...new chief says Tata Motors will look different in a year

What’s first on the agenda at Tata Motors?
We have two businesses to look at: in passenger vehicles, we have seen market-share loss and some of our products are not doing as well as they should. It’s important for us to put the whole picture together. We need to make sure that when we put the effort into a product, it’s not only about its design and manufacturing. We need to keep in mind what the customer is looking for all the way during product development and ensure we are able to excite him or her.

Secondly, in commercial vehicles, we are a very strong and dominant player. But there is new competition. We need to make sure we aren’t getting complacent.

The challenge essentially is about changing the perception of products?
A lot of it is perception, because we earn that through history. There are things that we need to look at, but yes, you are right, perception is difficult to change. It’s up to us to give the customer a chance to change it. That’ll happen when we can give him products that he can drive and notice the difference.

Have you put your finger on that one X factor that’s missing in TaMo products?
I don’t think it is one thing. If it is one thing, we can press that button tomorrow. It’s very important we regain the confidence of the customer.

How much time will it take to change the perception?
I am not patient. But I don’t see any problem with making sure that things are delivered right the first time, and that can change the perception very quickly. Like three weeks back, when I drove the Tata Safari Storme, I wanted to change 2-3 things in it immediately, which we could get done through our vendors.

What were these things?
I can’t tell you that…
But you joined only on October 1…
(Laughs) Officially, yes, but I was here and wanted to take a look at things.

How do you tackle the challenges of refinement and contemporariness that TaMo offerings seem to face for a long time now?
Refinement is basically about recognising what the customer wants. The supplier should know what I want and I need to know what the customer wants. That needs to be clear.

Telescoping the question further, is it an R&D issue or an execution issue?
I don’t see R&D as a problem. I think our business partners and us need to have excellence in mind. Whatever we do, we need to do excellently, whether it is launching a car, building it or designing it…

What was your mandate when you were hired?
I can’t tell you the specifics, but we talked about things like our dominant position in commercial vehicles and how to grow that position, the declining position in passenger cars that we need to address…

What’s your message to Tata Motors investors?
I am here because the future is bright. I wouldn’t have joined the company if I didn’t think that there is a great opportunity. We have a huge amount of strength in the company.

When can investors see signs of a turnaround?
They are already seeing it with some of the new things we are doing. They are able to see the benefits of Jaguar Land Rover, too.

Should we expect radical changes in a year?
Should Tata Motors look different in a year? Yes. Should it look radically different? I don’t think so. We will be more focused on winning.

How would you like to see Tata Motors two years down the line?
As a strong brand. We have to play in major segments. You will see us in the small car, you will see us in UVs because that’s where our strength is and that’s where the dominant sales are. You will see us in both of those areas for sure. And also in the sedan class.

Mahindras have overtaken Tata Motors in volumes…
Our aspiration is to be a strong No. 2. We will get back there and we will turn that into No. 1 in the long term, but we will do it sensibly. We have no less capability than anyone else. We shouldn’t do it by discounting to be the No. 2 for a month. Our policies, our values will remain the same but we need to build our volumes and market share on a strong foundation.

How long will it take to wrest back the second spot?
I’d like that to happen tomorrow because I am impatient. But our products and perception need to be changed. Some of them can be changed very quickly when customers get to drive a new car or wherever they take the car to service and some would take a longer period of time.

TaMo hasn’t had new launches in a while…
I think we have had seven in the last four years, which is quite a large number. But yes, we haven’t had any in recent while. There are short-, medium- and long-term plans. Long term will be about completely new products. In the short term, we will let the customer know that we are here and we are up to date. In the medium to long term, there will be something drastically different.

Such as new platforms?
New platforms, new programs but in general a mix of everything. Not every product has to be junked and started all over again. But there are other segments where we need to come with completely new products.

Would your focus be on volume cars?
We are a volume player so we will look at that, but we will also enter new areas.

Are the product plans for the medium-term already frozen? Would you be changing them?
We have a product plan. Obviously, it was there before I came in. Between me and my leadership team, we will be relooking at what’s the market and how does it look in the medium and long term and are we right or wrong.
Tata Motors had a good thing going in the taxi segment once…
It’s actually a good and a bad business. Taxi or fleet is something that you have to do carefully. It shows people the capability of the vehicle and it’s a good business. But, at the same time, it alters people’s perception of your products.

What’s Ratan Tata’s mandate on the Nano for you?
Nano is a key item for us as a company and as a brand. It was a huge concept idea and an opportunity, but we didn’t execute it well. We had a great build-up, but now we are in a catch-back situation. But now the numbers are growing again. There has to be continued efforts and new variants like CNG and diesel. The diesel one is a while away, though.

Do you think Motown has bottomed out?
I think in the very short term, yes -- because we are going into Dassera, Diwali which will give a boost anyway. It looks like last year; if the Navratri bookings are anything to go by, then it looks very positive. So that’s looking good for October.

What made you take up the challenge?
I love India. You know there are mixture of foreigners here – some love the country, some hate it. I must admit when I first arrived, I hated it. But after about 6 months, it was the opposite. It’s so different that you have to get used to it. Me and my wife love it now and the opportunity to work for Indian icon is amazing. And then there’s the mentor, Rata Tata.

But the mentor is changing...
My boss is changing, my mentor will remain the same. We hope he continues to provide business guidance.

Is Cyrus Mistry a car person?
He is a smart guy. He has a huge portfolio of companies to take care of and he has to spend time wisely for each one of them. He is enthusiastic.