The Hot Cat and the Beast are here!!! - What can we learn from the JLR acquisition

A lot has been said about Tata Motors' acquisition of British marque brands Jaguar and Land Rover. And much more has been said about how, due to the global recession, the acquisition can go awry. That said and done, Tata Motors launched the cars in India last Sunday. The mood of the top management was upbeat and it seemed, apparently, there were minimal differences between the managements of both the companies. Post launch, during the press session,some interesting questions were on a. how will Tata Motors find synegies between handling high-end brands and low-cost car models b. how will Tata Motors, that doesnt have experience of handling high-end automobiles, run the recently acquired companies.

I strongly believe Tata shall not face much problem in integrating these brands into the Tata fold.

Here's why.

Over the years various Tata companies have made acquisitions in their respective domains. Moreover, they have successfully integrated these companies in the Tata fold without affecting their brand values and internal culture. Having gone through the ups and downs of acquistion and integration, the top management of Tata Group is fairly acquinted with the whole process. Though Tata Motors may not have had brand as prestigious as JLR, it has successfully launched the innovative low-cost car Nano. It means the company can rapidly adopt to demands of handling different business models and brands. Remember how Tata Motors bounced back after the initial failure of Indica.

More importantly, as far the very acquisition is concerned, Tata Group has never acquired a company without any strategic imperetive, value additions and synergy. The top management of the group is interested in collaborative work and not running the writ of the group on the new company.

And that's why:

1. Tetley is able to retain its high-end customers despite being acquired by a third world tea company i.e. Tata Tea

2. The Corus acquistion and its subsequent integration is successful; the current problems in the company are due to the external financial crisis and doesnt indicate any glitch in the integration.

3. The labour unions of JLR chose Tata Motors over other automobile companies and equity players.


The JLR acquistion will provide tremendous opportunities to Tata Motors for cross-learning, handling a diverse brand portfolio and much more. Furthermore, it shall make an excellent case study on how a company can manage M & A.

Just J.R.D.

On his 21st birthday he wrote to his father, " One more year has fallen on my shoulders. I have been looking back and also deep inside myself with the merciless eye of conscience, and have been trying to find out whether during this last year I have gained in experience or wisdom. I haven't found out much yet!"

At the age of 89 he was known to the world as: One of India's greatest industrialists; pioneer aviator and founder of Air India; only industrialist to be conferred India's highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna; an institution builder; a philanthropist; an educationist and much more...

Above everything else he was known as, 'God's gift to India'.

Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata or simply J.R.D. or Jeh

The transformation of a self-indulgent if thoughful young man to a pan Indian icon, revered by people who knew nothing about business, is the essence of the J.R.D story.

Born on 29th July, 1904 in Paris in the illustrious Tata family, J.R.D's father was a cousin and business partner of Tata Sons founder, Jamsetji Tata.

J.R.D. had education in parts in France, Japan and Britain before his father summoned him to India to join Tata Sons as an apprentice. By the age of 22 he had lost both his parents and was left alone to care for his four siblings. After his father's death he was inducted as a director in Tata Sons. It was then he expressed, " I want to be worthy of Tatas".

J.R.D. plunged into the Tata business and at the age of 34 he was made the Tata group chairman, the position he reliquished in 1991.

For more than 50 years he served the Tata group and the nation with distinction. For him the Tata group was not a mere private enterprise but a national institution, on which the country can look up to for its services.
He was the person behind the inception and rise of national institutes like Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital, National Centre for Performing Arts, The Population Foundation of India, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.

The first and the last passion of his life was 'Aviation'. He was the founder of Tata Airlines which was later nationalized and renamed, Air India.

By the age of 40 he had invested his Tata shares to set up 'J.R.D. Tata Trust'. The trust was to specifically work for underprivileged women and children.

He married Thelma Vicaji after a brief romance. The couple didn't have children.

Forever young he could be seen skiing at the Swiss Alps at the age of 85.

It was said about Oliver Cromwell, 'Though God had given him a heart, yet he did exceeded in tenderness towards sufferers.' It rings true for J.R.D. as well.

He would be remember, first and foremost, for being an ethical and compassionate businessman. J.R.D never bent rules to accommodate his or his group's cause. Nor did he use political connections to get his job done. He made the words 'Honest Businessman' compatible.

Time magazine described the Tata Group as 'squeaky clean'.

J.R.D.'s legacy has been brilliantly carried forward by his grand-nephew,our very own Ratan Tata, who himself has become an icon for billions of Indians.

The noble bit of India passed away on 29th November, 1993.

We salute the spirit of the skies and of course 'Aapro J.R.D.'

