Ratan Tata, the late Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, believed his half-brother, Noel Tata, needed additional experience and exposure to challenging assignments in order to succeed him at the helm of Tata Group, according to a newly published biography. The revelation comes from Ratan Tata: A Life, authored by Thomas Mathew and published by HarperCollins.
Noel Tata was recently appointed as Chairman of Tata Trusts — a consortium of charities that indirectly oversees the $165-billion Tata conglomerate spanning industries from salt to software — following the death of Ratan Tata. Noel was one of the candidates interviewed for the position of Tata Group’s chairman in March 2011 when a search for Ratan Tata's successor was underway.
Despite being encouraged to join the committee responsible for selecting his successor, Ratan Tata chose to refrain from the process to avoid influencing the decision. However, he later expressed some regret over this choice, according to the biography. One reason for stepping back was to provide assurance to all contenders that the decision would be based on a fair and unbiased majority or unanimous recommendation, rather than Ratan Tata’s personal preference.
The biography also notes that many within the Tata Group and the Parsi community regarded Noel Tata as the “default candidate” for the role, viewing him as a representative of their cultural heritage. However, Ratan Tata emphasized that only the "talent and values" of a candidate should matter, downplaying the importance of religion, community, or regional background. In fact, he was open to the idea of a foreign successor, provided they met the qualifications required for the role.
Ratan Tata stated that with more experience in handling complex assignments, Noel could have demonstrated the “courage and enterprise” that J.R.D. Tata, the iconic former Tata Group chairman, had once deemed essential for the role. He suggested that Noel’s lack of exposure to such assignments was partly a result of Noel’s own choices, according to the biography.
Cyrus Mistry, initially a member of the selection committee, was eventually chosen to succeed Ratan Tata, who stepped down as Tata Sons chairman in December 2012.