Cyrus P Mistry to succeed Ratan Tata

The board of directors of Tata Sons at its meeting on November 23, 2011 appointed Cyrus P Mistry as Deputy Chairman. He will work with Ratan N Tata over the next year and take over from him when Ratan Tata retires in December 2012. This is as per the unanimous recommendation of the selection committee, according to a Tata press release. Endorsing the appointment, Tata, Chairman of Tata Sons, said: “The appointment of Mr Cyrus P Mistry as Deputy Chairman of Tata Sons is a good and far-sighted choice. "He has been on the board of Tata Sons since August 2006 and I have been impressed with the quality and calibre of his participation, his astute observations and his humility. He is intelligent and qualified to take on the responsibility being offered and I will be committed to working with him over the next year to give him the exposure, the involvement and the operating experience to equip him to undertake the full responsibility of the group on my retirement.” Cyrus Mistry, currently managing director, Shapoorji Pallonji Group, has been a director of Tata Sons since August 2006. He is a graduate of civil engineering from Imperial College, London, and has a master of science in management from the London Business School. Shapoorji Pallonji Mistry, the largest shareholder in Tata Sons with 18.4 pc share, has four children—two sons and two daughters. They are Shapoor, Cyrus, Aloo and Laila. Aloo is married to Noel Tata, the half brother of Ratan Tata. Pallonji Mistry and his sons are Irish nationals. Ratan Tata will be succeeded by 43 years old Cyrus Mistry when he steps down in the winter (December) of 2012. Shapoorji Pallonji Mistry is a construction tycoon and the Mistrys are among the top 10 richest families in India with a net worth of around US $ 7.6 billion (about Rs 38,000 crore). Tata Sons is the holding company of the US $ 83 billion (Rs 436,000 crore plus approx.) Tata conglomerate. Cyrus Mistry, the soon to be bossman of the Tata group, is an Irish citizen by virtue of his mother being Irish. Mistry, who succeeded his father on the board of Tata Sons more than five years ago has been the Managing Director of the family-run SP Group’s construction and infrastructure businesses. His elder brother Shapoor handles the real estate and textile businesses. Now Mistry will legally disassociate himself from the management of his family business so as to avoid any conflict of business. Born on the 4th of July (the US Independence Day), Cyrus, according to reports, is a soft-spoken and down to earth person who loves sports utility vehicles. He shuns the cocktail party circuit (what a relief, considering that our newspapers are so full of everybody from a porn star to a Bollywood star posing so blatantly for shutterbugs at such parties!) Cyrus is married to Rohiqa, daughter of renowned constitutional lawyer Iqbal Chagla. The couple has two school-going sons, 15-year-old Firoz and 13-year-old Zahaan. Cyrus is an avid golfer and a foodie. Now he has exactly one year to learn the ropes from Ratan Tata. With his love for SUVs, one can expect him showing more interest in the JLR portfolio with its powerful and good looking products.