Hi, I’m Lakshmi!
As a leader who has spent decades in high-pressure environments—from leading businesses and teams at Microsoft to braving the wilds of entrepreneurship to coaching Fortune 500 C-suites—I have lived what so many are experiencing now. I normalized the grind. I wore exhaustion like armor. I believed that thriving meant outworking, outperforming, and never showing the cracks. And I promise: I have the scars and stories to prove it.
Through countless crises and transformations—both personal and professional—I discovered something that changed everything: The leaders and teams who truly thrive over the long haul aren't the ones who buckle down, grit their teeth, and gut it out. They're the ones who know how to reclaim their agency even when everything feels out of control.
My approach to high-performance leadership builds on that hard-won turning point and 30 years of professional experience that includes 13,000 hours of coaching and a close partnership with Dr. Brené Brown on scaling courage in organizations. Through keynotes, workshops, programs, and 1:1 work, I help my clients around the world lead through the permacrisis with focus, resilience, and impact. To thrive, not just survive.
Full Bio
Get to know Lakshmi
Lakshmi Gopalkrishnan ("Luck-sh-mee Goh-paal-krish-nun") has spent three decades neck-deep in complex, high-velocity environments and has touched the lives of thousands of clients across the globe. A former business and people leader at Microsoft and the founder and CEO of The Infinite Impact Group, she has the time-tested perspective of someone who has learned to thrive—not just survive—the permacrisis of relentless change, epidemic burnout, and nonstop transformation.
Lakshmi has over 13,000 hours of experience as a trusted advisor and coach to leaders and teams at Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Nissan, Starbucks,
the US Military, YUM! Brands, and other category leaders. She also has partnered extensively with best-selling author Dr. Brené Brown on Dare to Lead™, building courage at scale through public speaking, community mentorship, and program development and facilitation.
Lakshmi’s hard-won experience continues to evolve at the speed of business:
Her clients include the world’s most complex organizations. She is IN the rooms where today’s pressures play out, coaching C-suite leaders through their biggest challenges, helping teams navigate impossible change curves, and witnessing firsthand what constant strain does to even the strongest performers.
Her biggest learning? The leaders and teams who truly thrive over the long haul aren't the ones who buckle down, grit their teeth, and gut it out. They're the ones who know how to reclaim their agency even when everything feels out of control.
Lakshmi’s Built to Thrive™ system transforms her learning into a practical framework that she shares through customized keynotes, workshops, and leadership development programs anchored in her clients’ unique contexts. Whatever the format, she loves partnering with them to create high-energy, engaging experiences packed with proven insights, actionable tools, and vivid storytelling.
It doesn’t matter that today looks nothing like yesterday and no one really knows what tomorrow will bring: Working with Lakshmi will leave you feeling inspired, energized, and empowered to get back out there and do your best work again.
Credentials
Throughout her career as a leader, consultant, executive coach, cultural transformation expert and speaker, Lakshmi has helped leading organizations find their Edge.
