

10X Growth Strategies
Preethy Padmanabhan
The 10X podcast features leadership interviews, growth strategies and key takeaways from business and self-development books. The podcast is hosted by Preethy Padmanabhan (@preepadu). Listen and gain insights to drive 10X growth in your career, business and life.
Tweet @preepadu with your comments on books or leaders you recommend to be featured in the podcast. Credits- Kavya Sethu
Tweet @preepadu with your comments on books or leaders you recommend to be featured in the podcast. Credits- Kavya Sethu
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 22, 2025 • 46min
E110: From Hype to Reality – What’s Hot (and What’s Not) in Agentic AI
In this episode, Wen Sang (Co-Founder & COO, GenSpark.ai), Christian Jester (Partner & TMT Markets Leader, PwC), and Jason Hirsch (Partner & Head of AI, Digital Platforms & Emerging Technologies Practice, Nixon Peabody) join the 10X Strategies Podcast to decode the evolving landscape of Agentic AI — what’s hot, what’s not. The panel explores how AI is reshaping work and productivity, how enterprises are navigating adoption at scale, and the legal and ethical implications of this rapid evolution. They discuss real-world use cases, sustainable business models, the no-moat reality of AI, and why open-source innovation might define the next phase of the AI revolution. ⸻
⏱️ Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:45 Meet the Panel: Wen Sang, Christian Jester, and Jason Hirsch
02:20 What’s Hot in AI — New Use Cases and The Future of Work
05:00 Empowering Knowledge Workers through AI Agents 08:15 Enterprise AI Adoption and The Governance Challenge
11:20 Legal Risks and AI Whitewashing — When Hype Becomes Hazard
15:00 Differentiation in a No-Moat World — Finding Real Value
18:30 The GenSpark Story — Building AI for Knowledge Workers
21:00 Sustainable Business Models in the AI Ecosystem
25:10 Authenticity, Self-Awareness and Investor Confidence
28:30 Governance, Security and Data Integrity in Practice
31:20 What’s Not Hot — Pitfalls, Liabilities and Legal Oversights
35:00 Licensing AI — Who Owns the Risk When Things Go Wrong?
38:30 Challenges for Founders — Regulation and General Counsel Gaps
41:15 Open-Source AI and The Thousand-Model Future
43:30 Audience Q&A and Closing Reflections

Oct 9, 2025 • 29min
E109: From Knowledge to Wisdom – Life Lessons from Siddhartha with Ashish
In this episode, Madhavi Ravanan, Engineering Leader at Nokia, interviews Ashish Agrawal, Managing Director at Nagarro. Ashish reflects on Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha — exploring themes of wisdom, balance, and letting go. He shares how the book has influenced his personal and professional life, discussing the power of experience over knowledge, the meaning of parenthood, and the idea that true peace comes when we stop searching and start living.
00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
01:00 Driving Non-Linear Growth at Nagarro
01:45 The Habit of Reading
03:30 Why Siddhartha?
05:45 The Message of Letting Go
08:15 Learning Through Experience, Not Knowledge
11:00 Parenting and the Circle of Life
13:45 Balance Over Extremes
16:30 Soft Is Stronger Than Hard
20:00 Truth Has Two Sides
23:00 The Inward Journey
25:30 Let Life Happen to You
28:30 Closing Thoughts and Reflections

Sep 18, 2025 • 36min
E108 : Pitch Your Potential - Winning Competitive Opportunities with Vicki Johnson
In this episode of 10x Growth Strategies, host Preethy Padmanabhan speaks with Vicki Johnson — founder of ProFellow and author of Pitch Your Potential. Vicki shares her proven Match Me formula, a powerful framework for winning competitive jobs, fellowships, awards, and elite opportunities. She opens up about her personal journey, from breaking into top schools to securing globally competitive fellowships, and reveals how anyone can leverage storytelling, clarity of mission, and future-focused narratives to stand out. The conversation covers overcoming mindset challenges, avoiding common mistakes, mastering memorable pitches, and using networks effectively. Vicki also provides insights into her upcoming book, exclusive preorder bonuses, and why pitching your future potential is more powerful than your past accomplishments. This episode is packed with actionable advice for students, professionals, entrepreneurs, and anyone looking to win in highly competitive environments. ⸻
Chapters
00:00 Introduction & Guest Welcome
00:46 Meet Vicki Johnson & ProFellow
01:32 Hidden Opportunities & Human-Centered Strategies
03:13 Early Life & Breaking into Top Schools
04:20 Storytelling to Win Cornell & Fellowships
05:44 Why Future Potential Matters More Than the Past
06:01 The Match Me Formula Explained (7 Elements)
08:35 Matching Mission & Defining Your Goals
09:14 Mindset Challenges: Fear, Comparison & Gatekeepers
13:28 Overcoming Negativity & Finding Supportive Voices
14:20 Defining Goals & Personal Mission for Social Impact
16:07 Midlife Crisis & Reinventing Career Paths
18:03 Common Mistakes in Applications & Researching Missions
20:11 Importance of Future-Focused Applications
21:18 Crafting Memorable Pitches & Elevator Stories
22:30 Networking, Referrals & The Power of LinkedIn
24:22 Storytelling with Anecdotes & Emotional Connection
26:21 Structuring Your Application Story (Past, Future & Selectors)
29:42 Building Confidence Through Future Vision
31:12 Success Story: From Shark Tank to Y Combinator
33:28 Book Release, Preorder Bonuses & ProFellow Platform
35:23 Final Advice: Be a Storyteller of the Future
36:06 Closing Remarks

