Strategy Bites

Joining us is the brilliant Rushika Handa who has an impressive 13+ years of experience working with top-tier consulting firms like McKinsey & Company and BCG. She’s a wizard when it comes to strategy, product, organisational design, and so much more. From startups and venture incubation to digital strategy and building high-performing teams, Rushika has done it all. In this episode, she'll be sharing her insights on how management consultants can leverage AI to supercharge their work. Whether it's go-to-market strategies, innovation, or organisational agility, Rushika’s got you covered. So, grab your notebooks and get ready for some game-changing advice! Notes: Management Consulting Intensive Mentorship Program - https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/brochure.growthschool.io/MCP%20Brochure%20Updated.pdf AI for Consultants Mini-Workshop - https://course.growthschool.io/ai-for-consultants-aus Generative AI Mastery program -  https://home.growthschool.io/industry/generative-ai#Nav-Scroll

Join us for an insightful conversation with Danielle Handley, the Chief Customer and Transformation Officer at Bupa. With a wealth of experience in driving customer-centric transformation, Danielle shares her journey, strategies, and the challenges she has faced in the ever-evolving healthcare and insurance industry. Tune in to gain valuable insights and practical advice from a leader at the forefront of customer and organisational transformation.

With over a decade of experience as a consultant at Deloitte and now serving as the Chief Business Operations and Strategy Officer at Xero, Angad Soin brings a wealth of knowledge to this episode. Angad delves into how he rose from Analyst to Partner, honing his expertise in business operations and strategy. He gives some great advice on how a strategy consultant should think about their careers, when to leave management consulting, and how to transition from consulting to industry.  Angad joined Xero as the Executive General Manager and is now currently the Chief Business Operations and Strategy Officer, where he continues to drive strategic excellence and innovation.

Rosanna Leddy, a self-confessed gender equality advocate, is the Founder of MBBW – a global private member community for professionals from top-tier consulting firms. Roseanna is a McKinsey Alumna who has held senior roles in the Champions of Change Collision, a global community of 250+ CEOs who implement innovative initiatives on gender equality in their organisations and drive national conversations for societal change. More recently she has been a member of 2X Global.   For applications to MBBW, go to https://www.mbbwomen.com/

Leah Balter has most recently been the Chief Transformation Officer and CIO at Bunnings. Having worked her way up through McKinsey to Associate Principal level, Leah left McKinsey to pursue a career in Industry when she became pregnant.   Leah talks about her journey, being a mum of 4 whilst holding down a C-Suite role, and she gives her best advice to the community from whence she came on how to think about their careers in Strategy and beyond.

Olya Rudenko is currently the CEO of Cars24. Born and raised in Russia, she vowed to make a better life for herself in Australia. Olya is a McKinsey Alumni with Private Equity background prior to joining Management Consulting and has now led teams in multiple tech firms across Australia. She talks about how to navigate your career should you want to go through the tech and startup space. 

Mailys Pauletto, ex Roland Berger consultant, has purposefully designed her current lifestyle and currently, she has a dual career. Mailys is a contract or interim Strategy consultant which allows her to also follow her passion as a holistic breathwork coach and yogi, running retreats and classes to teach others about her practice. Mailys talks to me about the pros and cons of being a contract management consultant vs having a corporate career or career in management consulting, as she has now experienced all three pathways.   Website (Mailys' events page) https://www.mailyspauletto.com/   Instagram https://www.instagram.com/maypauletto/   Podcast: https://www.oneyoufeed.net/connecting-to-what-matters/

Wendy is a Managing Director of Pollination and she was previously a Managing Director and Partner in BCG's Sydney office.  At BCG, Wendy worked in Financial Services & Insurance and also led BCG's Social Impact, Climate and Sustainability work in Australia and New Zealand.  Wendy talks to me about working in ESG and what types of projects she was doing at BCG and now at Pollination. She has always been passionate about working on Social Impact, Climate and Sustainability projects and gives some great advice to other consultants wanting to focus their careers in this space.

Aliza Knox was the first Female partner at BCG in Asia and has been dubbed a “kick-ass woman slaying the world of tech”. Aliza was also listed as a Top 100 Women in Tech (Singapore, 2021), has been named the IT Woman of the Year (Asia, 2020), honored as the AWA Singapore International Business Woman of the Year (2015), elected to Chief Executive Women (Australia, 2016) and featured in the book Women on Board—Making a Real Difference. Aliza speaks to me about her amazing career journey from BCG to Tech and now to her roles on multiple boards. We talk about mentorship, women in leadership, having a career whilst having a family, and Aliza gives some amazing advice to other up and coming, driven consultants. Aliza is also a best selling Author and her book “ Don’t quit your day job” was written as a way to mentor the masses.   Link to book : https://www.amazon.com.au/Dont-Quit-Your-Day-Job/dp/0730396592 Link to Aliza’s book recommendation : Radical Candor by Kim Scott https://www.amazon.com.au/Radical-Candor-Revised-Updated-Saying/dp/1529038340/ref=sr_1_1?crid=19E46FX6XOQP7&keywords=radical+candor+by+kim+scott&qid=1693784068&s=books&sprefix=radical+candor%2Cstripbooks%2C312&sr=1-1

In this engaging conversation, Anna Podolsky, CEO and founder of Lyka, shares her inspiring journey from Bain consultant to pet food entrepreneur. She discusses the challenges of rapidly scaling a startup and the importance of customer feedback in achieving success. Anna reflects on her commitment to pet nutrition, revealing the impact of high-quality ingredients. She also touches on the critical mindset shift needed for entrepreneurship and shares heartwarming stories about the positive transformations in pet health thanks to her products.