was a member of the selection committee that was established to pick a replacement.
Natarajan Chandrasekaran was appointed chairman of Tata Sons on January 12, 2017, and he began serving in that capacity in February 2017.
Contribution
Tata is regarded as one of India’s top philanthropists and supports rural development, healthcare, and education.
The Tata Institute for Genetics and Society is located in Tata Hall, which the University of California, San Diego established in November 2018 and has facilities for the biological and physical sciences.
A binational organisation called the Tata Institute for Genetics and Society combines research between UC San Diego and research groups in India to help build infrastructure and support social growth in the fight against vector-borne diseases.
Tata Hall was given its name in honour of a kind $70 million donation. Tata Hall was given its name in honour of the Tata Trusts’ kind donation of $70 million.
Tata Education and Development Trust, a philanthropic affiliate of Tata Group, endowed a $28 million Tata Scholarship Fund that will allow Cornell University to provide financial aid to undergraduate students from India.
The scholarship fund will support approximately 20 scholars at any given time and will ensure that the very best Indian students have access to Cornell, regardless of their financial circumstances
The development of an executive centre at Harvard Business School received a $50 million donation from Tata Group enterprises and Tata charities in 2010.
Tata Hall is the name of the executive centre, honouring Ratan Tata former chairman of Tata Sons. Tata Hall is devoted to the Harvard Business School’s mid-career Executive Education programme and is situated in the northeastern corner of the HBS campus.
The Ratan Tata Innovation Center at Cornell Tech blends academia and business in a structure on the Roosevelt Island campus. It is named after Ratan Tata.
The largest corporate donation ever made was made by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) for a centre to study cognitive systems and autonomous cars.
To create design and engineering principles suitable for the requirements of individuals and communities with limited resources, the Tata Group endowed the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay and established the Tata Center for Technology and Design in 2014.
The MIT Tata Center of Technology and Design was established by the Tata Group, led by Ratan Tata, to address the problems faced by communities with few resources, first with an emphasis on India.
Tata Sons’ acting chairman was Ratan Tata. He still serves as the chairman of the two main Tata trusts, Sir Dorabji Tata and Associated Trusts and Sir Ratan Tata Trust and their affiliated trusts.
He has worked for organisations both in India and overseas in a variety of positions. He participates in the National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council and the Prime Minister’s Council on Trade and Industry.
Tata has over the years held a position on the board of trustees at Cornell University, where he has directly counselled the school’s leadership on subjects about global engagement, particularly about initiatives involving India.
In a broader sense, Tata has participated on the Academic Affairs, Student Life, and Development Committees of the board. He was recognised as the 2013 Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year.
He serves as a director on the boards of Alcoa Inc., Mondelez International, and the East-West Center’s Board of Governors. Also, he serves on the boards of trustees for Cornell University, the X Prize, the Harvard Business School Board of Dean’s Advisors, and the University of Southern California. At Bocconi University, he serves on the board of the international advisory council.
He also serves on the Harvard Business School Asia-Pacific Advisory Board (APAB) from 2001 to 2006 and the Harvard Business School India Advisory Board (IAB) since 2006.
He was chosen to serve on the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s board of trustees in 2013.
Ratan joined the advisory board of Vani Kola’s venture capital company Kalari Capital in February 2015.
Over 4 years after Cyrus Mistry assumed control of the over $100 billion conglomerate, Tata Sons fired him as chairman in October 2016.
Ratan Tata made a comeback, serving as the company’s interim chairman for the following 4 months. Natarajan Chandrasekaran was appointed chairman of Tata Sons on January 12th, assuming the position in February.
Ratan Tata is currently one of India’s most prominent and prosperous businesspeople. Today, Ratan Tata is thought to be worth 3800 crores of Indian rupees. To add to his wealth, he has a number of stakes in start-ups and IT firms. Ratan Tata is the owner of a number of homes, including a villa in Colaba, Mumbai, that faces the sea. The Colaba house is a sea-facing building with seven levels and three floors, with its ample 13,350 square feet of space. As a well-known auto aficionado, Ratan Tata has acquired a number of high-end vehicles throughout the years.
Personal life
Tata is a single man without any children. Ratan Tata said, “I came close to being married four times, but I backed off each time out of fear or for some other reason,” in 2011.