Sep 3, 2025 • 38min
E107 - The Secret to Building AI-Native Startups
🚀 What does it take to build a truly AI-native startup? In this episode of the 10X Growth Strategies Podcast, host Preethy Padmanabhan speaks with three visionary founders who are redefining the future of enterprise AI:
• Kapil Chhabra – Co-Founder & CPO, WisdomAI
• Wen Sang – Co-Founder & COO, Genspark.ai
• Leila R. Golchehreh – Co-Founder & CSO, Relaynce AI
From hyper-growth journeys to ransomware recovery stories, they share insider lessons on scaling AI-native companies, navigating enterprise adoption, embedding governance and compliance, and why solving your own pain point often leads to the best products. If you’re an entrepreneur, investor, or AI enthusiast, this episode is packed with insights you can’t afford to miss.
⏱ Chapters 00:00 – Introduction by Host Preethy Padmanabhan
00:27 – Kapil Chhabra introduces WisdomAI
00:49 – Wen Sang introduces Genspark.ai
01:00 – Leila Golchehreh introduces Relaynce AI
01:52 – Why Leila started Relaynce AI
03:23 – Wen: AI promotes knowledge workers, not replaces them
04:47 – Kapil: The genesis of WisdomAI and BI tool gaps
06:38 – Enterprise adoption challenges & early demand (Kapil)
07:59 – Leila: From prototype to enterprise-ready product
09:20 – What does “AI-native” really mean? (Kapil)
11:53 – Wen: How AI changed his workflow (“throw it at AI first”)
14:40 – Leila: Balancing innovation with compliance and governance
16:53 – Kapil: Governance must be designed from the start
19:12 – Wen: Real estate client story & compliance lessons
20:46 – Leila: Ransomware recovery customer story
22:14 – Kapil: Cisco case study – saving 2800+ hours
25:02 – Founders’ advice to entrepreneurs
28:06 – Leila: Due diligence on VCs and co-founders
30:39 – Kapil: Pricing experiments – outcome vs usage vs seats
33:15 – Competing with Oracle & big tech in AI
35:34 – Build vs Buy: When to integrate vs build in-house
37:01 – Final takeaways from each founder

Aug 20, 2025 • 33min
E106 - Inside Gig: An HR’s Best Kept Secret
In this episode of the 10X Growth Strategies podcast, host Saradha interviews Dr. Edie Goldberg, a renowned talent management expert and co-author of 'The Inside Gig.' With over 20 years of experience in industrial organizational psychology, Dr. Goldberg discusses how companies can unlock untapped talent within their existing workforce. The conversation explores how the concept of 'inside gigs' can transform traditional job postings into dynamic, project-based opportunities. The episode underscores the evolving landscape of work, especially in light of remote work and technological advancements, advocating for a flexible and skills-based approach to talent management.
Topics:
00:00 Introduction
00:13 Meet Dr. Edie Goldberg: Talent Management Expert
00:55 The Concept of the Inside Gig
03:46 Implementing the Inside Gig in Organizations
10:56 Real-World Success Stories
16:01 Overcoming Challenges in Talent Mobility
23:51 Future of Internal Talent Mobility
26:26 Actionable Steps for HR Leaders
32:35 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Aug 6, 2025 • 36min
E105 : Investing in AI - Insights from Venture Capitalists
In this episode, Preethy, interviews Anupam, the managing partner and co-founder of Emergent Ventures. Anupam shares his firm's focus on pre-seed and seed-stage investments in enterprise AI, highlighting their strategy against market trends and founder qualities they seek. The discussion delves into the hype versus reality of AI, the importance of orchestration in enterprise applications, and the promising future of various AI-driven sectors. Additionally, the conversation covers due diligence, red flags, and the evolving venture capital landscape amid market corrections. Anupam offers practical advice on raising capital, emphasizes the role of human elements in investment decisions, and reveals the firm's thorough approach to identifying the next big opportunities in AI.
00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:36 Emergent Ventures and Enterprise AI
02:02 The Hype and Reality of Agent AI
05:57 Selecting the Right Entrepreneurs
11:38 Current State of Venture Capital
16:00 Audience Q&A
22:09 Closing Remarks and Final Thoughts

