Tata Steel Steel MD and CEO T V Narendran has emerged as the strongest contender to succeed N Chandrasekaran as chairman of Tata Sons, according to people familiar with the matter.
Narendran, 61, is a Tata group veteran who joined Tata Steel in 1988 and has held several positions across the company. With more than 37 years of experience in the mining and metals industry, he has overseen Tata Steel’s organic and inorganic expansion over the past decade. Narendran serves on the boards of Tata Steel and Tata International and is chairman of Tata Steel Europe.
His long association with the group and experience in senior leadership roles have given him a deep understanding of its businesses, culture and decision-making processes, the people cited above said.
The appointment of a Tata Sons chairman, however, involves a complex process. Under the company’s Articles of Association (AoA), the relevant succession provisions apply as long as the Tata Trusts collectively hold at least 40% of Tata Sons’ ordinary share capital. The Trusts currently own 66%.
A five-member selection committee is constituted to recommend a candidate. Three members are jointly nominated by the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust, one is nominated from among the Tata Sons directors, and an independent outside member is selected by the board. The board appoints the candidate recommended by the committee, but the decision requires the affirmative vote of all directors appointed under Article 104B of the AoA.
The need to build consensus across the Tata Trusts and the Tata Sons board could make the succession process time-consuming. Chandrasekaran’s term ends on February 20, 2027, leaving the group just over six months to identify and appoint his successor.
If the board is unable to complete the process by then, Noel Tata could emerge as an interim option to ensure continuity, people familiar with the matter said. Such an arrangement, however, would require changes to the existing AoA. An amendment to Article 118 in 2022 stipulates that the chairman of either the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust or the Sir Ratan Tata Trust—or both—cannot simultaneously serve as chairman of Tata Sons.
An interim appointment of Noel Tata would therefore require exceptional measures, potentially including an amendment to the AoA. It would also be a stop-gap arrangement, given that Noel is 69 and statutory conditions apply to appointments to managerial positions beyond the age of 70.
A small section within the group is also understood to favour considering Noel’s son Neville Tata for the top job. Neville has gained prominence through his role at Trent, where he has been associated with the rapid expansion of Zudio. He was inducted as a trustee of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust in November 2025, alongside veteran Tata executive Bhaskar Bhat.
The succession decision comes amid wider churn across the Tata ecosystem, with leadership and governance changes under way at both Tata Sons and the Tata Trusts.