Kids should run family biz if they are passionate about it

Nandini Piramal believes in going by data and collaborating with various teams as businesses get more complex

- Anirudh Laskar & Neha Joshi

Ajay Piramal, head of the eponymous $10-billion pharma-to-financial services conglomerate, said for a succession plan to succeed, the control of businesses should be passed on to the children only if they are passionate about it.

Piramal, 69, chairman of the Piramal group, was discussing the group's business succession plan with his daughter Nandini Piramal (chairman, Piramal Pharma Ltd.) in the Mint India Investment Summit in Mumbai on Friday.

"Allocation of businesses (among children) should be done on the basis of their interest areas," Piramal said. "I don't know if there is a specific time or age. It's just that when you find that if you are having a succession with your family, they are ready to take up the responsibility. And I find that over time both Nandini and Anand (his son) were getting more and more responsibility, and they were taking it on."

Piramal added that it's more important for people like him who are used to running the business, to know when to step away. Also, scions should be allowed to make mistakes.