The history of Indian economic growth and its industrial development is inextricably tied with a single company, and the extent to which its legacy pans out in diverse fields such as education and social services is certainly beyond measure. The challenges it faced in its initial development in British times as well as in the post independent Nehruvian socialist India are worth analysing. Its splendid success in various spheres speaks all the way more about its leadership. Leading the countries in important industries such as Automotive, Airlines, Chemicals, Consultancy, Defence, FMCG, Electric Utility, Finance, Jewellers, Hotels and Hospitality, Information Technology, Retails, Steel, Tea and Telecoms. The story of Tatas with their unrelenting acumen in matters concerning business and a wholly Indian conglomerate’s global reach is one of great inspiration, the vision of its founder and the philanthropic measures he set forward is unlike any in the business world, the activities of its subsequent managers bears testimony to the same. We would assess here in this blog today, of the growth story of a true ‘startup’ which now boasts of being a conglomerate which employs close to a whopping million people and also look into the making of this grand empire, the trials and travails and finally the forthcoming challenges in the wake of global slowdown and sustainable goals.
Of Founding and Founders’- Born in the year 1839, the kingpin of this ‘now-been’ conglomerate is the son of a Parsi trader, Jamshedji Nusserwanji Tata. After completing his education in the year 1858 and then taking up a series of ventures the company was founded in the year 1868. As a result the young entrepreneur bought a bankrupt oil mill at Chinchpokli. It was converted into a cotton mill. At Nagpur then, he floated the Central India Spinning, Weaving and Manufacturing Company. The unconventional location of the company proved a masterstroke. The cheap price of the land at Nagpur, a reach into the Indian hinterland and a proper connectivity to the port city metropolis of Bombay were the reasons. Thus was firmly established the veins that would power the economic engine of India and also of the world. Four goals would Jamshedji promise for himself that he wished the company would achieve that were all realised albeit after his death. These were an Iron and Steel Company, a unique hotel, a Learning institution, and a hydroelectric plant. The Taj Mahal Hotel was opened in the year 1904 at Colaba in Mumbai. It certainly was unique, a luxury hotel furnished with the most modern amenities, in fact it was the first hotel in India to have electricity, English butlers, Turkish baths, German elevators and much more that was unseen in the hotel industry. Indian Institute of Science (IISC) was established in Bengaluru under the auspices of the Tatas well certainly, no one can deny it being the top most college herein India. A research institution it has produced the top most scientists, researchers and various academics who hold important posts all around the world. TISCO was established in the then Sakchi a small village that has now been converted into the Steel city of Jamshedpur or Tata as is known in some local areas. Tata Iron and Steel Company counts itself as one of the largest producers of Iron and Steel in Asia if not the world.
Business Ventures- Operating in about 100 countries all across 6 continents the businesses are prodigiously diverse and the conglomerate multi-faceted. About 29 publicly listed Tata Group Companies exist. Some of the major companies are Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Tata Chemicals, Tata Consumer Products, Titan, Tata Capital, Tata Digital, Indian Hotels etc. In 1932, JRD Tata founded an airline, known as Tata Air Services (Tata Airlines). In 1945, Tata Motors was founded, first focused on locomotives. In 1954 it formed a joint venture with Daimler Benz. In 1991, Ratan Tata became its chairman just when the economic liberalisation of India was underway and various indigenous companies were looking to expand. In the year 2000, it bought Tetley. Corus Group was acquired in 2007. In 2008 it acquired Jaguar and Land Rover. In 2008 itself was launched world’s cheapest car, a daring feat it proved successful, a wholly Indian thing it would house a family of four comfortably. Also, the Tata owned Air India acquired Air Asia India. So we can see how immensely diverse the company’s ventures are. In addition to it they are immensely profitable and moreover they have within them seeds of constant adjustment and adaptability. The unique shiny facade of the Bombay House, the Tata headquarters is as bright as its history and potentially shows what future beholds for it.
Philanthropy and Ratan Tata- The philanthropic legacy of Tatas spans a century and a half. The JN Tata Endowment was set up for the higher education of Indians in 1892. It is showcased also in the fact that in Tata Sons the Principal Investment holding Company, 66% of the equity share is held by philanthropic trusts. The website concerning the Tata Group says that its activities focus on social business initiatives, defined by its social purpose, education, healthcare, nutrition and so forth. Tata Sons in association with the IIM Calcutta started the Tata Social Enterprise Challenge in 2012. It aims to encourage young social entrepreneurs. Tata Group donated US $50 million to Cornell University. In 2010 Tata Group donated US $50 million to Harvard Business School to build an academic and a residential building. In 2017, Tata Trusts gifted US $70million to University of California, San Diego to address some of the world’s most pressing issues. Again in 2017, TCS donated a US $35 million grant to Carnegie Mellon University. In 2017, Tata Football Academy won the bid to form the Jamshedpur FC. Various sponsorships and scholarships too are provided by the Tatas.
Ratan Tata is the former chairman of the Tata Group and also the star philanthropist. He leads in all terms a quiet life, a humble one, a reserved one in the city of Mumbai. He supports various startups and organisations, financing, helping the young entrepreneurs both in tweaking their spirits as well as in sharpening their business acumen. Also a supporter of education, medicine and rural development. Has also financed a lot of research in universities, the study of which concerned providing clean water to the challenged areas and regions facing grave environmental crises.
Challenges and Criticisms- As with the successes the criticisms must too be equally assessed honestly. The Singur Plant controversy grabbed quite a lot of eyeballs and in fact was one of the major factors for the rise of Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal. Various ports constructed by it have faced flak due to their environmental hazards such as the one in Orissa. In this age of Climate Change it is vital that a company of such an extent and scale talks about and participates in the big changes happening which in fact it is doing but has it shown the intensity that is demanded of it? Probably no, various structural readjustments are being sought and if the legacy has to become more pronounced in the 21st century it surely has to pay more attention to the 21st century’s challenges.
The retinue of demands ranging from the salaries of the employees, the state of workers in its factories and still more of the value that the consumers are being provided by the company has to be met profoundly and that is how there would be a synthesis, a continuation or rather a tryst with its own legacy be made.