If you've ever wondered what it really takes to build something extraordinary — not from a textbook, but from the trenches — this is The Inside Deal Podcast. Sam Schneider, Managing Partner at Imperium Capital, sits down with the operators, investors, entrepreneurs, and dealmakers who've built remarkable careers and businesses from the inside out. Real estate is in our DNA, but the conversations go far beyond it — because the principles behind great deals, great companies, and great careers are universal. These aren't surface-level conversations about headlines or hype. They're real stories about risk, resilience, relationships, and the decisions that changed everything. From launching firms in the aftermath of the financial crisis, to building billion-dollar platforms across industries, to navigating massive pivots and coming back stronger after failure — these conversations are candid, tactical, and deeply human. This show is for ambitious people who want to understand how great careers and great businesses are actually built. Whether you're an investor, entrepreneur, operator, student, or just fascinated by high-stakes decision making, you'll hear the lessons that rarely make it into conference panels or social media posts. You'll learn how exceptional people think through uncertainty, build trust, raise capital, spot opportunities others miss, and create relationships that compound over decades.
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Inside Deal
How Great Investors Balance Risk and Opportunity - Tim Sloan - Vice Chairman & Global Head of Real Estate @ Fortress Investment Group
Oct 1, 202659 min
Tim Sloan and Sam Schneider explore the leadership lessons, deal-making instincts, and strategic thinking behind some of the most consequential transactions in modern finance and commercial real estate. Sloan spent three decades at Wells Fargo, rising from the workout group to CEO, and played a central role in the bank's acquisition of Wachovia during the 2008 financial crisis and its partnership with Blackstone on the GE Capital real estate portfolio. Now vice chairman and global head of real estate at Fortress Investment Group, he applies those lessons to a platform managing $55 billion across equity, debt, and opportunistic strategies in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Australia. They discuss: - How Wells Fargo structured and won the Wachovia acquisition in 48 hours during the financial crisis - Why the GE Capital deal with Blackstone came together in an elevator conversation after 10 years of relationship building - The difference between taking credit risk and equity risk, and why confusing the two leads to poor outcomes - Why Sloan believes commercial real estate offers the most attractive risk-adjusted returns of his career right now - How to transition from being a deal person to a leader capable of managing large, complex organizations This episode offers a rare look at the decision-making behind billion-dollar transactions and the career discipline required to lead through volatility and change. (00:00:00) - Intro (00:02:48) - September 2008: Crisis mindset at Wells Fargo (00:05:21) - The Wachovia acquisition begins (00:09:30) - Weekend due diligence and bidding decisions (00:15:27) - Losing the bid to Citigroup (00:16:17) - Finding the tax advantage and coming back (00:19:22) - Closing the deal and integration sprint (00:24:18) - Tim's path from Michigan to Wells Fargo (00:27:30) - Being entrepreneurial inside a large organization (00:29:00) - The GE Capital deal with Blackstone (00:33:08) - Building relationships over transactions (00:35:06) - Developing leadership skills across a career (00:38:06) - Going against consensus thinking (00:41:33) - Credit risk versus equity risk (00:44:06) - Current role at Fortress and market opportunities (00:53:42) - Advice for young professionals starting out (00:57:51) - The importance of hustle Links: Fortress Investment Group - https://www.fortress.com/ Sam on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-schneider-11234826/ Imperium Capital - https://www.imperiumcap.com/ University of Michigan Ross Weiser Center for Real Estate - https://studyrealestate.umich.edu/
Building a Resilient Business Through Culture and Relationships - Gregg Mayer - CEO of Bisnow
Sep 24, 202657 min
Sam Schneider and Gregg Mayer sit down on Inside Deal to discuss Mayer's unconventional path from investment banking and private equity into operating roles, ultimately leading him to Bisnow as COO and CFO. Mayer shares how early career experiences taught him the value of deep relationships and the importance of balancing visionary leadership with operational discipline. He explains how a restructuring assignment years earlier shaped his management philosophy around pairing complementary skill sets—what he calls the yin and yang of leadership. After joining Bisnow in 2018, Mayer faced immediate culture shock, moving from a numbers-first environment to one where mission and values drove every decision. They discuss: - Why asking instead of telling unlocked better performance from his team - How Bisnow's culture enabled the company to break even during COVID despite being a live events business - How AI is amplifying Bisnow's ability to create actionable insights from proprietary content across hundreds of events - Why personal brand-building starts long before graduation and matters throughout a career This episode offers a rare look at how embracing vulnerability and cultural adaptation can redefine leadership effectiveness in fast-moving media businesses. (00:00:00) - Intro (00:02:37) - Investment banking to private equity (00:06:36) - Learning from Alpine Capital partners (00:09:02) - Restructuring experience and management lessons (00:13:11) - Balancing leadership and open dialogue (00:15:10) - Becoming an operator at a storage company (00:19:59) - Joining Bisnow and culture shock (00:29:07) - COVID hits the events business (00:33:53) - Tragedy and leadership through loss (00:38:47) - AI and the future of live events (00:47:11) - Building a B2B media company today (00:48:39) - Career advice for recent graduates (00:54:17) - Greg's competitive advantage Links: Gregg on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregg-mayer-92335316a/ Bisnow - https://www.bisnow.com/ Sam on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-schneider-11234826/ Imperium Capital - https://www.imperiumcap.com/ University of Michigan Ross Weiser Center for Real Estate - https://studyrealestate.umich.edu/
