Episode #2
Betting on Yourself: Atul Pathiyal on Healthcare, Entrepreneurship & Building Crankfrog | BSPOD | S3 | EP2
In this episode of the Business Speaks Podcast, Cooper Stacey and Joey Echeandia sit down with Atul Pathiyal — entrepreneur, healthcare consultant, technology strategist, and founder of Crankfrog — to explore the journey from science and healthcare into consulting, entrepreneurship, and building a successful company from the ground up. Atul reflects on growing up in Connecticut in an entrepreneurial family, studying biology at Johns Hopkins, earning his Master’s in Public Health from George Washington University, and beginning his career as an epidemiologist. He shares how his career evolved from science into management consulting at PwC and eventually into technology strategy within the healthcare industry. The conversation then dives into one of the biggest decisions of Atul’s career: leaving the security of corporate America to bet on himself and start Crankfrog. With three young children at the time, Atul discusses the uncertainty and risk involved in leaving a stable career, finding his first clients, and turning an idea into a company that eventually grew to 35 employees. Atul also shares what he learned about leadership, company culture, hiring, consulting, and the challenges that come with growing a business. He discusses Crankfrog’s eventual acquisition by Chartis in 2022, what it was like letting go of a company he had spent more than a decade building, and how his role has evolved since joining Chartis. Beyond entrepreneurship, the episode explores taking risks, networking, career uncertainty, and the importance of not having everything figured out. Atul offers advice for students and young professionals on when to take a chance on themselves, how to build meaningful relationships, and what it really means to create a career on your own terms.
