Case Study ON
J.R.D. Tata
INDEX Content
Page No.
Introduction on J.R.D. Tata
02-04
Achievements
05-06
Against all odds
Tatas: A Century of Trust
Diversification Quality First
Leader and Motivator
06
07-08 07 08
09-10
Professionalism
11
Air India
12
Benign boss
13-14
Conclusion
15
J.R.D. Tata Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (July 29, 1904–November 29, 1993) was a pioneer aviator and important businessman of India.
J.R.D. Tata was born in Paris, France, the second child of Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata and his French wife, Suzanne "Sooni" Brière. His father was a first cousin of Jamsedji Tata, a pioneer industrialist in India. 'Jeh', or 'JRD' as he was commonly known, came to be regarded as the most famous industrial pioneer in modern India. JRD's father Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata and Sri Jamsetji Tata shared their greatness from the same great-greatgrandfather, Ervad Jamsheed Tata, a priest of Navsari. As his mother was French, he spent much of his childhood in France and as a result, French was his first language. Tata also attended the French Foreign Legion. He attended the Cathedral and John Connon School, Bombay (now Mumbai) Mumbai).. He did not continue beyond matriculation. A university dropout, JRD was something of a self-taught technocrat. Yet, almost every senior Tata director from the 1930s 1930 s onwards held a degree from a foreign university. Tata willingly financed bright young boys who wanted to go abroad for further education. He has also been a vital bridge between the scientific establishment and the government through his founding of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, and as the longest serving member of the Atomic Energy Commission. Tata`s personal interest in technology, spurred several group companies, particularly Tata Steel and Tata Chemicals, to innovate in their fields. At Tata Steel, a Research and Control Laboratory had been opened in 1937, and its researchers developed an extensive variety of special steels for applications as varied as parachute harnesses and razor blades. The lab also developed a high-tensile alloy steel -- Tiscrom --
which made it possible for the Howrah Bridge in Calcutta to be built entirely from Indian materials. Another corrosion resistant, low-alloy high-yield strength steel -- Tiscor -- was used for the manufacture of all-metal steel coaches on the Indian railways. At the age of 34, he became Chairman of Tata Sons, the holding Company of the Tata Group. For decades, J R D directed the huge Tata Group of companies, with major interests in Steel, Engineering, Power, Chemicals and Hospitality. He was famous for succeeding in business while maintaining high ethical standards - refusing to bribe politicians or use the black market.
Under J R D's chairmanship, the number of companies in the Tata Group grew from 15 to over 100. Assets of Tata group grew from Rs 620 Million to over Rs 100 Billion. JRD Tata was one of the most enterprising enterprising Indian entrepreneurs. He was a pioneer aviator and built one of the largest industrial houses of India. JRD Tata was the second of four children. children. He was educated in France, France, Japan and England before being drafted into the French army for a mandatory oneyear period. JRD wanted to extend his service in the forces but destiny had something else in store for him. By leaving the French army JRD's life was saved because shortly thereafter, the regiment in which he served was totally wiped out during an expedition in Morocco. JRD Tata joined Tata & Sons as an unpaid apprentice in 1925. 1925. He has great interest in flying. On February 10, 1929, JRD became the first Indian to pass the pilot's examination. With this distinctive honor of being India's first pilot, he was instrumental in giving wings to India by building Tata Airlines, which ultimately became Air India. His passion for flying was fulfilled with the formation of the Tata Aviation Service in 1932. In 1938, at the age of 34, JRD was elected Chairman of Tata & Sons making him the head of the largest industrial group in India. The Tata Group,
established in 1859, was already became India`s biggest bigg est business conglomerate .He started with 14 enterprises under his leadership and half a century later on July 26, 1988, when he left , Tata & Sons was a conglomerate of 95 enterprises which they either started or in which they had controlling interest. The year of his death 1993, sales were Rs 15,000 crore. JRD was the trustee of Sir Dorabji Tata Trust from its inception in 1932, which remained under his wings for over half a century. Under his guidance, this Trust established Asia's first cancer hospital, The Tata Memorial Center for Cancer, Research and Treatment, Bombay, 1941. It also founded The Tata Institute of Social Sciences, 1936 (TISS), The Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, 1945 (TIFR), and The National Center for Performing Arts. A rts. Tata`s role model in management was the British civil service. How was it, he wondered `that a young Briton straight from college, could come to a foreign country and administer various departments with such distinction? ` This attitude contrasted sharply with the prevailing management styles of other Indian business leaders too. Large Indian companies tend to fall into three categories: public sector ones run by the government, multinational affiliates, and those promoted by family dynasties.
