Ratan Tata's Message For Entrepreneurs Amid COVID Crisis

Industrialist Ratan Tata encouraged entrepreneurs to "adapt and create" in order to overcome the challenges facing the economy amid the coronavirus crisis. In a note shared on social media, the Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons said that his confidence in the creativity of entrepreneurs remained high even in these difficult times. 

"In past difficult times, entrepreneurs have displayed far sightedness and creativity that could not have been believed to exist," wrote Mr Tata, 82, in his note to entrepreneurs. "These became the flagpoles of innovation and new technology today," he said, adding that he hoped the current crisis would result in similar innovation and better business practices. 

While stressing that he would not downplay the challenges posed by the coronavirus crisis, Mr Tata wrote: "I hope that the ability to find another way to build a product, run a company, run operations a better way, will emerge as an outcome of the current crisis."

He said the creativity of entrepreneurs today would "find ways to enable new or modified enterprises" which could become benchmarks for tomorrow.

The Chairman of Tata Trusts also predicted that the ongoing coronavirus crisis would force entrepreneurs to "adapt and create" in order to overcome these challenges. 

Read his note below:

View this post on Instagram

In past difficult times, entrepreneurs have displayed far sightedness and creativity that could not have been believed to exist. These became the flagpoles of innovation and new technology today. I hope that the ability to find another way to build a product, run a company, run operations a better way, will emerge as an outcome of the current crisis. I won't downplay the challenges and the difficulties embedded in these current times. But my confidence remains high in the inventive nature and the creativity of entrepreneurs today who will find ways to enable new or modified enterprises that would be the benchmarks of tomorrow. It can all start on a clean sheet of paper that looks at ways of doing things that were never thought of before. This crisis will force entrepreneurs to adapt and create.

A post shared by Ratan Tata (@ratantata) on May 10, 2020 at 11:06pm PDT

Since being shared on Instagram this morning, Mr Tata's post has collected over 5.8 lakh 'likes' and over 3,000 comments. 

"Thank you, sir," wrote one person in the comments section. 

"Adapting and then finding new possibilities at this time is most important," said another. 

This is the first time that Mr Tata has spoken about the economy since the start of the COVID pandemic. In April, he had clarified that a post linking "huge downfall of economy" to coronavirus had been falsely attributed to him.