Show notes
In this Underdog Physician podcast episode, PharmD and healthcare executive Dr. Tarul Kode shares her career path from an accelerated pharmacy doctorate at the University of the Pacific to over 20 years in managed care and PBMs, including 15 years at MedImpact in clinical executive and account leadership roles. After completing a Harvard global healthcare leadership program, she pivoted into startups as chief of staff to a virtual primary care CEO, then navigated layoffs when the company failed to raise a Series A amid personal challenges. She built a consulting practice and expanded advisory work with Techstars and Remedy. Tarul describes her venture capital education, joining Loud Collective as a venture partner raising a $175M healthcare fund with partners including Persephoni Bio, while discussing funding fit, scalable growth, responsible AI, inclusion barriers, mentorship, parenting, and a service-driven legacy.00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro01:02 Origin Story and Pharmacy Path02:20 Managed Care and PBM Career03:49 Leadership Coaching and Harvard04:58 Leap Into Startups05:51 Startup Culture Fit06:56 Advising Clinicians in Startups08:24 Setbacks and Resilience09:36 Consulting and Advisory Launchpad10:57 Calibrate Lessons and Integrity11:47 Entering Venture Capital12:34 Loud Collective Thesis13:45 Board Work and Co-Founder Role14:59 How VCs Evaluate Startups17:22 Funding Fit and Diligence18:22 AI and Responsible Scaling19:14 Barriers as Woman of Color22:51 2025 BLOC BLOC100 Most Impactful Women of Color and Allies in biopharma, healthcare, and life sciences.24:29 Mentorship and Executive Presence27:37 Mindset for Uncertainty30:01 Work Life Balance as Single Parent31:31 Legacy and Closing