Achievements
He was awarded India's in 1992. In 1929 Tata obtained the issued in India. He later came to be known as the father of Indian civil aviation. He founded India's first commercial airline, 'Tata Airlines', in 1932, which in 1946 became Air India, now India's national airline. He had the honor of being India's first pilot; was Chairman of Tata & Sons for 50 years; launched Air India International as India's first international airline; received Bharat Ratna in 1992.
JRD Tata received a number of awards. He received re ceived the in 1957 on the eve of silver jubilee of Air India. He also received the for aviation in 1988. In 1992, because of his selfless humanitarian endeavors, JRD Tata was awarded India's highest civilian honor, the Bharat Ratna-one of the rarest instances in which this award was granted during a person's lifetime. In the
same year, JRD Tata was also bestowed with the for his crusading endeavors towards initiating and successfully implementing the family planning movement in India, much before it became an official government policy. He was awarded the , by the French Government in 1954. In 1979, Tata was the recipient of the for his distinguished contributions to commercial aviation. He also received the prestigious Guggenheim Medal for Medal for aviation in 1988. He was conferred India's highest civilian award Bharat Ratna in 1992 for his service to industry and nation building. With crux Tata Steel became one of the earliest companies in India to have a dedicated human resources department. Expressing surprise that the company had functioned for so long without one, Tata commented: `If our operations required the employment of, say, 30,000 machine tools, we would undoubtedly have a special staff or department to look after them, to keep them in repair, replace them when necessary, maintain their efficiency, protect them from damage, etc.` Under his leadership, the Tata assets climbed from Rs 62 crore (Rs 620 million) in 1939 to over Rs 10,000 crore (Rs 100 billion) in 1990.
Against all odds His achievements have to be seen through the lens of India's economic and political history. Under British colonial rule until 1947, India was strait-jacketed by a foreign exchange crunch for almost forty years after independence, which gravely limited industrial entrepreneurship. From 1964 to 1991 severe government controls on big business further curbed the growth of the Tata Group. Analyzing his own performance, JRD Tata insisted that his only real contribution to the group's smorgasbord of companies was Air-India. For the rest, he generously gave credit to his executives. Any chronicle of the Tata Group's growth therefore has to take the contribution of these larger than life men into account. JRD's story is, in many ways, as much theirs as his own. Yet, it would be a mistake to under-assess JRD's role. As one of the senior Tata executives, Darbari Seth, once said, 'Mr. Tata was able to harness a team of individualistic executives, capitalizing upon their strengths, downplaying their differences and deficiencies; all by the sheer weight of his leadership.'
Tatas: A Century of Trust
The Leader and the Motivator Leadership, according to JRD meant motivating others. 'As chairman, my main responsibility is to inspire respect.' Sometimes referred to as the 'chairmen's chairman,' JRD adopted a management by consensus style: 'When a number of persons are involved I am definitely a consensus man,' he once said, adding: 'but that does not mean that I do not disagree or that I do not express my views.’ Basically it is a question of having to deal with individual men heading different enterprises. You have to adapt yourself to their ways and deal accordingly and draw out the best in each man. If I have any merit it is getting on with individuals according to their ways and characteristics. In fifty years I have dealt with a hundred top directors and I have got on with all of them. At times it involves suppressing yourself. It is painful but necessary. To be a leader you have got to lead human beings with affection. Be that as it may, Tata spotted talent easily. And once he was confident that a manager would perform, he gave him a long rope. If they wanted to be on their own, like Sumant Moolgaokar, he left them to it. If they occasionally wanted a shoulder to cry on, like Darbari Seth, JRD was there. The supportive climate he built developed entrepreneurs such as Sir Homi Mody, Sir Ardeshir Dalal, Sir Jehangir Ghandy, Russi Mody, Sumant Moolgaokar and Darbari Seth, and others who created billions in wealth for the group and the country. It was an environment where scientists of international repute such as Homi Bhabha, leading lawyers such as J D Choksi and Nani Palkhivala, and economists such as John Matthai, A D Shroff, D R Pendse and Freddie Mehta could flourish. This attitude contrasted sharply with the prevailing management styles of other Indian business leaders. Large Indian companies tend to fall into three categories: public sector ones run by the government, multinational affiliates, and those promoted by family dynasties. While the Tata Group firmly remained a family concern -- to date, four out of its five chairmen have been Tatas -- JRD's professionalism stood out from the crowd.
