Masters Decoded

In today's episode, I invited Feroza Engineer. Feroza as a performance coach, she is driven by her lifelong mission of helping people create change that is scientific, realistic in achievement and that eventually helps them self - develop in the long run. You will usually hear Feroza say, “Everybody and anybody can coach themselves, they just need discovery and some tough-love”. A common thread that you will also observe from her coaching testimonials is that she’s personally invested in the coachee; making change easy and practical to achieve, systematically designing the coaching journey with specified outcomes and is relentless in her pursuit to help coachees be a better version of themselves.

Feroza is known in the industry as a learning leader who capitalizes on her 16 years of experience that has spanned across 130+ organizations, agnostic of industry, not only across India but US, China, Singapore, UAE, UK, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Her core areas of expertise lie in CXO Coaching and Development, Building Organizational Learning Architecture, Measuring Impact through Learning Analytics & Neuroscience based Self - Development. Whether in her personal or professional life, trust & relatability are important qualities that she has managed to build successfully. For Feroza, authenticity is key. Hailing from a family of engineers, becoming a 'fixer' comes very naturally to her! And it is this spirit of unapologetically owning who she is that allows her to build meaningful relationships.

She is an ICF certified coach. Currently on the finishing lines of PCC. She has coached 46 unique individuals in the last 5 years from CXOs to First time managers, Professors, Start-up founders, Tech wizards, Women Entrepreneurs, IAS officers to Pro-athletes and LGBTQI professionals. She has also designed and deployed coaching frameworks, coaching roadmaps and coaching curriculum during her stints with Dale Carnegie Training, Target and Jombay. This relevant and unique combination of having been on both sides of the table, business-facing and consulting makes her a coach who is rooted in business wisdom and realities of everyday life.

Her expertise areas in performance coaching are Personal Growth, Leadership Development, Team Leadership, Growth Mindset, Self Confidence, Emotional Intelligence, Learning Agility, Career Transitions, Emotional Fitness, Lifestyle Habit Formation, Public Speaking & Large group communications.

She curates personalised coaching experiences and her coaching “walks” are quite a hit! It could be a walk or a simple workout, a hobby session or a simple luncheon where the coaches feels at home and is able to relate to the coaching process from their worldview.

In the virtual world, these experiences get slightly tailored, yet it keeps the coachee at the centre of the entire journey. These curated 6 to 12 sessions of 1.5 hours each is what she prescribes for deep-rooted behavioural change as through every session, there is a clear outcome followed by “homework” in the practical sense for the coachee to discover.

An honours graduate in Psychology from St Xavier’s, Mumbai and University rank holder, Masters in Counselling Psychology Mumbai, Feroza has immersed her life’s work in behavioural sciences, neuroscience and performance coaching. She has also worked and served in a coaching capacity at Performanse, Franklin Covey for Trust Immersions, Bergerac Leadership Communications.

In today's episode I invited Ankeet Dave and Girish Nair. The episode is a very special one for me as both Access life, and the childhood cancer are special topics to me. What started as an idea over conversations has become a formidable force which has helped 500+ kids from all backgrounds. Workmates and friends Girish Nair and Ankeet Dave were 30 something professionals, well settled into a daily routine, peppered with the usual highs and lows. Their job at a leading public relations firm involved managing events and alliances for clients. One client’s desire to invite children from an NGO to an event became a defining moment in both Girish’ and Ankeet’s lives. They were bitten by the ‘do good’ bug! These two men joined forces with each other, multiplying their time and effort towards a good cause.

Girish and Ankeet began by volunteering to distribute fruit and vegetables at cancer wards in hospitals. Now, a visit to an adult cancer ward, where suffering is rife and lives hang in the balance, can disturb even the eternal optimist, but not this dynamic duo! That was until one day, they made a chance visit to the pediatric cancer ward. Nothing had prepared them for this. Children of all age groups were lying down on newspapers and rags in the corridors of the hospital. And they were being administered chemotherapy through chemo bags dangling from window sills. Girish and Ankeet were shaken to their core. “We tend to believe for some reason that cancer is primarily an adult ailment”, they opined. Explaining further they said, “Whether vices, genetics, or any other cause, it’s just easier to associate the big ‘C’ with those who have lived enough. But not children. It just isn’t something we visualize children being stricken with. Children usually get chicken pox or measles or the common cold. But not cancer! We just couldn’t come to terms with what we saw.”

The idea of Access Life home was thus born with the mission to provide shelter, nutrition, transportation, and counseling support to children with cancer. The morning of 14th June 2014 witnessed the first four families walking into the new Access Life home. 

