Tata Motors: Challenges for the Electric Vehicle Market Leader

Tata Motors Limited (TM), a subsidiary of Tata Sons Pvt. Ltd., was the market leader in the passenger electric vehicle (EV) segment in India. Natarajan Chandrasekaran, chair of Tata Sons, was pleased with the work of Shailesh Chandra who, as managing director of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM), had been instrumental in TM’s successful turnaround. Chandrasekaran wanted Chandra and his team to capitalize on the robust demand for passenger EVs in India to reach 25 per cent of TM’s total sales by 2029, up from 8 per cent in December 2022. However, attaining it was not easy because he would face an onslaught from multiple competitors that would threaten TM’s existing market share. To enable TM to maintain its leadership position in this segment in India and to grow over time, Chandra and his team had to ensure they correctly assessed the passenger EV industry’s competitive forces. From this analysis, Chandra would then have to evaluate his competitors’ strategies and formulate TM’s defence and growth plans.

The case can be taught as part of advanced undergraduate, Master of Business Administration, and executive-level programs. It is suitable for courses on marketing management and strategic marketing in modules on competitive forces analysis, and the application of strategies proposed for the market challenger, market leader, and market growth. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to<ul><li>understand the application of Michael Porter’s five-forces analysis to ascertain the attractiveness of the passenger EV segment in India;</li><li>apply the concept of market challenger strategies to the initiatives taken by competitors;</li><li>identify and analyze the market defence strategies that TM could adopt to protect its market leadership position; and</li><li>apply marketing strategies to drive the market growth of TM’s EV offers.</li></ul>

• Tata Motors
• Passenger Electric Vehicles
• India
• Porter's Competitive Analysis
• Market-Challenger Attack Strategies
• Market Leader Defense Strategies
• Market Growth Strategies