A park bench in London that was Cyrus Mistry’s office
Mistry confidante Nirmalya Kumar reminiscences about his days with his “ex-boss”; calls the former Tata Sons chairman “brilliant, humble, honest, funny, charming” who shunned publicity
- Sep 5, 2022,
- Updated Sep 5, 2022 3:38 PM IST
Nirmalya Kumar, who was roped in by Cyrus Mistry during his time at the helm of Tata Sons in 2013, said that his former boss was a brilliant person who added value in every meeting and was always open to a good debate.
Reminiscing about his time with Mistry, the globally renowned marketing strategist said that he met Mistry last month when he was in London and they sat on a park bench which Mistry used as his office.
“Only last month we sat for an hour on a park bench at the Mayfair church in London which he used as his “office” there. We laughed, reminiscing, but also reflected how we were both content and looked forward to a more peaceful life,” said Kumar in a LinkedIn post while adding that Mistry was brilliant in a quiet way, added value at every meeting, and was a thorough gentleman.
Kumar, who has taught at prestigious institutions including Columbia University, Harvard Business School, IMD (Switzerland), London Business School, and Northwestern University (Kellogg School of Management), was brought in at Tata Sons to head strategy and was directly reporting to Mistry.
Further, while talking about his days at Tata Sons with Mistry, Kumar said that he could publicly disagree during meetings with his former boss who was always ready for a good debate.
“He gave me an opportunity no one else would have. And those who were in meetings with us know - allowed me to disagree with him publicly in front of others - which no other promoter would have. He valued a good debate to reach the truth. Our motivation to future proof the institution even when we made mistakes,” he said in his post.
“But those who encountered him know the truth about Cyrus Mistry - brilliant, humble, honest, funny, charming…” added Kumar while mentioning that Mistry was treated unfairly and did not receive the public recognition that he deserved as he shunned publicity.
While at Tata Sons, Kumar was part of the so-called core group executive council or GEC that was formed by Mistry. Apart from Mistry, there were five other persons in the GEC - Madhu Kannan, Mukund Rajan, NS Rajan, Harish Bhat and Kumar. Incidentally, Kumar, who has written nine books, was also very vocal in terms of his support for Mistry after the ouster from Tata Group.
Currently, Kumar is Lee Kong Chian Professor of Marketing at Singapore Management University and Distinguished Fellow at INSEAD Emerging Markets Institute and has been a part of the board of directors of around a dozen companies including ACC, Ambuja Cement, Bata India, Tata Chemicals, Ultratech, and Zensar.
Also read: Cyrus Mistry death: Jehangir Pandole, the co-passenger who got killed, was a KPMG director
Nirmalya Kumar, who was roped in by Cyrus Mistry during his time at the helm of Tata Sons in 2013, said that his former boss was a brilliant person who added value in every meeting and was always open to a good debate.
Reminiscing about his time with Mistry, the globally renowned marketing strategist said that he met Mistry last month when he was in London and they sat on a park bench which Mistry used as his office.
“Only last month we sat for an hour on a park bench at the Mayfair church in London which he used as his “office” there. We laughed, reminiscing, but also reflected how we were both content and looked forward to a more peaceful life,” said Kumar in a LinkedIn post while adding that Mistry was brilliant in a quiet way, added value at every meeting, and was a thorough gentleman.
Kumar, who has taught at prestigious institutions including Columbia University, Harvard Business School, IMD (Switzerland), London Business School, and Northwestern University (Kellogg School of Management), was brought in at Tata Sons to head strategy and was directly reporting to Mistry.
Further, while talking about his days at Tata Sons with Mistry, Kumar said that he could publicly disagree during meetings with his former boss who was always ready for a good debate.
“He gave me an opportunity no one else would have. And those who were in meetings with us know - allowed me to disagree with him publicly in front of others - which no other promoter would have. He valued a good debate to reach the truth. Our motivation to future proof the institution even when we made mistakes,” he said in his post.
“But those who encountered him know the truth about Cyrus Mistry - brilliant, humble, honest, funny, charming…” added Kumar while mentioning that Mistry was treated unfairly and did not receive the public recognition that he deserved as he shunned publicity.
While at Tata Sons, Kumar was part of the so-called core group executive council or GEC that was formed by Mistry. Apart from Mistry, there were five other persons in the GEC - Madhu Kannan, Mukund Rajan, NS Rajan, Harish Bhat and Kumar. Incidentally, Kumar, who has written nine books, was also very vocal in terms of his support for Mistry after the ouster from Tata Group.
Currently, Kumar is Lee Kong Chian Professor of Marketing at Singapore Management University and Distinguished Fellow at INSEAD Emerging Markets Institute and has been a part of the board of directors of around a dozen companies including ACC, Ambuja Cement, Bata India, Tata Chemicals, Ultratech, and Zensar.
Also read: Cyrus Mistry death: Jehangir Pandole, the co-passenger who got killed, was a KPMG director