Pooja Khanna

Pooja Khanna is a career coach, entrepreneur, and learning & development consultant dedicated to empowering India's youth with the skills, mindset, and confidence to navigate the evolving world of work. As the founder of Find Your True North, a machine-learning-based career coaching platform, she has transformed career guidance for thousands of students and professionals across India. With over two decades of experience in employability training, executive coaching, and curriculum design, Pooja has pioneered high-impact programs that bridge the gap between academia and industry.

Her expertise spans executive presence, emotional intelligence, and career adaptability, helping professionals build strong leadership identities. She has been instrumental in designing transformative training programs such as the Executive Excellence Program and Placement Selection Improvement Program, winning three Catalyst Awards for student success. A passionate educator, she integrates research-based methodologies with experiential learning to create dynamic, real-world training experiences.

Pooja’s journey—from navigating societal expectations to becoming an entrepreneur at 44—exemplifies her deep commitment to resilience, self-discovery, and growth. She is on a mission to guide the next generation toward meaningful and fulfilling careers.

Pooja Khanna has over 20 years of experience in career coaching, corporate training, and employability skill development. Before founding Find Your True North, she served as a soft skills trainer and employability coach at UPES, designing and leading training interventions for thousands of students. She has also worked as a corporate trainer for ONGC, coaching engineers in workplace readiness. Her expertise includes facilitating large-scale mentorship programs, career transition coaching, and designing immersive learning experiences for Gen Z professionals.

Career adaptability | Executive presence | Employability skills | Emotional intelligence | Leadership development | Growth mindset | Workplace readiness for Gen Z | Behavioural change and habits

Pooja believes that true learning happens when individuals are engaged, challenged, and empowered to take ownership of their growth. Her approach integrates experiential learning, real-world case studies, and self-reflection to help learners develop critical workplace skills. She emphasizes the power of mindset shifts, helping students and professionals build resilience, confidence, and self-awareness. Pooja’s facilitation style encourages open dialogue, hands-on practice, and structured feedback, ensuring that learning is not just theoretical but deeply transformative.

• Executive Presence for Professionals 
• Managing Self: A Boot Camp for Gen Z 
• Leadership & Teamwork
• Ace That Interview: Mastering Job Interviews with Confidence (Audio Program)
• Let’s Talk Jobs: Navigating Careers in the Modern Workplace (Career Coaching Series)
• Emotional Intelligence Training for Leaders
   

• Catalyst Award for Student Success (3x Winner) – Recognized for pioneering employability skill development programs.
• Outstanding Career Coach Award – Honoured for impactful mentorship and career transition coaching.
• Excellence in Learning & Development Award – For creating high-impact corporate training programs.

Pooja has led multiple large-scale careers development and mentoring initiatives, including Utthan, a mentorship program connecting 854 undergraduate students with industry professionals during the pandemic. She has designed AI-powered career guidance frameworks and conducted extensive research on career adaptability for Gen Z, using psychometric tools like the Career Adaptability Scale.

Her expertise in behavioural change and learning science informs her curriculum design, ensuring that her programs are research-backed and results-driven. She is an active contributor to employability research, workplace readiness studies, and professional development training. Pooja has also been a speaker at multiple industry panels, discussing Gen Z workforce integration and leadership development.

pooja.khanna@ddn.upes.ac.in