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Software People Stories

Software People Stories

By: PM Power Consulting
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Stories of what worked and sometimes what did not, in the course of discovering, designing, developing and delivering software based solutions – as shared by practitioners who went through these situations.

Copyright 2020 PM Power Consulting Career Success Economics
Episodes
  • From Banking to Boardrooms with Rupam Tandon

    From Banking to Boardrooms with Rupam Tandon
    Nov 22 2025
    Gayatri Kalyanaraman is in conversation with Rupam Tandon, Financial Executive with 30 years of experience across banking, asset management, and insurance. She’s also a certified Independent Director (IoD), ESG specialist, and startup mentor. She talks about her journey starting in a small town to traveling the globe and literally spreading her wings. Gayatri Kalyanaraman, Host for Software People Stories podcast and co-founder Sangatna Angels welcomes Rupam Tandon and sets the tone for an inspiring conversation about leadership, resilience, and governance. Highlights of the conversation are here01:00 – Early Career and Foundations in FinanceRupam shares her beginnings in Dubai’s financial industry during the 1990s — a period of rapid banking expansion — and lessons on trust, relationships, and financial discipline.03:00 – London Years & the Global Financial Crisis She moves to London to work with asset managers and hedge funds, witnessing firsthand the subprime crisis and collapse of major institutions like Lehman Brothers and AIG.07:00 – Return to India & Setting Up Global Operations Rupam explains her decision to return to India for family reasons and how she helped transition a major bank’s operations from Ireland to Bangalore — navigating SEC and FCA audits successfully.10:00 – The Shift to Insurance and Building Communities She discusses moving from investment banking to insurance, leading initiatives in Risk, ESG, and Cyber, and mentoring senior executives.13:00 – Reflections on Technology & Automation From manual processes to automation and bots — Rupam contrasts the early years of finance with today’s data-driven governance and the rise of straight-through processing (STP).16:00 – Navigating Change and Cultural Adaptation Growing up in Lucknow and moving across continents, Rupam reflects on adapting to different work cultures, continuous learning, and seizing opportunities.20:00 – Decision-Making and Balancing Life & Work Rupam shares personal stories about taking career risks, balancing motherhood, and receiving mentorship and compassion from colleagues during turbulent times.24:00 – Continuous Learning & Board Readiness She outlines her professional upskilling journey — courses from ISB, IIM Bangalore, and IoD — and her belief in lifelong learning as a foundation for effective governance.27:00 – Second Innings: Purpose and Governance for the Future Rupam shares her vision for the next decade — mentoring startups, strengthening governance frameworks, and shaping ethical, transparent organizations. Memorable Quotes:“Success without ethics is incomplete.”“Governance isn’t about control — it’s about responsibility.” “It’s time for stewardship — to give back, guide, and help the next generation grow with integrity.”“Even the strongest institutions can collapse if governance, risk, and culture are not aligned.”https://www.linkedin.com/in/rupam-tandon/After nearly three decades of experience across industries and markets, She is now embarking on my second innings with a focus on startup governance and scaleups. Her journey has been a diverse one, spanning Global roles (in UAE & UK, India) in business strategy, branding, communications, and stakeholder engagement. She is passionate about helping companies build strong, sustainable foundations for growth. As an alumnus of Lucknow University and the Indian School of Business (ISB), where she specialized in Negotiation as part of an Executive Management Program, I’ve honed my ability to adapt and thrive in fast-moving, high-pressure environments.My Core Strengths:- Strategic Oversight: Managing boards/foundations and aligning teams with business goals- Business Model Innovation: Identifying opportunities at the intersection of strategy, branding, product development, and customer experience- Start up consulting , Fintech, Finance based business.- Reputation Building: Creating narratives that enhance corporate reputation and build trust- Communications Strategy: Developing integrated communication plans to engage stakeholders and drive impact- Mentorship & Coaching: Supporting founders, leaders, and teams to grow through personalized guidance and coaching- Crisis Communications: Navigating through challenges to protect and strengthen brand reputation- Networking & Ecosystem Building: Cultivating strategic partnerships and growing influential networks- CSR & Sustainability: Defining and driving impactful corporate social responsibility initiativesRupam Tandon is a certified board director and former investment banker with expertise in governance, risk, and sustainability. She advises startups and SMEs on ethical leadership and board resilience, teaches ESG and stakeholder strategy to executives, and mentors emerging leaders. She advocates for policy-led reforms in India’s entrepreneurial governance landscape.
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    35 mins
  • Bridging Engineering and Marketing with Mike Maynard

    Bridging Engineering and Marketing with Mike Maynard
    Nov 15 2025

    In this episode, Shiv is in conversation with Mike Maynard, the Managing Director/CEO of the Napier Group, a PR firm.


