Thursday, October 11, 2012

A crown of steel, a road full of thorns...

Ratan Tata himself is in favour of the successor being an insider rather than an outsider

Tata Steel’s journey over the last hundred years has been a fascinating one. And driving this growth for the last one decade is B. Muthuraman. Muthuraman joined Tata Steel in 1966 as a Graduate Trainee. He worked in the areas of iron-making and engineering development for a period of ten years. He then moved to the marketing & sales division and spent nearly 20 years there, ultimately rising to the level of Vice President. He was appointed Executive Director (Special Projects) in August 2000 and served as the main change agent for the major diversification projects of Tata Steel. He was appointed as Managing Director of Tata Steel on July 22, 2001.Tata Steel is going to look for a new CEO, as the long-standing Chief Executive of the company steps down this September. There are three to four names of potential CEOs floating around. One such name is that of Philippe Varin.

Assuming Varin gets the nod from Ratan Tata to succeed B. Muthuraman, the appointment would help Ratan Tata’s efforts to underline his group’s international credentials. Post Tata Steel’s acquisition of Corus in 2007, Varin has worked closely and effectively with B. Muthuraman, Managing Director of Tata Steel to successfully integrate Corus and Tata Steel. At the age of 56, Varin would not be a particularly youthful choice. However, Ratan Tata is more impressed with his ability than youth. Ratan Tata recently extended his own term that allows him to stay at the helm until he is 75. The diplomatic Varin has shown every sign of having enjoyed working for the Indian company, though he now has a struggle on his hands, as Corus pushes through a £350 million cost-saving plan that could involve large job cuts next year. The Board of Tata Steel has appointed Kirby Adams to succeed Philippe Varin as Chief Executive Officer of Corus and of Tata Steel Europe – the holding company of Tata Steel’s European operations. It is also learnt that the coveted post – at the helm of Tata Steel – will go to an insider. A senior Tata Group official said that Ratan Tata himself is in favour of successor being a ‘Tata Steel man’ rather than an outsider.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

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