Indra Nooyi, N Chandrasekaran among top contenders for Tata Sons Chairmanship

MUMBAI: Industry insiders are betting on half a dozen senior personalities to fill in for Cyrus Mistry, the outgoing chairman of the Tata Group.

Indra Nooyi of Pepsi, Arun Sarin, former Vodafone CEO, Noel Tata of Tata International, N Chandrasekaran, TCS CEO, Ishaat Hussain and B. Muthuraman both from Tata Group could be the contenders to replace Cyrus Mistry as the group’s new chairman, say experts.

Ratan Tata is the interim chairman for the group who would step aside once the new chairman is selected.

Also Read: Mystery behind Mistry's exit: 5 key questions

Amit Chandra, who heads Bain Capital in India, and also a member of the search committee formed by Tata Sons to select the next chairman, could also be a long shot candidate for the post.

"You need someone with integrity to head Tata Group, while it is still too early, to speculate, I think the process would begin within next two weeks,” a consultant working with the group said. According to the people ET spoke to, including executives in the group, head hunters, consultants, and people close to Tata Group, there are already some names floating to replace Mistry.

Also Read: Ratan Tata seen as adverse to exiting UK biz

"I think the group will first form a committee and it could take anywhere around three to four months to come up with a name. While some names are already floating, I don’t think Noel Tata and Arun Sarin could become chairman even this time around,” a person who was close to the selection committee that selected Mistry four years ago said.

However, a senior executive believed to be close to Tata Group and specifically Ratan Tata told ET that there are two people who could potentially be considered to head the group. "I think Noel Tata and Indra Nooyi are two people I would put my money on. Noel because he is part of the family, and Nooyi because Mr Tata himself is very impressed by her,” he said. The executive hinted that this time around Tata Group may try and put someone from the Tata family at the helm of the matters.

"Noel is considered too soft and that’s the problem some senior executives in Tata Group have with him. As for Sarin, I think Tata Group has lost the plot for telecom, I don’t see a person with that (telecom) expertise heading the group,” added the person close to the selection committee.

Another person, a well-known head hunter, said the group could be looking at international faces, but not for at least a year or two. "As I see it, Ratan Tata will take matters in his hands for at least one year. Also, I personally think the group could be looking at leaders who have Indian roots but are working at global companies currently,” he said.

There are some sceptics to the nomination process as well. "Last time, despite the exhaustive exercise, the largest shareholder just nominated the chairman. This time around, the committee is likely to dip into the same pool of people it had considered last time with a couple of new names such as Amit Chandra who was brought on board as a non-executive director in August this year,” said another head hunter.

Industry experts say that the group will now be looking at is someone who understands the old economy sectors well and will add value to the group’s existing businesses that are suffering. "A banker is unlikely to be appointed as the focus is now on expanding the Tata brand and business and not consolidation as under Cyrus Mistry,” the head hunter said.

IN PICS: Was Tata Sons unhappy with Cyrus Mistry's performance?

Meanwhile there are also speculations in the industry circles as to why Mistry was replaced as Tata Group Chairman.

"Cyrus has not done much in three years and he has no eye for talent. The people he has hired are not inspirational leaders but just individuals,” said a senior official in one of the Tata Group companies.

However, he said that the way the drama has panned out may just create some ripples in the company. "Buying four months’ time and getting Ratan Tata from hibernation is a counter-intuitive game,” he added.