More than half of the equity of Tata Sons, Tata’s promoter holding company, is held by philanthropic trusts. Discover how the company is helping others and taking social responsibility seriously
Jamsetji Tata, who founded what became Tata Companies in 1868, is regarded as the father of Indian industry and at the core of his pioneering was a deep-rooted desire to help others. He famously said: “In a free enterprise the community is not just another stakeholder in the business but in fact the very existence of it.”
Well before the term “corporate social responsibility” – companies behaving ethically to better the community and the environment – was coined, Tata understood the importance of sharing skills and riches with those who might not be so well off. Further, he wanted to raise the ambitions of those concerned.
We are a group bound together by a long history of innovation, but also social conscience
“Freedom without the strength to support it and, if need be, defend it, would be a cruel delusion. And the strength to defend freedom can itself only come from widespread industrialisation and the infusion of modern science and technology into the country's economic life," he said.
In 2015, 147 years since the business was established, that spirit still holds. Now, two-thirds of the equity of Tata Sons, the holding company for over 100 businesses, is held by philanthropic trusts which have created national institutions for science and technology, medical research, social studies and the performing arts. The trusts also provide aid and assistance to non-government organisations working in the areas of education, healthcare and livelihoods.
Elsewhere, Tata Global’s campaign to empower and encourage women in India to vote through the “Power of 49” has been lauded worldwide. And the move by Tata Chemicals in India to create the cheapest household filter to purify dirty water – called the Tata Swach – shows Tata creating an accessible product specifically for the community.
In Europe, Tata has invested in skills programmes which benefit its employees, the talent pipeline and the wider community. For example the group offers over 125,000 training courses and qualifications to its employees each year. Tata’s companies offer over 1,300 university scholarships, internships and apprenticeships to potential new employees and support over 50 community projects that reach 100,000s of young people.
Tata Communications, part of the Indian-headquartered Tata group – which generated revenue of $103.27 billion (£66.65 billion) last year – literally believes in returning money to the societies it serves. After launching its first automated teller machine (ATM) in 2013, the company plans to roll out 15,000 “Indicash” ATMs across India by June 2016 in areas ignored by larger banks.
In addition, Tata Communications has used the group’s substantial network to substantially improve India’s healthcare, working with hospitals to take services to more people across the country. Key to this is wearable health-monitoring technology.
“We are a group bound together by a long history of innovation, but also social conscience,” says David Landsman, director of Tata Limited. “Previous generations of the Tata family didn’t leave their wealth to the families but set up charitable trusts, which made them very large development agencies. It is the combination of that pioneering spirit, but with a very specific purpose, which endures and fits very well with the 21st century
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