Iconic Indian industrialist and Chairman emeritus of Tata Sons, Ratan Tata was presented the Patrick J McGovern Lifetime Achievement Awards by Chiratae Ventures, formerly known as IDG Ventures India.

Chairman emeritus of Tata Sons and scion of the Tata family, Ratan Tata was felicitated with the Patrick J McGovern Lifetime Achievement Award 2019.

The award, instituted by then IDG Ventures India in 2016, commemorates the legacy of Patrick Joseph McGovern Jr., founder of the International Data Corporation and a visionary who redefined the way the enterprise consumed technology.

The MIT graduate was the first to spot a business opportunity in a newsweekly for the IT community – he foresaw the potential of how technology could help businesses grow, and thus was born Computerworld on 21 June 1967.

In a 2017 article, his son Patrick McGovern III highlighted McGovern Jr.’s innate ability to spot new and emerging trends in technology before they were recognized by everyone else.

McGovern spearheaded the launch of over 300 magazines and newspapers and is credited with expanding IDG’s network to include over 460 websites, 200 mobile apps, and 700 events all around the globe.

The tech visionary passed away on 19 March 2014, leaving a USD 350 million fortune to the McGovern Institute for Brain Research.

Ratan Tata joins an elite list of awardees

Over the years, the Patrick J McGovern Lifetime Achievement Award was conferred upon global leaders who have left a lasting legacy to their businesses.

Past winners include John Chambers, former executive chairman and CEO of Cisco Systems, Ashok Soota, Executive Chairman and co-founder of Happiest Minds Technologies, Kris Gopalakrishna, co-founder of Infosys, Saurabh Srivastava, an entrepreneur and co-founder of IAN, and Bruno Raschle, founder, MD and non-executive vice chairman of Schroder Adveq.

Ratan Tata is best known for putting the Indian enterprise on the global map. Under his stewardship, Tata Motors acquired the Jaguar and Land Rover businesses from Ford. In 2000, Tata Tea acquired the largest tea company in the UK, the Tetley group. Just three years later, TCS became the first Indian software company to cross USD 1 billion in revenue.

In 2007, he oversaw Tata Steel’s acquisition of Corus, which was then the second-largest steel manufacturer in Europe. ­­

On being felicitated with the Lifetime Achievement Award, Ratan Tata said “It is a pleasure receiving this award from the Chiratae team. I have personally known Sudhir and the team for a few years now. I have witnessed the company’s and team’s growth as IDG, now Chiratae. I’m proud of the impressive portfolio they have built over the years. I am happy to have been a part of their success story.”

What makes Pat McGovern’s philosophy so relevant and why Ratan Tata fits the bill

Chiratae Ventures, formerly known as IDG Ventures India, believes that the startup ecosystem is all about stellar entrepreneurs, disruption, and creating impact for masses through technology innovation and perseverance – values that are perfectly in sync with Pat’s philosophy.

Carrying forward his father’s legacy, Patrick J. McGovern III, Chairman of the Judge’s committee said that all the judges, which includes past recipients, and Sudhir Sethi and Meenakshi Sundaram from Chiratae, unanimously selected Ratan Tata as the awardee.

“We have been through a great journey together and we are honored to have Mr. Ratan Tata accept the award from the Chiratae team. He has been a great motivation and mentor to the team. The time invested by him in advising us is of immense value,” added Sudhir Sethi, founder & chairman of Chiratae Ventures.

The VC major believes that one of McGovern’s favorite quotes: “The best is yet to come” is a key driving factor for the startup ecosystem.