Corporate Governance at Tata

Mr. Cyrus Mistry’s tenure as the Chairman of Tata Sons was cut short in a board meeting conducted on October 24, 2016. Mr. Mistry was the Chairman of Tata sons for the shortest period of time hitherto. According to Cyrus Mistry, his dismissal was illegal and invalid. Cyrus Mistry also claimed that the Articles of Association of the holding company were changed after he took office, “alternative power centres” had been created reducing him to the position of a “lame-duck chairman”.

Several theories have been built to explain Cyrus Mistry’s ouster. These theories dwell on under-performance, clash of cultures, reversal of policies and practices, erosion of values, handling of certain delicate situations, Mistry’s inability to deliver on the promises he made at the beginning of his tenure, Mistry kept his plans secret from the directors, although the directors were asking for more visibility.

It is indeed confounding that Ratan Tata was at the helm of the Tata conglomerate for more than two decades and even then he could not identify/groom a single person for filling-in his role.