Tata chairman selection committee of five is likely in a month

As the rumour mill churns out names of potential successors to N Chandrasekaran, sources close to Tata Trusts say the selection committee to identify the next Tata Sons chairman is expected to be finalised within a month. The committee’s composition will be crucial as it is expected to shortlist candidates from within and outside the group, conduct multiple rounds of interviews and recommend a final name. The recommendation will then go to the Tata Sons board for approval.

Tata Trusts, chaired by Noel Tata, is likely to have a significant say in the process, with a majority of the five-member committee expected to comprise representatives of the philanthropic organisations, sources said. The selection panel will have five members.

Under Article 118 of the Tata Sons Articles of Association, the key trusts—Sir Ratan Tata Trust and Sir Dorabji Tata Trust—can nominate three members jointly to the five-member committee. One member will represent the Tata Sons board, while another will be an external expert, according to a source.

The selection committee will have to come up with a name by February 2027, when Chandrasekaran is set to hang up his boots.

The panel that selected Chandrasekaran as Tata Sons chairman in 2017 comprised Ratan Tata, Venu Srinivasan, Amit Chandra, Ronen Sen and Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya.

The search committee that selected Cyrus Mistry in 2011 included N.A. Soonawala and Shirin Bharucha, representing Tata Trusts, along with Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya and R.K. Krishna Kumar. Mistry himself was part of the committee before ultimately being selected for the post.

Under the current rules, Noel Tata cannot become Tata Sons chairman. In 2022, under Ratan Tata’s guidance, Tata Sons amended its Articles of Association to bar the same individual from simultaneously serving as chairman of Tata Trusts and Tata Sons.

This leaves the field open to senior Tata executives as well as external candidates if Noel Tata opts out of the process, as required under the amended rules. According to sources, the selection committee interviewed 14 eligibles, including global company CEOs in 2011, before selecting Mistry.