    Mike shares his unconventional career journey from electronics engineering to marketing and recounts his initial interest in mathematics and eventual pivot to electronics engineering, sparked by a school project.


    Despite enjoying engineering, he realized his strengths lay in explaining technical details rather than executing them, leading him to roles in technical support and eventually to marketing.


    Mike discusses the lack of planning in his career and how opportunistic decisions led him to buy a tech agency just before the dot-com crash in 2001.


    He elaborates on the challenges and importance of bridging the empathy gap between engineers and marketers, emphasizing communication as a crucial factor.


    The episode also explores the impact of regulatory processes on hardware companies, the importance of diligent marketing in the age of AI, and the evolving landscape of B2B podcasts.


    Mike wraps up by offering career tips for those transitioning to marketing, underscoring the value of data analysis skills over traditional creative skills.


    00:00 Introduction and Welcome

    00:27 Mike's Journey into Technology

    01:54 Transition to Marketing

    04:22 Challenges in Marketing and Engineering

    09:00 Bridging the Gap Between Teams

    13:27 Handling Hardware and Software Delays

    18:56 Lean Approaches and Reputation Management

    21:45 The Hype and Reality of Tech Products

    22:10 The Silicon Valley and Bangalore Comparison

    23:07 The Importance of Perseverance for Founders

    24:51 Product-Led Development vs. Marketing

    27:11 The Role of Gen AI in Marketing

    34:20 The Future of Podcasting in B2B Marketing

    38:47 Career Tips for Aspiring Marketers

    42:31 Conclusion and Final Thoughts


    Note – above timings are approximate; exact timing may be off by a minute or so


    https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikemaynard/
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    46 mins
  • Exploring Science and Technology Synergy with Prasad Chodavarapu

    Exploring Science and Technology Synergy with Prasad Chodavarapu
    Nov 7 2025

    In this episode, Shiv is in conversation with Prasad Chodavarapu, Co-Founder & Managing Director at Aganitha.ai


    In this conversation, Prasad, a tech veteran turned bio-pharma enthusiast, discusses his unique career trajectory from software development to founding a startup in the life sciences space. Prasad shares his journey, starting from his early days in tech during the nascent stages of the internet in the mid-90s, working in startups, and his transition to a large enterprise consulting role.

    The conversation dives into the challenges and learnings from shifting into the bio-pharma industry, the impact of AI in this space, the complexities of scientific data, and the nuances of interdisciplinary collaboration.

    Prasad also offers valuable career advice for newcomers and those experiencing a mid-career crisis, emphasizing the importance of combining disciplines and lifelong learning.

    We wrap up with personal insights on how Prasad maintains balance in his life through music and family support.


    00:00 Introduction and Welcome

    00:54 Career Beginnings in Software and Technology

    04:04 Transition to Life Sciences and Biotech

    07:25 Challenges and Innovations in Scientific Computing

    09:51 The Role of AI and Data in Modern Science

    16:29 Preserving and Digitizing Knowledge Systems

    19:42 Startup Journey and Entrepreneurial Insights

    24:17 Scientific Collaboration and Practical Applications

    32:42 Modeling and Prediction Cycles

    33:37 Validating Predictions in the Lab

    33:42 Solving Customer Problems with Algorithms

    35:33 Understanding the Drug Development Value Chain

    37:41 Challenges in Clinical Trials

    40:06 The Impact of AI on Science and Technology

    45:19 Career Advice for Life Sciences and Computing

    51:18 Personal Techniques for Managing Uncertainty


    Prasad Chodavarapu is a hands-on tech business exec with 25+ years of exp. in growing tech businesses from start-up stage to a billion-dollar scale

    His expertise and track record is in building multi-disciplinary teams

    He is a published author, with patents in Data and Process engineering

    He is a Co-Founder & Managing Director at Aganitha.ai

    His interests include: Deep Science (Comp Bio & Quantum Chem) + Deep Tech (AI/ML, LLMs, Data, Cloud) for accelerating R&D at global BioPharma, Re-imagining with Agentic & Generative AI, every process & app in disease studies, therapeutic design & dev, synthesis, clinical, medical & regulatory affairs.


    Among his earlier roles: HCL Tech: SVP & Global delivery head for Transformation Services

    He is an alumnus of Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) & IIT Kharagpur


    Channels to reach him:

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/chprasad/

    @Omics_Chap on X,

    @omics-chap.bsky.social on Bluesky
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    58 mins
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