As India loses a visionary business leader and iconic philanthropist Ratan Naval Tata, the question that comes to mind is “Who’s next?”
With this, the attention has been shifted to his half-brother, Noel Tata, who is emerging as a key figure in Tata Trusts.
Notably, Noel Tata has taken on increasingly important responsibilities within Tata Trusts and is currently a trustee of both the Sir Ratan Tata Trust and the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust. His growing involvement in these trusts suggests that he is being groomed for a larger role in their governance, potentially leading Tata Trusts in the near future.
Noel Tata’s career within the Tata Group began in the early 2000s. By 2010-2011, he was appointed managing director of Tata International. As Chairman of Tata International, he oversees the group’s global business, including its presence in retail through Tata Trent, a unit of Tata Sons Ltd.
Tata Trent has undergone a remarkable transformation with brands like Zudio. The move raised speculation that Noel was being groomed to succeed Ratan Tata as the head of the conglomerate.
Surprisingly, in 2011, the Tata Group named Cyrus Mistry – Noel’s brother-in-law – as the successor to Ratan Tata only to be removed from his position as chairman of Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata Group.
Ratan Tata again took over as interim chairman for four months until Natarajan Chandrasekaran was appointed as the chairman in 2017.
Noel was inducted into the board of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust in 2019. He also became vice-chairman of Titan Company in 2018 and in March 2022, he was appointed vice-chairman of Tata Steel, further consolidating his presence within the group.
Noel Tata is known for his relatively low-profile leadership style. He is married to Aloo Mistry, the daughter of Pallonji Mistry, who was the largest individual shareholder in Tata Sons.