Moreover, in most of the family firms, the top management tended to belong to the same community as the promoter family. With the Tatas, it was different: only merit counted. Tata's role model in management was the British civil service. How was it, he wondered 'that a young Briton straight from college, could come to a foreign country and administer various departments with such distinction?'
The Tata Group faced a constant shortage of managers, and JRD carried out many experiments to expand and improve the pool of talent. His first attempt -- the formation of the Superior Staff Recruiting Committee -- failed when none of the recruits stayed with the corporation. Eventually he formed the Tata Administrative Service and the Tata Management Training Centre at Pune. This commitment to professionalism served the group well. In 1971, for example, when the coal industry was nationalized, Mohan Kumaramangalam, the then industry minister, left Tata Steel’s coal mines untouched on the ground that these efficiently run mines would provide a model for the nationalized mines. Until 1947, under British colonial rule, India was strait-jacketed by a foreign exchange crunch for almost forty years after independence, which gravely limited industrial entrepreneurship. thus the achievement of Tata group under the leadership of JRD have to be seen through the lens of India`s economic and political history. The period from 1964 to 1991 severe government controls on big businesses again curbed the growth of the Tata Group. Analyzing his own performance, JRD Tata insisted that his only real contribution to the group of companies was Air-India. For the rest, he generously gave credit to his executives. Any report of the Tata Group`s growth therefore has to take the contribution of these larger than life men into account. Yet, it would be a mistake to under-assess JRD`s role. As one of the senior Tata executives, Darbari Seth, once said, `Mr. Tata was able to harness a team of individualistic executives, capitalizing upon their strengths, downplaying their differences and deficiencies; all by the sheer weight of his leadership. `
Professionalism JRD's respect for his managers bound the group. 'I am a firm believer that the disintegration disintegratio n of the Tata Group is impossible ,' ,' he once declared. Most business groups have disintegrated or drifted apart because of family ownership and management, with rival family members wanting to go their own way. In contrast, the Tata Group companies are run by professionals who firmly believe in the trusteeship concept laid down by J N Tata as also by Mahatma Gandhi. A university dropout, JRD was something of a self-taught technocrat, and died long before the phrase 'war for talent' was coined. Yet, almost every senior Tata director from the 1930s onwards held a degree from a foreign university. Tata willingly financed bright young boys who wanted to go abroad for further education. He was also a vital bridge between the scientific establishment and the government through his founding of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, and as the longest serving member of the Atomic Energy Commission. Tata's personal interest interest in technology, combined with India's isolation isolation in the 1950s and 1960s, spurred several group companies, particularly Tata Steel and Tata Chemicals, to innovate in their fields. At Tata Steel, a Research and Control Laboratory had been opened in 1937, and its researchers developed an extensive variety of special steels for applications as varied as parachute harnesses and razor blades. The lab also developed a high-tensile alloy steel -- Tiscrom -- which made it possible for the Howrah Bridge in Calcutta to be built entirely from Indian materials. Another corrosion resistant, low-alloy high-yield strength steel -- Tiscor -- was used for the manufacture of all-metal steel coaches on the Indian railways.
In 1932, JRD Tata founded India’s first national carrier, Tata Airlines, renamed Air-India Limited in 1946 and personally piloted the Karachi-Bombay sector of its inaugural Karachi-Madras Karachi-Madras service on October 15.
In 1948, JRD Tata launched Air India International as India's first internationa internationall airline.. In 1953, the Indian Government appointed JRD as Chairman of Air-India airline and a director on the Board of Indian I ndian Airlines-a position JRD retained for 25 years. For his crowning crowning achievements in Aviation, JRD was was bestowed with the title title of Honorary of Honorary Air Commodore of India. India. On his recommendation, the Government of India created two air corporations, Air-India and Indian Airlines, to run international and domestic operations respectively. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Indian civil aviation, J.R.D. at the age of 78 re-enacted his inaugural flight of 1932 in a 50-year old De Havilland Leopard Moth on October 15, 1982 to instill a spirit of adventure among the younger generation. His simple minded devotion to every aspect of the airline was legendary.
Conclusion