The writer of this blog, is one of the privileged few, to be allowed to visit J.R.D's residence in Mumbai. He will cherish those moments his whole life.








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It is not about the Car

When Ratan Tata unveiled 'Nano', the much talked about 1 lac car, it was a leap of faith for a nation which is a dumping ground for foreign automobile giants. It heralds India and Tata,of course,on the world map as a pioneer in innovative and frugal engineering. Today, when people are concerned over global warming and rising Co2 emissions, Tata has shown that it is possible to make a compact car which is cheap,less polluting and gives good mileage to boot. When four years back Tata announced the car project, almost all automobile companies scoffed at the idea of a $2500 car. Except for Renault, all auto giants said it is impossible to manufacture such a car. Amidst such criticisms Ratan Tata held is ground,and doggedly pursued the idea of a Rs. 1 lac car to fruition. A generally media shy and reticent Tata said, 'It was one man's dream'. By unveiling the car Tata has also, unwittingly, unveiled some of the facets of his personality and the kind of life he has lived. That is why : It is not about making billions but also about fulfilling billion aspirations; It is not about resting on past laurels but breaking new grounds and transcending boundaries; ; It is not about the Car, but about one man who said, with tremendous courage of conviction, it is 'Possible'.
Because 'A promise is a promise'.

The Unargumentative Indian

While reading 'The Argumentative Indian' I was struck by the sheer erudition and genius of the author, Dr. Amartya Sen. Though the range of book is gargantuan and research unimpeachable, I disagree with Dr. Sen on several counts. He holds Mughal Emperor Akbar and Buddhist Emperor Ashok as the reference and touchstone to judge the Indian society during those times. He posits their social conduct and propriety as evidence of the argumentativeness of the ancient Indian society. I think Akbar and Ashok were exceptions and their argumentativeness cannot be taken as an evidence to justify the argumentativeness of the society. What needs to be researched is how the exemplary behaviour of these kings influenced the society of that time. Because the fact of the matter is both the kings were ensconced in their palaces and perhaps most of their subjects would have even seen them.

My second 'argument' is, given the lack of credible evidence of argumentative tradition ,it cannot be safely said that the Indians today are argumentative. Because, facts point the opposite. We are argumentative only in our homes, on T.V. shows and books (and perhaps blogs!!). When it comes to practising argumentativeness as a virtue, we shirk from it. I believe practising argumentativeness requires tremendous objectivity, impartiality and lack of ulterior motive, which again is conspicuous by its absence in our day to day life. We take everything for granted and accept everything which is forced upon us without slight demur. This is not a middle class trait, as Pavan Varma may say, but ubiquitous across the upper middle class and rich class as well. This has resulted into blatant hypocrisy and crises of social leadership. Most of us live blinkered life, as an assembly line conditioned robot. The evidence is there to see in the way we: behave in private and public, voice our prejudiced opinions, indulge in unethical and extra-constitutional acts (without a smidgen of compunction). The world has diverted its gaze on us and expect a lot from the land which has witnessed five thousand years of human upheaval. Would we match up to the expectations? Can we create a new social paradigm for the world to practice? The answers are not easy to come and very complex with multiple layers. But we can make a start by introspecting on our own behaviour in social, econimic and religious context. By raising the bar of our own personal integrity and probity. Perhaps then we can say we are argumentative,in the line of Ashok and Akbar.

Indeed, a Ratna

Ratan Tata could never have imagined 16 years ago that one day he would be India's most powerful man. His ascent to the helm of the Tata group was fraught with succession battles with some of the senior Tata executives. Luckily his uncle,the iconic J.R.D Tata was with him. This made matters a bit easy. He inherited a group that was grappling with globalization and open markets. It had become personal fiefdoms of top executives of various companies of Tata group. Mckinzey & Mckinzey had advised Tata to quit the steel business.

Today, Tata group is India's largest group in terms of market capitalization; Tata tea is world's largest tea producer; Tata steel world's fifth largest Steel producer; TCS is Asia's largest software company; Tata motors India's largest automobile company phew....
Ratan Tata is definitely credited with this turnaround. He has changed the way the group is now perceived by the public. All these achievements without sacrificing the values and ethics which the Tata group has consistently upheld since its inception. Ratan Tata is a bachelor. He has less than 1% stake in Tata group, lives in an apartment in Bakhtawar,Colaba, Mumbai. At 70, he is super fit and doesnt smoke and drink. The Corus acquisition brought to the fore his lesser known quality: Determination. The one lac car is on the verge of fruition, thanks to his tenacity and determination to achieve something which all car makers across the world had declared: impossible.

