In this episode, Alex Rawlings is joined by Tim Schulte, Value Creation Partner at Council Capital, a Nashville-based private equity firm investing in healthcare businesses across tech-enabled services, outsourced services, and provider platforms.

Tim brings a unique blend of consulting, operational, and investing experience. He shares how Council Capital drives value creation through collaboration, leadership development, and a structured yet flexible approach to talent and operations.

🔑 Key Highlights:

00:00 – Introduction
Tim’s background: consulting → startup growth → private equity. At Council for 6+ years, focused on scaling healthcare companies.

01:15 – Common Mistake in PE
Reinventing the wheel. Tim advocates for leveraging shared knowledge and collaboration across portfolio companies instead of starting from scratch.

02:12 – Three PE Value Creation Models
Tim outlines three styles:

1. Collaborative but shallow
2. Substantive but rigid
3. Collaborative and substantive – Council Capital’s approach

03:37 – Collaboration in Practice
Council’s CEO Council is made up of 30+ senior leaders who are both advisors and investors. Their involvement creates mentorship and alignment without top-down pressure.

05:02 – Council’s Value Creation Team
A large internal team supports portfolio companies with tailored toolkits (not rigid playbooks) across growth, ops, and talent.

06:11 – Hiring Top Executives
Talent is central to value creation. Council uses:

• Topgrading
• Aptitude & personality assessments
• In-depth referencing
• Case studies
  ...to ensure fit and long-term success.

09:05 – Role of Assessments
Assessments aren’t used to screen candidates out, but to guide interview questions and identify fit. Council tracks data across hundreds of hires to correlate traits with performance.

12:27 – Broader Talent Support
Beyond the C-suite, Council helps portfolio teams:

• Implement HR tech
• Refine hiring processes
• Improve onboarding
• Structure incentive plans

14:38 – First 100 Days for CEOs
New CEOs are expected to:

1. Align on strategy
2. Build out the right team
3. Ensure reliable data systems to track performance

16:58 – Recommended Resources
Tim recommends:

• Acquired – for business case studies
• Founders – for leadership traits & human stories

17:52 – Connect with Tim Schulte
Best via LinkedIn or at Council Capital

Raw Selection partners with Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies to secure exceptional executive talent. We focus on de-risking executive recruitment through meticulous search and selection processes, ensuring top-tier performance and long-term success.

🔗 Connect with Alex Rawlings on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrawlings/
🌐 Visit Raw Selection: www.raw-selection.com

Looking to grow your team? Check out our Hiring Guides

for proven strategies, templates, and best practices to make smarter hires.

🎧 Guest: Maxwell Nee – Chairman, Family Office Insider & Managing Partner, Black Mountain Capital
🌍 Episode Theme: 10X Deals, Market Gaps & Global Investing

In this episode, Alex Rawlings is joined by Maxwell Nee to explore how thinking bigger—10X bigger—can simplify investing and unlock outsized returns. Maxwell shares his 3-leg framework for identifying high-potential opportunities and dives into emerging trends across waste-to-value, renewables, and infrastructure.

You’ll hear about:

• What 10X deals really mean and why they’re often easier to execute
• The 3 key components of any game-changing opportunity
• Turning waste (like avocado seeds or Guinness beer) into profits
• Where Maxwell is putting capital now: mining, energy, biofuels
• How family offices differ from traditional PE firms
• Lessons from global dealmaking and the role of geopolitics

⏱️ Time Stamps:

00:00 – Intro to Maxwell Nee
01:00 – Founding Family Office Insider during COVID
02:30 – Common PE mistakes: overextension, distraction
04:00 – What makes a 10X deal
07:00 – The 3-leg framework: Market Gap, Team, Funding
08:30 – Real examples: bioplastics, energy, solar
11:00 – Investing globally & understanding country strengths
18:50 – PE vs. Family Office mindsets
21:00 – Book recs: How to Make a Few Billion Dollars, Time is a Tool
22:30 – Connect with Maxwell on LinkedIn

Raw Selection partners with Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies to secure exceptional executive talent. We focus on de-risking executive recruitment through meticulous search and selection processes, ensuring top-tier performance and long-term success.

🔗 Connect with Alex Rawlings on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrawlings/
🌐 Visit Raw Selection: www.raw-selection.com

Looking to grow your team? Check out our Hiring Guides

for proven strategies, templates, and best practices to make smarter hires.

In this powerful episode, Marc Adams shares his remarkable journey from a stage 4 cancer diagnosis to a full recovery—and how that experience inspired him to rethink private equity. Now leading Acquisitions for You, Marc helps business owners double their company’s value and cash out tax-free—without debt, dilution, or outside capital.

With 40+ years in leadership, IPOs, and M&A, Marc discusses his “Double and Keep It” framework, raising over $350M to support non-traditional exits, and how PE firms can create more value by going deeper into operations. He also shares how a question from his 10-year-old son sparked a mission to help business owners keep more of what they’ve built.

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 – Intro to Marc & his corporate background
01:27 – Life-changing cancer diagnosis during the pandemic
05:34 – A pivotal question from Marc’s son: “Who helps the business owners?”
07:01 – Miraculous recovery and new purpose
09:24 – Writing a bestselling book to help owners increase value
10:16 – The “Double and Keep It” framework explained
11:43 – $350M raised to support exits without debt or dilution
13:08 – How structuring right helps owners keep 70–90% post-sale
15:01 – Helping younger founders take chips off the table
18:52 – From $140M to $1B valuation: how it was done
22:09 – Case study: $0 to $950M in 18 months
23:36 – Why PE must engage with operating teams
25:26 – Reducing founder resistance and aligning incentives
27:49 – Leaving room for buyers’ value creation
30:09 – Example: $6B tech buyer building value via synergy
32:29 – When forced changes from PE go wrong
34:28 – Why personal brand and social media matter more than ever
37:21 – 19-year-old entrepreneur’s turnaround and success
40:38 – Helping overlooked businesses unlock true value
42:02 – How to connect with Marc and access his free resources

📘 Resources

• Contact Marc: marc@acquisitionsforyou.com
• Visit: acquisitionsforyou.com
• Free tools & book via Marc’s Linktree (shared in episode)

Raw Selection partners with Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies to secure exceptional executive talent. We focus on de-risking executive recruitment through meticulous search and selection processes, ensuring top-tier performance and long-term success.

🔗 Connect with Alex Rawlings on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrawlings/
🌐 Visit Raw Selection: www.raw-selection.com

Looking to grow your team? Check out our Hiring Guides

for proven strategies, templates, and best practices to make smarter hires.