GrowCFO Show
The GrowCFO Show is the podcast produced for finance leaders by finance leaders
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Access to capital is no longer cheap or guaranteed. Companies that once grew by “buying” growth with aggressive spend are now being forced to prove they can scale in a way that’s sustainable, repeatable, and cash‑efficient.
Kevin Appleby sits down with Manu Diwakar, Chief Financial Officer at Virta Health, to unpack how high‑growth companies can scale aggressively without setting fire to their cash reserves Manu draws on a career that spans Riot Games, the creator economy, AgTech, and now digital health, to show what disciplined, intelligent growth really looks like in practice. This isn’t theory; it’s the lived experience of a CFO who has repeatedly joined businesses in the steep part of the growth curve and helped them mature without losing their edge.
Manu explains how Virta Health is tackling the massive, expensive problem of metabolic disease with a model that reverses conditions like type 2 diabetes while also reducing healthcare costs Along the way, he breaks down how to think about capital efficiency, when to raise versus when to generate and reinvest your own cash, and why talent, culture, and clear unit economics beat vanity metrics every time. For finance leaders and founders who want to scale with ambition—but keep control of the runway—this conversation offers a grounded, experience‑driven playbook.
Key topics covered:
- Manu’s journey from Riot Games to digital health and why he chooses roles where the business is still being built and scaled, not just maintained
- How Virta Health’s model reverses metabolic disease while lowering costs, and what that teaches about aligning mission, product, and economics
- Why scaling without burning cash starts with clear value delivery, not price cuts—especially in tough capital markets
- The importance of hiring for growth: building teams whose capabilities can stretch with the business rather than constantly hiring “the next tier up”
- How a CFO can balance regulation, data security, and innovation in complex sectors like digital healthcare
- Manu’s advice to aspiring CFOs: prioritize environments with steep learning, strong teammates, and real growth, not just impressive titles
Links
Timestamps:
- 0:00 Manu’s career in high‑growth companies – From Riot Games to Virta Health and why he gravitates to businesses that are still being built and scaled
- 4:00 Virta Health’s mission and metabolic disease explained – What metabolic disease really is and how Virta’s approach tackles the root cause, not just symptoms
- 8:20 Business model and unit economics – How partnering with health plans and employers, and charging per engaged patient, underpins a scalable, cash‑efficient model
- 12:10 Regulatory complexity vs. innovation – Balancing cost efficiency, patient outcomes, data security, and compliance in digital healthcare
- 15:40 Scaling without over‑spending – Generating capital internally, reinvesting in growth, and resisting the temptation to chase volume with discounts
- 19:30 Talent and leadership in scaling teams – Lessons from Riot on hiring for potential, designing growth paths, and building a high‑calibre environment
- 30:50 Career advice for future CFOs – Why continuous learning, working in truly growing businesses, and choosing stellar leaders matters more than almost anything else
Find out more about GrowCFO
If you enjoyed this podcast, you can subscribe to the GrowCFO Show with your favorite podcast app. The GrowCFO show is listed in the Apple podcast directory, Spotify and many others. Why not subscribe there today? That way, you never miss an episode.
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You can find out more and join today at growcfo.net
The Next 100 Days
The Next 100 Days Podcast is a leading UK business show. Through this podcast, Kevin and Graham reveal strategies you can use to improve your business and take it to the next level. In addition to featuring their own advice, Kevin and Graham host amazing guests from across the business world. Often the guests are successful, but lesser-known business owners and entrepreneurs, enabling the show to bring fresh content and stand out from many of the US based business shows.
Graham and Kevin believe that business change comes about when a business owner focusses on just one thing that will make a real difference to his business. That might be product development, a new product launch or a marketing campaign. Focussing for less than 100 days, or focussing on too many things generally won’t deliver the results you need, Equally, its difficult to maintain effective focus for much longer than 100 days without re-assessing priorities.
The Next 100 Days Podcast is your source to learn how to move your business forward, with practical advice and guidance that you can put into action and make a difference in your own organisation within the next 100 days.
With a Dragon’s Den appearance being released the day before we release this podcast, we wanted our returning guest, John McClarey, on Business Fives to explain the process.
Summary of Podcast
Key Takeaways
- Dragon’s Den Appearance: Business Fives will appear on Dragon’s Den (Feb 19, BBC) after being scouted by producers. John McClary pitched for £50k for 5% equity to fund international expansion.
- Rigorous Vetting Process: The 5-month BBC vetting process was a “stress test” for the business, including deep financial due diligence and a psychological welfare check to ensure readiness for public scrutiny.
- Strategic Goal → Mentorship: The primary goal was mentorship from a Dragon, not just capital. The investment was earmarked for international research and a new CRM, not hiring, to protect the company’s personal service USP.
- Podcast Release Delayed: The episode release was moved to Feb 20, 2026, to comply with a BBC embargo that prevents pre-show publicity and protects the broadcast’s impact.
Business Fives Update
- Growth: Surpassed £1M revenue milestone.
- Operations: Delivers corporate charity sports events (football, rugby, golf) across the UK, Ireland, and Amsterdam.
- Charitable Impact: Raised nearly £1.4M for charity to date.
- Example: A winning team from Stockton (MAP Group) recently raised £3k for Butterwick Hospice, which was doubled via the Big Give campaign.
Dragon’s Den Appearance
- Origin: Scouted directly by a BBC producer, not via application.
- Pitch: £50,000 for 5% equity.
- Process (Feb–June): A 5-month, highly confidential vetting process.
- Due Diligence: Thorough financial review by the BBC to verify all claims.
- Psychological Welfare Check: A call with a psychologist to assess mental readiness for public exposure.
- Secrecy: The process was consuming, requiring John to internalize all details.
Strategic Rationale for Investment
- Primary Goal → Mentorship: To gain a strategic partner with a shared passion for the mission, not just capital.
- Investment Allocation:
- International expansion research (e.g., Australia, Abu Dhabi, US).
- New CRM implementation.
- Business Protection (Barriers to Entry):
- Network: A community of 5,000+ companies.
- Expertise: 10 years of perfected event management processes.
- Brand: The “As Seen on TV” status from Dragon’s Den.
International Expansion Strategy
- Franchise Model: A key option for non-English speaking markets (e.g., Hungary, Georgia).
- Rationale: Leverages local knowledge where the core team lacks it.
- Challenge: Protecting the brand and ensuring partner alignment with the mission.
- Vision: A “World Business Fives” tournament, modeled on FIFCO’s international corporate leagues.
The Next 100 Days Podcast Co-Hosts
Graham Arrowsmith
Graham founded Finely Fettled eleven years ago to help businesses market to affluent and high-net-worth customers. He’s the founder of MicroYES, a Partner of MeclabsAI, providing AI Agents, Workflows and Phone to Agent delivery systems. Now, Graham offers Answer Engine Optimisation so you get found by LLM search and Enterprise-level AI Solutions.
Kevin Appleby
Kevin specialises in finance transformation and implementing business change. He’s the COO of GrowCFO, which provides both community and CPD-accredited training designed to grow the next generation of finance leaders. You can find Kevin on LinkedIn and at kevinappleby.com