Go Broke or Be a Hero: Dhruv Gupta on Betting His Career on Turnarounds
50 min
In this episode of Strategy Bites, Anika Stokes sits down with Dhruv, whose career has taken him from BCG to PBL, Macquarie, Fairfax Media, Sydney Airport and, most recently, Healthscope as Chief Commercial Officer. Dhruv shares how he chose BCG over McKinsey, how he found out about his Fairfax role from his boss at Macquarie, and why he sees change and distress as opportunity. He also talks candidly about leading through COVID at Sydney Airport, keeping teams and suppliers steady while Healthscope’s parent company was in receivership, and the values that guided his biggest decisions. In this episode he talks about: Why he picked BCG over McKinsey (hint: jet skis and pizza)The consulting habit he still uses every weekKnowing when “good enough” information is enough to make a callThe day his Macquarie boss asked, “When were you going to tell me?”Avoiding being pigeonholed: selling capability over industry experienceLeading Healthscope through receivership with honesty and transparencyPrivate Equity versus public ownership: what really changesHis advice for consultants making their first move out of consultingAnd much more! If this episode has helped you think about your career, share it with someone who’s at their own crossroads. Follow Strategy Bites for more conversations with leaders in strategy and transformation.
