Born in 1937, in British India’s Surat, Ratan Tata began his career with Tata Group in 1961 after passing out from Harvard Business School. In 1991, he succeeded J R D Tata as the Chairman of Tata Group.
It was Ratan Tata’s vision that transformed India centric Tata Group to a globally recognized business group. Some of the major takeovers which took place under his tenure are – Tata Tea acquired UK’s Tetley Tea, Tata Motors acquired Jaguar Land Rover, and Tata Steel acquired Corus. Ratan Tata retired from his post of Chairman, Tata Group in December 2012, handing the reigns over to Cyrus P Mistry. Today, Tata Group is a $120 billion conglomerate with over $5.31 billion in annual profit.
Over the years, Ratan Tata has been honoured with numerous awards from many countries across the globe. The latest award to join the list of his already huge list of awards will be the Automotive Hall of Fame award. This one will be conferred to him in Detroit on 23rd July at the 2015 Induction & Awards Gala Ceremony.
Mr Tata has been inducted because he “returned Jaguar and Range Rover to eminent status and profitability, preserving the auto industry in the United Kingdom.” He is one of the four people who will be inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame this year. The other three personalities include –
Luca di Montezemolo with Michael Schumacher at the unveiling of Ferrari 430 Scuderia in September 2007, Frankfurt.1) Luca di Montezemolo – Former Ferrari boss for “restoring the luster of the marque, returning Scuderia Ferrari to international racing prominence, while building the brand into a global powerhouse.” He has dedicated his award to Michael Schumacher.
2) Roger Penske – Founder and Chairman, Penske Corporation, a leading international transportation services company, who also built Team Penske Racing into one of the most successful automotive sports teams in history, winning 15 Indianapolis 500 championships.
3) Elwood Haynes – (1857-1925) test drove his first car in 1894 in Kokomo, Indiana, two years before Henry Ford’s Quadricycle and less than a year after Charles Duryea’s Motorized Wagon; co-founder of the Haynes-Apperson Automobile Company (1898-1925), which produced Haynes-Apperson automobiles until 1905, followed by Haynes automobiles through 1925.