Jul 24, 2025 • 32min
E104 - Nut Job by Sonia Hunt
The podcast features Saradha Sriram, host of *10X Growth Strategies*, interviewing Sonia Hunt, Co-Founder & CEO at Zentāra Ventures | #1 Best-Selling Author | Global Wellness Speaker
Sonia Hunt, author of the transformative book "Nut Job" and a globally recognized speaker who's helping leaders worldwide unlock peak performance through health and wellness strategies.
In this episode of the 10 X Growth Strategies podcast, host Shahara interviews Sonya Hunt, an author and globally recognized speaker, who shares her transformative journey from a childhood fraught with severe food allergies to becoming a wellness authority. Sonya discusses her early diagnosis, the challenges she faced, and the holistic, integrative healthcare approach that led to her eventual remission. She details the development of her 3-2-B method (Be Safe, Be Healthy, Be Well), and talks about the significant role of gut health in her recovery. This conversation highlights the importance of a comprehensive wellness strategy that encompasses physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health, aiming to inspire others facing similar challenges.
00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:38 Sonya's Early Life and Health Challenges
04:18 The Turning Point: 2008 Anaphylaxis Incident
07:30 Developing the 3-2-B Method
10:13 Holistic Health and Healing Journey
18:52 Achieving Remission and Medical Miracles
27:04 Thriving Beyond Allergies
31:18 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Jul 10, 2025 • 32min
E103 - Inflate your chance for success
This episode features our host Preethy Padmanabhan in conversation with Matthew E. Polimeno, the author of the book Inflate your chance for success and the foreword contributor Praveen Sahay, Managing Director, WAVE Equity Partners
Inflate Your Chances for Success is a practical handbook aimed at startups and entrepreneurs, authored by Matthew E. Polimeno, an experienced operating partner and expert in operational excellence. This book serves as a comprehensive guide to navigating the due diligence process during fundraising and positioning startups for long-term success.
Chapters of the conversation -
- Introduction
00:06 Highlights from career journey
05:30 What you don’t know you don’t know
- Key takeaways for startup fund raising
7:30 The purpose of due diligence
11:30 Startup survival to scale
16:30 Mentoring for startup leaders
- Setting up for success
18:30 Thinking outside-in
19:00 Examples of successful startups
28:30 Final Insights

Jun 25, 2025 • 30min
E102 - The Body Keeps the Score: Brain Mind and Body in the healing of trauma by Bessel Van Der Kolk
The podcast features Saradha Sriram, host of 10X Growth Strategies, interviewing Vlad Moskovski , CEO | Executive Coach and Culture Designer
Vlad Moskovski transforms conscious leaders into visionary architects of growth as their organizations evolve and transform. A 3x founder and leadership development expert with 15+ years of experience, he uniquely blends hands-on operational expertise with deep psychological insight through both coaching and strategic consulting.
- Taking a holistic approach, Vlad works simultaneously at three levels:
- The leader's mindset, executive presence, somatic & emotional intelligence
- The leadership team's alignment and collective effectiveness
- The organization's systems, culture, and strategic execution
His frameworks have empowered 30+ organizations through programs like The Circulars Accelerator, Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship, Alchemist Accelerator, and HAAS Business School
Topics:
00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:43 Discovering 'The Body Keeps the Score'
01:47 Trauma's Impact on Leadership
06:10 Somatic Awareness in Coaching
12:41 Psychological Safety in Teams
19:47 Navigating Vulnerability in Leadership
25:46 Practical Advice for Emerging Leaders
28:43 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Jun 11, 2025 • 28min
E101 - Pause with Author Rachael O’Meara
The podcast features Arthi Vijayaraghavan, host of *10X Growth Strategies*, interviewing Ms.Rachael O’Meara author of the book “pause”. The book Pause: Harnessing the Life-Changing Power of Giving Yourself a Break by Rachael O’Meara is about the transformative value of intentionally stepping back—pausing—to reflect, realign, and reset your personal and professional life.
“A pause is not just time off. It’s time in. It’s your opportunity to reflect, regroup, and rediscover what really matters.” – Rachael O’Meara
Topics:
00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction
01:55 Rachel O'Mara's Journey to Discovering the Power of Pause
07:21 The Importance of Emotional Intelligence
10:38 Practical Tips for Implementing Pauses
20:04 Emotional Intelligence and Leadership
25:01 Free Resources and Conclusion


