Rohit Jawa, CEO and MD of Hindustan Unilever (HUL), said in a LinkedIn post on Sunday that former chairman S M Datta, who passed away on Saturday, was an individual who put the team first and was a true leader.
Describing Datta, who led HUL from 1990 to 1996, as a “merger magician”, Jawa said he was dynamic, inclusive and compassionate, embodying the spirit of HUL. His deep technical knowledge, sheer intellect and clarity of thought was unparalleled, he added.
“SM Datta became chairman a few years after I joined Hindustan Unilever. As India welcomed liberalisation in the early 90s, it was under his chairmanship that HUL started to make strategic mergers – including the TOMCO merger – the largest acquisition of the time,” Jawa said.
Jawa also disclosed that he had sought Datta’s blessings before becoming HUL CEO in 2023. “I witnessed a deeply spiritual side of him – he told me how he was still learning about spirituality, a little more every day,” he said.
Datta was also a man who believed in the spirit of participation, engagement and enquiry, Jawa said, not only within the company, factories or processes, but also on larger issues of national concern. “How to build a better mouse trap – that spirit has always prevailed in HUL,” Jawa said of Datta.
The HUL CEO also said that he took deep learnings from Datta’s time at the company, including his inclusive spirit, adding that his teachings have shaped HUL leaders over the years.
“Even as we mourn losing him, we know in our hearts that his legacy will forever be etched in HUL history,” Jawa added.