With no disrespect to Muthuraman and other leaders who have spearheaded the various companiesin the group, it must

be said that such gutsy deals can't be done without a strong group backing orreputation. The Corus deal is proof of the kind of goodwill the Tata Group has created for itselfacross the world, not just within the country. Unlike the Mittal Steel bid for Arcelor, which created ahuge furore, the Tata bid faced little opposition.Although the Anglo-Dutch company had several plants in the United Kingdom, there was little attemptto stop the deal by either political parties or trade unions. The Corus management was happy tosupport the deal, placing its faith in the group's reassurance that there would be no layoffs and thatpension shortfalls would be taken care off. Not just that. Given that Tata Steel was bidding for acompany four times its size, it could not have funded the entire deal. In fact, the company put up just25% of the equity; the rest was funded through foreign debt. And even that was to be funded onlythrough cash flows from Corus, with no recourse to Tata Steel a reflection of the credibility the groupenjoyed in global financial markets.Tata's big deals are balanced byprojects focusing on the lowestcommon denominator. In fact, Tatahas been among the very few toperfectly understand the psyche andthe needs of the Indian consumer and build successful businessesaround those insights. That is, byrecognising that the big marketopportunity lies in making desirableproducts affordable for a largeraudience and creating successfulproducts to cater to a market need be it the passenger-car foray withthe Indica in the early 1990s, thepromise to create a Rs 1 lakh (Rs100,000) car or for that matter,making water filters that don't needelectricity (for rural areas).Hemendra Kothari, the doyen ofinvestment banking in India who hasworked on most Tata Group deals,has watched Tata's working styleclosely. "He is a very discerningperson when it comes to decision-making. And once he has made uphis mind, he is prepared to go all outto achieve his objective, be it Corusor Nano," he says.Still, the markets have usuallyconsidered Tata to be out of hisdepth, questioning and dismissing his big, bold moves as 'Ratan'sfollies'.The Indica was the first. People scoffed openly, when, in 1995, Tata spoke of building a passengercar with "the Zen's size, the Ambassador's internal dimensions and the price of a Maruti 800. Thescepticism seemed justified as project costs escalated to Rs 1,700 crore (Rs 17 billion) and TataMotors posted Rs 500 crore (Rs 5 billion) in losses the biggest splash of red in Indian balance-sheethistory. "Even within Tatas, people kept asking me to distance myself from the project so that when itfailed I wouldn't be stuck with the blame. And when I refused to do that, they distanced themselvesfrom me," Tata said in an interview a few years ago. Ratan proved his detractors wrong, and how about its use (stepmother Simone'scosmetics business, Lakme, whichwas later sold, and half-brotherNoel's retail business didn't make thecut).Zia Mody, managing partner at lawfirm AZB & Partners, which hasadvised the Tatas on acquisitionslike Corus and Jaguar Land Rover,believes the group-culture RatanTata has created will stay on as hislegacy. "He has institutionalisedprocesses. The reputation of thegroup and its guiding principles areuppermost in his mind while takingdecisions," she points out.Business historian and writer Gita Piramal has a different take on Ratan Tata's legacy. "Tata put'design' into the group in mergers and acquisitions, engineering or cars or anything

else. It is a veryforward-looking strategy, putting new competency in very old companies," she says. Ratan The Manager Perhaps the secret of Ratan Tata's success lies in his ability to think big and small. While he guidesthe Tata Group to pick up the luxurious Pierre Hotel in New York, he's also driving the launch of thebudget Ginger hotels in India. He has the ability to envisage an automotive business thatencompasses diverse businesses such as the iconic Jaguar and Land Rover marquees on the onehand, the world's cheapest car the Nano, on the other, and hardy, rough-road trucks sandwiched inbetween.JRD is admired for creating world-class companies that could be globally competitive at a time whenIndia was still not thinking scale and was instead leaning towards a socialist set up. In contrast, Ratanhad the vision to foresee the direction the economy and policy was taking, consolidate thebusiness accordingly, and embrace change to leap ahead.The group was totally unprepared for liberalisation, which was knocking on the door when he tookover. Ratan knew the Tatas required a radical change in mindset and he set out to work in thatdirection. He streamlined the organisation by selling some businesses and rationalised the processesand functioning of the Tata Group.That explains why it still remains among the top three business groups in the country while many havefallen by the wayside or dropped in the rankings in the post-liberalisation era. Yet almost none ofthis change came at the cost of people or employee morale. Be it the fixing of a retirement age forvarious employees or the creation of a close-knit group that could meet the group's ambitions, Ratancreated a nimble-footed organisation. Insiders say that those who were asked to leave were givenfull salary till the age of 60.It's no secret that the genesis of the Tata Group's blockbuster moves can be traced to him. Tata'sfirst global venture the February 2000 purchase of Tetley had begun five years earlier when RatanTata made a $ 318 million bid for the tea company. That didn't work out, but Ratan didn't lose heartand kept an eye on the company's activities. The deal was finally clinched at $ 430 million. Sheerperseverance may have made that deal come true.The Corus deal is also a telling example. A close associate recalls Ratan calling Tata Steel MD BMuthuraman, who was on a trip to Hong Kong. "I've learnt that Corus is up for sale. Do you think wecan look at it?" he asked. After some thought, Muthuraman replied that they could perhaps pick up astrategic stake. Ratan had different plans. "We must buy that company. Think it over," he advised.The next morning, Muthuraman called Tata to say he was game.