Why Tatas chose Chandrasekaran as Tata Sons chairman

Mumbai: On Thursday, Tata group chose N Chandrasekaran as Tata Sons chairman. The group had other most ‘eligible’ candidate Ralf Speth, Jaguar Land Rover CEO for the coveted job. Interestingly, Speth happens to be highest paid CEO in Tata group.

At 53 Chandrasekaran who is widely called as Chandra in corporate circle is among the youngest chief executives at Tata group. But what made the search committee headed by Ratan Tata zero in on Chandra’s name for Tata Sons chairman? Here are a few reasons;

1) Chandrasekaran joined TCS in 1987 and rose to become its chief operating officer later and then the chief executive in 2009. Since his complete takeover, TCS has never turned back. It has grown into an IT bellwether with a $16.5 billion consolidated revenues in 2015-16.

2) Under his leadership, TCS accounted for 60 per cent of total market value of $116 billion of Tata group. Besides, 70 per cent revenue of Tata Sons came from TCS. TCS has kept growing its quarterly results.

3) Chandra is an insider who understands the complexities of $103 billion salt-to-steel conglomerate. He is an avid traveller and a well-known, global marathoner that makes him a fitness freak. This means he is all geared-up for a long stint and more demanding job at the iconic Bombay House.

4) The search committee headed by Ratan Tata could not ignore his credentials. Chandra has emerged as a prominent face of the Indian IT industry. He has managed to bring TCS among the top of IT players.