A promising suggestion from a friend to rent an independent house in Chembur did not materialize, and despite the landlord halving the rent, it was still unaffordable. The large security deposit was an additional deterrent. Things weren’t looking up. This, however, was not the end of the road for Girish. He was unshakeable in his resolve to alleviate these children’s pain. Girish and his wife Hemalini had invested in their first apartment in Pune after they married. Desperately out of options, Girish proposed selling the apartment to fund the new centers, and Hemalini agreed without any hesitation. Eventually, he realized that it was crucial to find a more sustainable way to build Access Life, to ensure stability and lasting impact. However, the unquestioning and altruistic family support he received that kept Girish optimistically on the path, and this was instrumental in realizing the Access Life dream.

A journey that began with just two determined young men has now attracted recognition from hospitals, and the support of many who want to help in one way or another to proliferate Access Life’s positive impact on children and their families.

In today's episode, I invited Kaihan Krippendorff. Kaihan Krippendorff has committed to helping organizations and individuals thrive in today’s fast-paced disruptive technological change.

He began his career with McKinsey & Company before founding the growth strategy and innovation consulting firm Outthinker. His growth strategies and innovations have generated over $2.5B in revenue for many of the world’s most recognizable companies, including BNY Mellon, Citibank, L’Oréal, Microsoft, and Viacom. A best-selling author of five books, most recently the Edison Award-nominated,  Driving Innovation From Within: A Guide for Internal Entrepreneurs.

He is a member of the prestigious Thinkers50 radar group – A global selection of the top 30 management thinkers in the world to look out for. Thinkers50 also recognized Kaihan as one of the 8 most influential innovation thought leaders in the world, considering him for a Distinguished Achievement Award in Innovation – given to the person in the world that has contributed the most to the world’s understanding of innovation in the past two years. Kaihan is currently ranked the Thinkers360 #1 Global Innovation Thought Leader and the Thinkers360 #1 Global Business Strategy Thought Leader.

Kaihan also founded The Outthinker Strategy Network, a community comprised of strategy executives from the world’s top Fortune 500 and private companies that keeps him ahead of the pace of disruption and up to date on trends, threats, and opportunities across industries.

Amidst his dizzying schedule of keynote speeches, consulting projects, ongoing research, and writing, Kaihan still finds time to teach at business schools throughout the US and internationally. Regularly featured in major business media outlets, Kaihan is an advisory board member for a blockchain-powered transportation platform, an international food processing/exporting company, and a B-corporation focused on sustainable products and lifestyle.

He holds degrees from the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering, Wharton, Columbia, London Business Schools and a doctorate in strategy. With a mother from Bangladesh and a father from Germany, Kaihan brings a holistic, diverse, and global perspective to everything he does. His work has brought him to 58 countries all over the world. He speaks three languages and has lived or spent significant periods of time in Asia, Africa, Latin America, Europe, and the Pacific. He lives in Greenwich, Connecticut, with his wife and three children.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohammad Yunus has said, "Kaihan shows that with a compelling idea anyone can change the world." That message has made Kaihan one of the most sought-after speakers of business strategy, growth, and innovation.

In today's episode, I invited Bindu Bhatia. Bindu has spent the last 20 years in Leadership Development, Coaching, and driving talent & gender diversity agenda for clients across industry sectors and geographies.

An award-winning Learning Consultant, many of the learning interventions Bindu has designed and facilitated have won numerous awards

Leveraging her unique blended methodology of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and Emotional Intelligence, she runs powerful leadership development workshops & coaching programs.

Some of the companies she has coached and facilitated learning interventions for are Accenture, American Express, Schneider Electric, Simplotel, Dell – EMC, 24(7), Ceat, Ola, Flipkart, Walmart labs, Ariba SAP, etc.

Some of her flagship workshops are around Art of Storytelling, Presenting with Impact, Executive Presence, Gender Sensitivity, Women Leadership program, Relationship Management, Being a Consultant, Leading and Managing Change, Leading with Emotional Intelligence, Management Foundation, Managing Millennials etc.

Bindu holds a Master’s degree in Organizational Psychology, a Master Practitioner certificate in NLP, Diploma in Instructional Design, and a Diploma in Transactional Analysis.

Often called “Ms. Dependable” by her colleagues, Bindu has a knack for putting people at ease very quickly. And this, coupled with her ability to balance between having clarity of the big picture while being extremely meticulous with an eye-for-detail, has made her a facilitator/coach of choice for many of her clients.

In today's episode, I invited Dr. Raul Villamarin Rodriguez. Dr. Raul Villamarin Rodriguez is the Dean of the school of business at Woxsen University. He holds a Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Process Automation applications in Human Resources.

