Mistry’s road map for the future

Newly appointed Chairman of $100 billion Tata Group Cyrus Mistry, in his first major public announcement after assuming office, said that that group would invest more than 450 billion rupees on various businesses over the next two years and would seek to expand the group’s global presence with a focus on emerging markets in Asia, Africa and parts of Latin America. Mistry, believes that the group must differentiate itself from competitors through greater understanding of customer needs and a culture built around customer centricity, innovation and a focus on profitable growth. “We will need to be relentless in our pursuit of improving our competitiveness and in addressing the small issues that are often overlooked but end up making a significant difference in the value proposition of our products and services,” Mistry wrote in an e-mail to employees after taking charge. In his first message as Chairman of Tata Group, Mistry also said the ‘core of the Tata group’ will remain unchanged despite change in its leadership and asked the group companies to play leadership roles in their respective businesses. He also warned against any complacency, saying that history has shown that groups “that are happy with resting on their laurels are weeded out by nimble competition”.