Building Hospitality Businesses Through Relationship-Driven Deals - Steven Kamali
Sep 17, 202658 min
Sam Schneider and Steven Kamali explore the unpredictable path of building businesses in hospitality and beyond on Inside Deal. Kamali shares how early cold-calling experience, a chance motel purchase in Montauk, and creative deal structures launched a twenty-five-year consulting career—and how losing it all in 2020 forced a complete reinvention. The conversation captures the resourcefulness required to pivot from restaurant brokerage to hotel consulting to staffing, often through relationships built years earlier. They discuss: - Using seller financing and partnership structures to acquire properties with limited capital - How Surf Lodge and The Capri became unintentional marketing engines for a consulting practice - Rebuilding after dissolving a 27-person company during the pandemic - Why being deliberate rather than reactive separates sustainable growth from chaos - The role of AI in scaling a modern staffing business without traditional overhead This episode offers a grounded look at entrepreneurship for anyone navigating setbacks, considering unconventional deal structures, or questioning whether their next move needs to be the obvious one. (00:00:00) - Intro(00:02:47) - Growing up entrepreneurial(00:05:25) - Learning the art of the cold call(00:07:43) - Starting a restaurant brokerage business(00:11:32) - Shifting from restaurants to hotel consulting(00:14:26) - Creating value through hotel food and beverage(00:20:22) - Buying Surf Lodge with creative financing(00:27:53) - The Capri deal and using expertise as currency(00:31:58) - The importance of trying and failing(00:33:31) - COVID hits the hospitality business(00:37:40) - The ghost kitchen experiment(00:39:36) - The SPAC attempt and pivoting again(00:42:49) - Building The Staffing Agency from the ground up(00:50:10) - Structuring a scalable and sellable business(00:51:59) - Synthesizing information as a superpower(00:53:22) - Advice for young entrepreneurs today Steven Kamali LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenkamali/ The Staffing Agency - https://thestaffingagency.com/ Sam Schneider LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-schneider-11234826/ Imperium Capital — https://www.imperiumcap.com
The Work Ethic needed to Succeed in Real Estate & The NFL | Jamar Adams
Sep 10, 20261h 31m
Sam Schneider and Jamar Adams sit down for a conversation that spans from childhood in Charlotte to building one of the most mission-driven real estate platforms in the country. Adams shares how a single mother's discipline shaped his work ethic, how football taught him to perform under pressure, and how a college professor's assignment introduced him to private equity and changed the trajectory of his career. The discussion moves through his transition from the NFL to Related Companies, where he earned the trust of some of the industry's most influential leaders through relentless preparation and coachability. They discuss: - Why Adams worked relentless hours at Related to compete with MBA classmates - How a last-minute meeting with Stephen Ross in an oversized suit jacket led to a career-defining opportunity - The moment he realized luxury real estate success wasn't enough and decided to launch Essence Development - Why he structures every deal to fund social infrastructure—childcare, healthcare, workforce training—in affordable housing communities - What mentors like Steven Ross, Jeff Blau, and Bruce Bill taught him about building companies that outlast their founders This episode offers a blueprint for turning adversity into advantage and using business as a vehicle for measurable social impact. (00:00:00) - Intro(00:02:59) - Growing up in Charlotte(00:05:48) - Early entrepreneurship lessons(00:08:11) - Football dreams take shape(00:10:25) - Arriving at Michigan(00:16:25) - Balancing academics and football(00:21:04) - Professor Onye changes everything(00:25:51) - Draft day disappointment(00:30:04) - Overcoming adversity(00:32:40) - Shadowing business leaders during NFL career(00:37:25) - The 15-minute meeting with Stephen Ross(00:47:05) - Joining Related over Goldman Sachs(00:55:20) - Learning from the best at Related(01:12:44) - The power of mentorship(01:16:18) - Starting Essence Development(01:22:38) - Social infrastructure and impact(01:26:49) - Empathy as a superpower Sam Schneider LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-schneider-11234826/ Companies: Imperium Capital — https://www.imperiumcap.com Essence Development - https://www.essencedev.com/ Jamar Adams LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamar-adams-656060a3/
How Real Estate Entrepreneurs Navigate Career Pivots and Business Failures
Aug 20, 202647 min
Inside Deal host Sam Schneider revisits standout moments from the show's first eight episodes, featuring investors, entrepreneurs, and deal makers who share the frameworks and instincts that shaped their careers. The compilation explores career pivots, early failures, and the discipline required to capitalize on high-value moments in both business and life. They discuss: - How failed ventures and non-linear career paths often precede long-term success - Why recessions and market downturns present disproportionate opportunity for those positioned to act - The importance of outworking competitors while maintaining strong relationships across all levels - How overlooked asset classes like truck parking and build-to-rent housing reward deep market understanding - Strategies for navigating crises without making fear-based decisions This episode distills lessons on resilience, strategic pivots, and asymmetric risk-taking for anyone building a career in real estate or entrepreneurship. Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro (00:01:17) - No one’s career is a straight line (00:09:25) - No money, no relationships, no problem (00:13:14) - Deals nobody else would touch (00:30:51) - The unfair edge (00:37:46) - Advice for young professionals Sam Schneider LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-schneider-11234826/ Companies: Imperium Capital — https://www.imperiumcap.com
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