Fmr. CEO & HR Manager at Irians Research Institute, a research institute specialized in the field of neuromarketing, AI, ML, cybersecurity, market research, behavioral science (with focus on non-verbal communication), social research methods, and behavioral engineering. He has also collaborated in the organization of symposiums at several educational institutions including Oxford Brookes University, UK, and European Union-government bodies in Brussels, Belgium. 

He is a registered expert in Artificial intelligence, Intelligent Systems, and Multi-agent Systems at the European Commission and nominee for the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe 2020 list. Alongside this, he is a regular keynote speaker and panel moderator at various national and international conferences or summits. Additionally, he is a member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council, the Oxford Artificial Intelligence Society, embedded in the University of Oxford, and the Institute for Robotics Process Automation & Artificial Intelligence.

He has co-authored two reference books: "New Age Leadership: A Critical Insight" and "Retail Stores" and has more than 70 publications to his credit. He is a weekly contributing writer to various magazines in the field of analytics and emerging technologies. Alongside this, he is a journal reviewer and associate editor in various publications such as IEEE.

I really enjoyed the conversation with Prahlad Kakar, and there were many interesting and funny conversations we had before and post the recording of the actual Podcast. Hence I decided to release the version of the behind the scenes.

PK is a renowned Ad-Film Director and founder of, Genesis Film Production, one of India's oldest and foremost ad-film production houses since its inception in 1977. With Genesis Film Production, Prahlad virtually invented a genre of television advertising in India in the years that followed. He has ruled the advertising world with his brand of irreverent humor, memorable brand building campaigns and has created award-winning commercials for the most reputed corporates and agencies in India and the Asia Pacific region. After having assisted renowned feature filmmaker, Mr. Shyam Benegal he moved onto advertising films. 'To tell a story in 30 seconds in the most engaging way possible' remains Prahlad's reason for his continued passion for ad filmmaking, even three decades later. Known as the 'Ad Guru' he has been instrumental in changing the face of advertising in our country, bringing in the appropriate 'regional Indianness' and values into an urban context through his films, creative workshops, articles, and interviews. He has helped create memorable campaigns for brands like Pepsi - 'Yehi Hai Right Choice Baby, Aha!'; Gold spot - 'The Zing Thing'; Maggi - '2 Minutes!'; Britannia - 'Ting Ting Ti Ting'; Limca - 'Zor ka Jhatka Dheere Se Lage' and Maggi Sauces ‘It's Different’ amongst others.

Prahlad's passions include his Scuba Diving School, Lacadives, operational in Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and his own brand of the gourmet cooking restaurant. A staunch believer of living large, Prahlad Kakar has given shape to his myriad interests and effectively converted many into profitable ventures. His passion for food and people has proved instrumental in his association with a variety of restaurants, enabling him to introduce diverse tastes and styles of dining to the city of Mumbai.

He is also a man with a social conscience. He is the co-founder member of Reef Watch Marine Conservation, which is involved in creating marine awareness, education, scientific research and documentation. Both Prahlad and his wife Mitali, are certified scuba diving instructors, successfully heading 'Lacadives', the premier scuba diving school in the Kadmat and Bangaram Islands of Lakshadweep and presently in Wandoor in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

After years of planning to venture into education, Prahlad along with his partners - Pratish Nair, Mitali Kakar, Reah Irani, and Priya Menon launched PKSBE in 2016, to take their cumulative experience in the fields of Branding, Marketing Communication, Education, Logistics, Corporate Training forward and to mentor, train and groom young budding entrepreneurs and help them set up their businesses.

In today's episode, I invited Prahlad Kakkar (PK). PK is a renowned Ad-Film Director and founder of, Genesis Film Production, one of India's oldest and foremost ad-film production houses since its inception in 1977. With Genesis Film Production, Prahlad virtually invented a genre of television advertising in India in the years that followed. He has ruled the advertising world with his brand of irreverent humor, memorable brand building campaigns and has created award-winning commercials for the most reputed corporates and agencies in India and the Asia Pacific region. After having assisted renowned feature filmmaker, Mr. Shyam Benegal he moved onto advertising films. 'To tell a story in 30 seconds in the most engaging way possible' remains Prahlad's reason for his continued passion for ad filmmaking, even three decades later. Known as the 'Ad Guru' he has been instrumental in changing the face of advertising in our country, bringing in the appropriate 'regional Indianness' and values into an urban context through his films, creative workshops, articles, and interviews. He has helped create memorable campaigns for brands like Pepsi - 'Yehi Hai Right Choice Baby, Aha!'; Gold spot - 'The Zing Thing'; Maggi - '2 Minutes!'; Britannia - 'Ting Ting Ti Ting'; Limca - 'Zor ka Jhatka Dheere Se Lage' and Maggi Sauces ‘It's Different’ amongst others.

