The Schmooze: Chats with Jewish Greats

In this episode of The Schmooze , we sit down with Bill Shafton, a seasoned in-house lawyer who led Grindr’s legal team from its founding days to its public debut on the NYSE. Bill shares insights from his journey through high-growth tech, regulatory challenges, and litigation strategy. Beyond his legal expertise, Bill opens up about his passion for music and how it has shaped his personal and pro...

Jason Lubin is a manager-producer and the principal at First Story Entertainment, which he founded in 2018. The lit management company represents a diverse roster of talented writers and directors with fresh voices in all genres for Film and TV. The company’s clients have been staffed on shows on multiple networks including Showtime, CW, Apple+, and Netflix, and have sold series to Disney and HBO...

With over 15 years of experience in the tech sector, Neal is passionate about investing in and supporting innovative companies that impact communities and solve real-world problems. As a Managing Partner at Interlock Capital, he helped find, evaluate, fund, and support the best technology companies through our venture fund and angel investor syndicate. With over 15 years of experience in the tech...

Stacy Schusterman is chair of Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, whose mission is to pursue more just and inclusive societies in the United States and Israel. Stacy’s philanthropic vision is deeply rooted in Jewish values, including the pursuit of justice (tzedek), repairing the world (tikkun olam) and treating all people with dignity and respect (derekh eretz). Schusterman Family...

Michael Kaufman founded Kaufman Lynn Construction (KL) in 1989 with three employees, including himself. Over the past 34 years, having completed over 1,000 projects, he has grown his company into one of the largest construction companies in Florida with operations throughout the Southeast. In 2020, Michael sold KL to its 250+ associates through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), sharing the...

Moses Libitzky is Chief Executive Officer of Libitzky Property Companies. Moses has over 40 years of commercial real estate expertise, specializing in mixed-use industrial rehabilitation. He has successfully directed over 100 projects with long term operation. Moses attended Brandeis University where he obtained a B.S. in Physics with a sub-specialty in Computer Science. Moses started his professi...

Director of Executive Leadership Jamie Kleinman with Alan Meltzer. Alan Meltzer founded The Meltzer Group, (rebranded to NFP in 2018), in 1982 as a single insurance agent. He has since grown the company to the point where it is consistently recognized as the largest insurance consultant and one of the most philanthropic in the greater Washington, D.C. area. Alan’s strong core values and work ethic...

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Joshua Gould talks about his career journey and what students can learn from his experience. Listen here to hear his wisdom! With over 20 years of experience in the language technology, defense and contingent workforce industries, Joshua is passionate about connecting people and businesses across borders and cultures. As the Group Chief Executive Officer a...

Director of Executive Leadership Jamie Kleinman. Jacki Karsh is a six time Emmy-nominated multimedia journalist, covering Los Angeles County for LA36's LA County Channel. Jacki reports on social and humanitarian issues impacting Angelenos. Her pieces focus on the County-wide homelessness crisis, political developments, impactful scientific innovation prison reform, transformative infrastructure, a...

Ari Ackerman is a successful serial entrepreneur, strategic investor and proud philanthropist. His entrepreneurial history includes being the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Bunk 1, the enormously popular technology company that allows parents to see online pictures and send emails to their children at camp. In March 2017, he successfully sold Bunk1 to the private equity firm Aquiline Capit...

Lee is CEO, writer at the Garfinkel Group LLC, specializing in marketing and entertainment. He is currently working for a few select clients as well as political and public service assignments. Lee was most recently CEO of FCB Garfinkel, the NY office of FCB. He was previously Chairman of Havas WW, NY. He also served as DDB New York’s Chairman and Chief Creative Officer where he won new assignment...

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Alexis Shapiro talk about her career journey and what students can learn from her experience. Listen here to hear her wisdom! Alexis Shapiro is the General Counsel of Forward Financing, where she oversees all legal functions of the Company. Prior to joining Forward Financing in April 2018, Alexis was a partner at the Boston-based law firm Goodwin Procter,...

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Benjie Cherniak talks about his career journey and what students can learn from his experience. Listen here to hear his wisdom!

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Gary Swart talk about his career journey and what students can learn from his experience. Listen here to hear his wisdom!

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Mara Goldstein talks about her career journey and what students can learn from her experience. Listen here to hear her wisdom!

On this episode of “The Schmooze” Larry Namer talks about his over 50 years of entertainment experience. He is best known as the founder of E! Entertainment Network, a network that continues to shape pop culture today and has launched the careers of many of today's pop culture superstars from Howard Stern to The Kardashians.

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Peter Steckelman talk about his career journey and what students can learn from his experience. Listen here to hear his wisdom!

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Eric Schwartz talks about his journey from NYU Stern to Sony Entertainment. His biggest piece of advice to any current student is to take your interest and turn it into a career.

On this week’s episode of “The Schmooze,” Michael Rosenzweig talk about the unplanned moments in his life, including when he transitioned into the non-profit world. Listen here to hear his wisdom!

On this episode of “The Schmooze” Michael Adler talks about his background in software engineering and emphasizes that the beginning of the journey doesn’t always look like the present. Michael also shares his career advice stating that sometimes staying at a company long-term will ultimately have a better reward than leaving. Listen to hear some great advice and stories from Michael!

On this episode of “The Schmooze” Clifford Viner talks about both the importance of having a successful career as well as having a work-life balance - growing a family in the midst of success. Listen to his interview exclusively here!

Marina Lewin, COO of the Foundation for Jewish Camp, sat down with Rabbi Matt Rosenberg to chat about her upbringing in the small town of Easton Connecticut, her illustrious 30+ year career in banking, and her journey to COO for the Foundation of Jewish Camp. Listen to the new episode here on "The Schmooze."

David Golden, Managing Partner at Revolution Ventures, sat down with our own Matt Rosenberg to discuss everything from his Minnesota upbringing to his illustrious career both on Wall Street and at Revolution Ventures. Tune in now!

Andrew Epstein, a Los Angeles bred lawyer, and General Counsel at Demandbase, sat down with Maddy Demchick and chatted about his upbringing, his college choices, and the importance of federal privacy law in his work environment. Listen here now on this new episode of “The Schmooze.”

Eric Gertler, Executive Chairman of U.S. News & World Report, sat down with "The Schmooze" to talk about the fast pace of technology, how social media is changing the landscape of companies and so much more! Listen here on this new episode of "The Schmooze."