Pooja Daryani : Pioneering Strategic Excellence In Alternative Investment Research
Pooja Daryani
Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer
Renowned for her innovative approach, Pooja is building enduring trust-based relation- ships with clients, and her authentic leadership style. Her career highlights include transformative roles with Gold- man Sachs, EY, Moo- dy's, and WNS Global Services, where she has handled diverse portfolios and supported organizations in differentiating themselves in competitive markets. Notably, Pooja led the establishment of the Investment Banking practice at Moody’s Analytics and spearheaded the largest Global Investment Research team at Goldman Sachs. At WNS, she progressed from AVP to Head of Global Operations, setting up key verticals, international centers, and leading a team of approximately 2,500.
Since co-founding Zenworx in 2021 (along with Parul Jain and Anuj Jaiswal), the firm has scaled to double-digit clients and received high praise for transfor-mational consulting, demon- strating her ability to drive business growth and deliver exceptional client value. Zenworx's vision is clear - the team is committed to specializing in Alternative Investment Research, intentionally avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach to client service. Let’s hear more from her in this one-on-one interaction.
What are your recent strategic initiatives aimed at expanding or optimizing operations and attracting new market audiences?
At Zenworx, I am always focused on enhancing client value by continuously innovating our offerings. We’ve advanced our data analytics capabilities and are leveraging Generative AI to provide more insightful out- comes. We’ve introduced 'Mystery Shopping' to offer on-the-ground insights for pre-investment diligence. Addi- tionally, we’ve developed custom
Benchmarking & Analytics tools for go-to-market strategies and cost comparisons, and we conduct Portfolio Overlap Analysis to track capital allocation and diversification patterns. Our comprehensive Macro Research supports informed geographic allocation decisions, ensuring that we meet the evolving needs of our clients effectively.
How do you lead your team in spotting market growth opportunities to ensure the company maintains stable progress?
I focus on fostering a solutions-oriented mindset within my team, encouraging them to proactively propose innovative research approaches for our clients. Our recent strategic initiatives reflect this by emphasizing a customer-centric approach to better understand and meet client needs, ensuring our offerings remain relevant. We promote continuous learning to stay agile in response to market shifts, creating a dynamic environment that supports growth. Our strategic plans align with our firm’s strengths and market opportunities, with a strong focus on long-term sustainability. Our industry-leading single-digit attrition rate is key to our stable growth and innovation, ensuring continuity in client relationships and preserving institutional knowledge, which allows us to concentrate on long-term str- ategies and reflects our culture of learning and recognition.
How do you manage the ongoing changes in market behavior?
To stay ahead, I actively track develop-ments in the alternative assets industry by engaging regularly with top investment management professionals. The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a wave of new hedge fund and private equity fund launches, as many managers capitalized on market disruptions to start their own ventures. At Zenworx, we anticipated this shift and proactively created solutions to support new managers with essential research and due diligence during their fund establishment, resulting in several new client relationships despite the pandemic.
Tell us about your leadership approach. What are the guidelines or methodologies you follow as a leader?
My leadership approach is grounded in two fundamental principles: client focus and nurturing people.
First, client focus is central to my leadership philosophy. I make it a priority to deeply understand our client's unique needs and challenges, guiding my team to adopt a client-centric pers- pective. This ensures we provide tailored, high-impact solutions that address our clients' specific pain points and significantly enhance their investment processes.
How do you lead your team in spotting market growth opportunities to ensure the company maintains stable progress?
I focus on fostering a solutions-oriented mindset within my team, encouraging them to proactively propose innovative research approaches for our clients. Our recent strategic initiatives reflect this by emphasizing a customer-centric approach to better understand and meet client needs, ensuring our offerings remain relevant. We promote continuous learning to stay agile in response to market shifts, creating a dynamic environment that supports growth. Our strategic plans align with our firm’s strengths and market opportunities, with a strong focus on long-term sustainability. Our industry-leading single-digit attrition rate is key to our stable growth and innovation, ensuring continuity in client relationships and preserving institutional knowledge, which allows us to concentrate on long-term str- ategies and reflects our culture of learning and recognition.
We’ve Advanced Our Data Analytics Capa- bilities & Are Leve- raging Generative AI To Provide More Insightful Outcomes
How do you manage the ongoing changes in market behavior?
To stay ahead, I actively track develop-ments in the alternative assets industry by engaging regularly with top investment management professionals. The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a wave of new hedge fund and private equity fund launches, as many managers capitalized on market disruptions to start their own ventures. At Zenworx, we anticipated this shift and proactively created solutions to support new managers with essential research and due diligence during their fund establishment, resulting in several new client relationships despite the pandemic.