Prahlad's passions include his Scuba Diving School, Lacadives, operational in Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and his own brand of the gourmet cooking restaurant. A staunch believer of living large, Prahlad Kakar has given shape to his myriad interests and effectively converted many into profitable ventures. His passion for food and people has proved instrumental in his association with a variety of restaurants, enabling him to introduce diverse tastes and styles of dining to the city of Mumbai.

He is also a man with a social conscience. He is the co-founder member of Reef Watch Marine Conservation, which is involved in creating marine awareness, education, scientific research and documentation. Both Prahlad and his wife Mitali, are certified scuba diving instructors, successfully heading 'Lacadives', the premier scuba diving school in the Kadmat and Bangaram Islands of Lakshadweep and presently in Wandoor in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

After years of planning to venture into education, Prahlad along with his partners - Pratish Nair, Mitali Kakar, Reah Irani, and Priya Menon launched PKSBE in 2016, to take their cumulative experience in the fields of Branding, Marketing Communication, Education, Logistics, Corporate Training forward and to mentor, train and groom young budding entrepreneurs and help them set up their businesses.

In today's episode I invited Pallavi Naidu. Having spent a decade in Singapore only to be drawn back to India to follow her passion - Entrepreneurship. She founded Alcohowl, a social platform on drinks; and then moved on to creating a complete digital ecosystem for alco-beverages including Asia’s premier magazine on spirits, cocktails, nightlife and experiences, ALCOBUZZ.

She did her MBA from SP Jain - School of Global Management in Singapore, followed by Organisational Leadership at Harvard Business School. She has worked with top advertising agencies in Singapore including Ogilvy & Mather and Leo Burnett. Although she loved handling high impact campaigns and award winning work, when the entrepreneurial bug bit her, she was ‘shaken AND stirred’ to channel her energy into building these companies.

Pallavi has travelled the world in search of good food, often paired with an equally good drink, if not better. With all these varied inspirations, she was drawn to digital storytelling , using her various platforms. Alcobuzz magazine  now considered as one of the finest digital publications in the alco-bev space. She also runs a content production platform Studio Buzz, a digital consultancy - Paraphrase , a Not-for-profit initiative called None for the Road, that promotes responsible drinking and in her free time she is an influencer/ content creator through her instagram profile @pall.naidu wherein she regularly reviews and publishes opinion pieces on various beverages.

Find more about Alcobuzz on - http://www.alcobuzz.com

Find out more about Para-Phrase - http://www.para-phrase.com

More about Pallavi's programs - https://pallavinaidu.com

In today's episode, I invite Meenu Agarwal, a clinical Dietitian in private practice in Singapore & advise clients globally on health and Nutrition. Meenu holds a Master's degree in Dietetics and Food Service Management. She also has a certificate in Nutrition and Child care, apart from graduation in Science. Her specialty is in advising clients on Weight Management, medical conditions like diabetes, cancer, acidity, arthritis, Pcod, IBS, Nutrition during pregnancy ( Post and Pre), menopause, Children Nutrition, sports nutrition, and how one can improve player performance by using Nutrition as a tool.

Meenu has her practice for the last five years and served more than 2000 clients worldwide. Before being a nutritionist, she has also taught students Mathematics and Science in Ho Chi Minh City and India and worked as a web designer before that.

She is very passionate about wholesome Nutrition and women's health, and without much further ado, let me get on with it.

You can visit her website - http://www.foodnwellness.com for more insights on her practice and to reach out to her.

In today's episode I invite Saket Sethi. Saket Sethi is the Founder and Principal of Archilogics in Mumbai and Barcelona - a collective of avant-garde designers redefining contextual future living from a historical perspective for an international audience.

He has the rare distinction of being the only Indian Architect hosting two TV shows simultaneously; disseminating the latest on Indian design with NDTV GoodTimes “Luxe Interiors” and a celebrity design chat show with a makeover for Fox Life’s “Design HQ” Season 2.

Saket has a Bachelor of Architecture from Woodbury University, LA; studied Digital Design at UC Berkeley and Interior Design at NYU. He interned with Eric Owen Moss, Frederick Gibson and KMD Architects before establishing Archilogics. He was recognised as ‘Avant Garde Architect of the Year’ by Good Homes Magazine in 2016.

Saket engages in various teaching activities and has been featured in leading design magazines like AD & Elle Decor and also writes for the largest Indian newspapers including the Times and HT group. He was invited by the Spanish Government to be a guest at the opening of the Spanish Pavilion at La Biennale 2018 in Venezia and is writing an article for his pick of Top Pavilions at the Biennale for Elle Decor India.