William Blake wrote:

Who then can lead us out of the darkness?
What we need is an emperor of men, someone who is strong,
commanding,brilliant, secular, compassionate and valorous
so that the forces of darkness will shrink back, powerless
to stop his onslought

We have found that man in Ratan Tata. A God's gift to India and jewel in Tata group's crown.
He is indeed,a 'Ratna'.

Sporting India...

I underestimated the importance of sports in development of one's personality. In fact I used to avoid sports for reasons unknown to me. But almost two years back, I decided to play tennis and enrolled myself at a tennis academy. It exposed me to a host of experiences which shocked, suprised and amused me. on the first day I realized how pathetic my fitness quotient was. Gradually i began working on my fitness, following a regimen of two hours of tennis and fat free diet. I had once read swami vivekanand's exhortation to the youth about sports,'You would be closer to god by playing soccer than reading the gita.'I cant say whether I have come closer to god by playing tennis, but it has made be very humble. Any sport reveals your personality to yourself.i.e. are you competitive, do you go beyond your comfort zone, do you pick up a challenge to outflank an opponent who is better than you, etc. I realized that I was competitive but not hyper competitive like shahrukh khan or adman suhel seth (which, I believe is the need of the hour).

The whole experience of learning tennis has also made me experience the pathetic state of Indian sports and our lack of support in improving standards of sports. If India has to become a superpower than the young India should be fit. Physical exercise and sports should be encouraged across educational levels.Today,in school classes, a student topping in mathematics is made the star of the class but a student good in athletics or sports is labeled dunderhead. This has to change. Of course we need future Narayan Murthys and Abdul Kalams but we also need future Tendulkars, Mirzas and Kartikeyans. I believe that can be done by recognising, appreciating and supporting talent. By support I dont mean mere scholarships but institutionalize support which props up the sportsperson durings her sporting career and beyond. I have a very limited experience of sports but there are experts sitting idle who can guide the nation towards sporting glory. Chak de India!!

The neo patrons

India is gradually becoming a capitalist economy. Markets have entered almost all spheres of life. This has unleashed a lot of energy into the economy and its growing at 9.4% annually. The unique characteristic of markets is that they are impersonal. A full flegded capitalist economy like the U.S.A has a social security net to protect its citizens from the drastic upheavals of markets. In India the government has not given a free hand to markets yet. As markets enter in creative fields like music, art, literature, these fields would cater to mass culture, which entails lowering the bar and a fall in standards. The tremendous influence of western culture is being gradually felt on the art and music fields as well. The new generation of musicians want instant success; nothing wrong with it. But it takes years to learn classical music or become an artist. There is no thing like instant success in art or classical music. Thus the new generation is steering away from such fields. Classical music is now confined to only few maestros and their families. The art and music fraternity is in a dire need of patrons. There are no Akbars,Shehjahans and Dara sikohs today to foster music and arts. The time has come for the new patrons to chip in. The mantle of the erstwhile emperors should be accepted by the corporates, who with their wealth can create a new generation of maestros and artists.

Though few corporates like Tata's and Mahindra's are patronising music and the arts but that is not enough. We need visionary industrialists and businessmen,like J.R.D. Tata, who look beyond bottomlines and balance sheets to serve the community at large. Or else classical music and art will be extinct.

Selling reforms

Intellectuals and business community have been very critical of the U.P.A. government's status-quo over reforms in all the spheres of the economy. At the grass root level there is an immediate need to provide jobs to the millions of graduates comming out of the outdated educational system lest the tribe of unemployeds will become cause of social unrest and easy potential naxalites. One is shocked to see that there is no reaction from the civil society and media over staggering of the reforms process. But one cannot even expect from the citizenry, that doesnt know what is reforms in the first place. Globalization has become the order of the day. Any developing country wanting to grow rapidly will have to embrace globalization or else no one can forestall doom. The process of integrating with world markets entails a lot of pain. And there is no such thing as painless transformation. But it is possible to lessen the pain by knowing the process and anticipating pain. This is where the government has failed. It has failed to sell globalization and reforms. When was the last time did you see Dr Manmohan singh on tv apprising the country on what the next 20 years hold in store for India. I dont remember any such public appearence of Dr Singh on tv. Thus, an ordinary citizen doesnt know where the country is heading and what is in store for her.

Instead of carrying full page ads in newspaper extolling Arjun singh's achievements, it would be better if the government gave an insight on globalization and reforms. This will not only educate the people but make them ready for the painful process of globalization and reforms. Dilly-dallying over reforms would make India a hotbed of terrorist activities and social unrest. I urge the civil society and the media to join in this endeavour to sell reforms and give history a helping hand.