Tell us about your leadership approach. What are the guidelines or methodologies you follow as a leader?
My leadership approach is grounded in two fundamental principles: client focus and nurturing people.
First, client focus is central to my leadership philosophy. I make it a priority to deeply understand our client's unique needs and challenges, guiding my team to adopt a client-centric pers- pective. This ensures we provide tailored, high-impact solutions that address our clients' specific pain points and significantly enhance their investment processes.
Second, nurturing people is equally crucial. I am committed to empowering my team through continuous learning oppor-
tunities, mentorship, and fostering a culture of innovation. By investing in our team’s development and creating a supportive environment, we achieve industry-leading rete- ntion rates and consistently deliver exceptional results for our clients.
This dual emphasis on clients and people has been vital to Zenworx's rapid growth and our success in building long-lasting, trust-based client relationships.
What is the future dest- ination you are headed towards?
As Zenworx enters its next growth phase, our vision is to establish the firm as the premier strategic research partner for alternative investment managers worldwide, expanding our reach in North America, Europe, and Asia. This goal is driven by the transformative impact we’re already having on our clients' investment processes. We are dedicated to continuous innovation, leveraging advanced technologies to enhance our offerings and provide valuable insights. Personally, I find great meaning in how our work influences investment decisions and benefits businesses, economies, and communities globally. As we grow, I am committed to ensuring Zenworx continues to empower investors with unique insights that drive smarter capital allocation.
What would be a word of advice you would like to share with budding industry leaders?
I’ve found that authenticity and staying true to oneself are crucial for success. Being authentic means adhering to your values and principles, even when faced with challenges, and being transparent with both your team and clients. It also involves openly acknowledging and learning from your mistakes. On the other hand, being yourself means embracing your unique strengths and experiences rather than trying to fit into a predefined leadership mold. Bringing your whole self to work fosters a culture where others feel encouraged to do the same. These principles are essential because they help build genuine connections, inspire trust, and create an environment where innovation thrives. Personally, staying true to myself has been instrumental in managing complex client relationships and building a cohesive, high-performing team at Zenworx.
Pooja Daryani, Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Zen- worx Knowledge Partners
Pooja Daryani, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Zenworx Knowledge Partners LLP is a Chartered Accountant and Harvard Business School graduate with over 20 years of experience in strategic business unit management. She excels in collaborating with clients to deliver innovative, outcome-focused solutions, building trust-based relationships, and fostering company culture.
tunities, mentorship, and fostering a culture of innovation. By investing in our team’s development and creating a supportive environment, we achieve industry-leading rete- ntion rates and consistently deliver exceptional results for our clients.
This dual emphasis on clients and people has been vital to Zenworx's rapid growth and our success in building long-lasting, trust-based client relationships.
What is the future dest- ination you are headed towards?
As Zenworx enters its next growth phase, our vision is to establish the firm as the premier strategic research partner for alternative investment managers worldwide, expanding our reach in North America, Europe, and Asia. This goal is driven by the transformative impact we’re already having on our clients' investment processes. We are dedicated to continuous innovation, leveraging advanced technologies to enhance our offerings and provide valuable insights. Personally, I find great meaning in how our work influences investment decisions and benefits businesses, economies, and communities globally. As we grow, I am committed to ensuring Zenworx continues to empower investors with unique insights that drive smarter capital allocation.
What would be a word of advice you would like to share with budding industry leaders?
I’ve found that authenticity and staying true to oneself are crucial for success. Being authentic means adhering to your values and principles, even when faced with challenges, and being transparent with both your team and clients. It also involves openly acknowledging and learning from your mistakes. On the other hand, being yourself means embracing your unique strengths and experiences rather than trying to fit into a predefined leadership mold. Bringing your whole self to work fosters a culture where others feel encouraged to do the same. These principles are essential because they help build genuine connections, inspire trust, and create an environment where innovation thrives. Personally, staying true to myself has been instrumental in managing complex client relationships and building a cohesive, high-performing team at Zenworx.
Pooja Daryani, Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Zen- worx Knowledge Partners
Pooja Daryani, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Zenworx Knowledge Partners LLP is a Chartered Accountant and Harvard Business School graduate with over 20 years of experience in strategic business unit management. She excels in collaborating with clients to deliver innovative, outcome-focused solutions, building trust-based relationships, and fostering company culture.