The Shah Rukh Khans of Indian business are being replaced
Reliance Industries Ltd. for some three decades, having grown the company from a net profit of $665 million in 2002, to well over $9 billion today. Those are some big shoes to fill.
The tycoon’s three kids will be appointed to the company’s board this year, but it’s not yet clear who will be first among equals. While Reliance is almost always in project mode, the shift comes at a delicate time. The conglomerate is trying to turbocharge its new-energy business, and beating China — the king of renewable value chains — will be tough.
Without Mukesh Ambani at the helm of what will be a costly and long-in-gestation venture, investors may rightfully become skittish. And it’s not just succession atop Reliance Industries they have to contend with. This decade marks a generational shift in the leadership of India's best known companies.
The men (and a few women) who have come to be recognized as the architects of modern industry in India are retiring, or nearing it. Many will be replaced by as yet untested professionals or younger family members — ala Ambani. L&T's AM Naik (81), HDFC's Deepak Parekh (78) and Uday Kotak (64) of Kotak Mahindra Bank are among those hanging up their executive boots this year — for varied reasons.
They will join the ranks of Ratan Tata (85), Adi Godrej (81), Azim Premji (78), and Shiv Nadar (78), all whom retired over the last 10 years. In the years to come, Dr. Prathap Reddy, RC Bhargava, Nusli Wadia, Baba Kalyani, Harsh Mariwala, Venu Srinivasan, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Pawan Munjal, Anil Agarwal, Anand Mahindra, Nandan Nilekani, Ajay Piramal, Dilip Shanghvi and Sunil Mittal will likely retire fully or cut back on supervisory or managerial responsibilities.
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