When vision drives transformation

In an industry where success stories are often loud and headline-driven, Tata Elxsi built its legacy quietly—through steady innovation, design-led thinking, and the courage to reinvent itself when survival itself was uncertain. That understated transformation is captured in ‘Designed to Win: The Tata Elxsi Story,’ published by Penguin India.

Authored by former Managing Director S Devarajan, the book blends corporate history with lived leadership experience, offering an unvarnished account of how a Tata Group company reshaped its destiny and built global leadership across transportation, media and telecom, and healthcare. The narrative also revisits a revealing phase in the company’s evolution—when even Ratan Tata questioned the brand’s name—highlighting how fragile institutions can feel during periods of uncertainty.

Looking back, Devarajan does not point to a single dramatic moment but to a decisive shift born out of necessity. “The factors requiring this pivot were multiple. The company was making deep losses. The addressed market was out of sync. The company needed money to turn around,” he recalls. Rather than competing in crowded technology spaces, the leadership chose reinvention. “We decided to make Tata Elxsi different from all other tech and IT companies. We raised capital from the market to fuel our business strategy. This money enabled us to take risks and do something no technology company had done in this country before,” Devarajan says.

That boldness led to market creation rather than market capture. Devarajan says, “We created a market in India in the engineering design space, created a market for animation and visual effects, provided solutions for aerospace and defence, and created opportunities for scientists and pharma companies to do in-depth research in molecular chemistry and biophysics. This was our strategy—we created a marketplace which no one else did.”

Responsibility came early in Devarajan’s career. As one of the youngest directors on the Tata Board, he found himself steering transformation under intense expectations. Yet he remembers the experience as energising rather than intimidating. “Being a leader and being given the responsibility to bring about a positive change in Tata Elxsi was something I felt challenged by—and I enjoyed every moment of it.” Trust, he says, made all the difference. “I could bounce my ideas with my Board and seek their support in all that I did. And that support came from the trust they had in me.” Pressure, in his view, can be constructive. “High pressure can be good or bad. I would consider the pressure I had was good—it helped me drive my strategy and goals with gusto.”

What gives the book its distinctive texture is the seamless blending of professional strategy and personal reflection. Devarajan sees little separation between the two worlds. “You will find a blend of my life lessons with my work experiences. The two personas are the same person wearing different caps,” he says. Lessons travelled both ways. “My life’s learnings I could deploy many times in my work—and vice versa.” Yet he remained disciplined about boundaries. “I ensured that I never mixed them up. At no time was my wife aware of what was happening at work, which was sometimes awkward for her at social gatherings with colleagues,” he says.

From his vantage point today as a board advisor across technology, media, and visual effects companies, Devarajan sees organisations repeating a persistent strategic mistake—confusing planning with vision. “Many make annual business plans and don’t look at a medium-term roadmap. One has to keep an eye on the long-term strategy and then work towards what is relevant today,” he says. The cost of that disconnect is missed opportunity. “Many fail to do that and exploit the opportunity that is at hand,” he says. Tata Elxsi’s own journey reflects consistency beneath change. “If you look at what Tata Elxsi is today, you will notice that the company strategy has not changed in four decades. Businesses have changed; methodologies and tactics have changed—but the long-term vision has remained.”

Beyond boardrooms, Devarajan finds perspective through photography—an enduring personal passion that continues to shape his leadership instincts. “Being a photographer, one has to capture the moment. Patience—when you need to wait for that moment. Perseverance—you maytry many times over many days. Then sometimes the moment passes and you need to be quick, alert and nimble to capture that opportunity.” The parallels with leadership feel natural to him. “You look through the viewfinder and see the big picture—your goal, your roadmap. Then you focus on an object close by, which is your current target, and capture that event. It beautifully relates to your work life as a leader.”

On India’s semiconductor ambitions, his optimism is measured but clear. “We are on the right track in hardware and semiconductors—on the right road to self-reliance,” he says. India’s software success, he believes, offers a blueprint. “We are the best in the world in developing software, and we can be the best in the world tomorrow in building hardware too.” But he cautions against building an incomplete ecosystem. “We need to ensure the ancillary component industry and product industry are also allowed to develop alongside the chip industry to make it complete.”

For young leaders navigating uncertainty in a volatile technology landscape, his advice centres on clarity and collective effort. “Transformation requires visionary thinking as to where you want your company to be and what you want it to do. Have that very clear in your mind,” he says. Execution follows direction. “Then work on how you would get there. Be truly passionate about what you are chasing.” And leadership, he insists, must be shared. “Be a team player. Take your team with you. Run as a team—never solo.”

Today, success feels quieter and more reflective. Devarajan often measures it in moments of stillness rather than milestones. “The Friday evening drive back home from work reflects on what you have done for the week, the year and in your life. I feel gratitude in all that I did and achieved,” he says. Impact matters more than accolades. “I realise that I have made a difference in the lives of people in my teams and brought about change for the better in the companies I have been involved with.” Legacy, to him, is continuity. “Even today, decades after leaving Tata Elxsi, the team still follows the path we created, he says.”

His definition of winning has evolved into something enduring. “Winning is when whatever you have touched has impacted lives and organisations positively. ‘Winning’ is just one word, but in reality, it is a journey. That is why it took me a whole book to describe the act of winning,” Devarajan says.