Steve Frederico shares how a personal loss set him on the path to neurosurgery, and how what he learned sitting on a medical school admissions committee led him to build Admit MD from scratch, growing it to nearly 30 people without ever taking outside funding.

Guest Introduction:

Steve Frederico is the founder and CEO of Admit MD, a medical school admissions consulting company he built from a single Reddit post into a team of nearly 30 professionals, all while working his way through college with no family background in medicine or business. He is currently a fourth-year medical student at the University of Pittsburgh applying to neurosurgery residencies, having served on Pitt's own admissions committee, an experience that showed him firsthand why so many qualified applicants get turned away. He has turned down acquisition offers to keep building Admit MD on his own terms, and has structured the company to run independently while he completes his medical training.

Key Takeaways:

• Losing a close friend to a brain tumor before college redirected Steve from professional baseball toward medicine, and a single shadowing experience in an operating room in 2015 confirmed neurosurgery as his path.

• With no family background in medicine and limited financial support, Steve worked multiple jobs simultaneously through college, including selling suits, bar backing, and working as a patient care technician, to fund his education and gain early healthcare experience.

• Serving as a voting member of Pitt's medical school admissions committee showed Steve why qualified applicants get rejected: many candidates checked every box but recycled essays across applications and never built a genuine, cohesive narrative.

• Admit MD started as free advice on Reddit before growing into a paid consulting company, built deliberately around full narrative development rather than the piecemeal, pay-per-essay model or the ad-driven, PE-backed approach common among larger competitors.

• Steve built Admit MD to run independently of him, hiring specialized consultants across different admissions tracks, building out sales and operations teams, and turning down acquisition offers so the company could keep operating on its own terms while he completes his neurosurgery residency applications.

Chapter Markers:

00:00 Introduction and Jill's connection to Steve

03:11 Steve's journey begins

03:35 Losing a friend and pivoting away from baseball

04:10 Shadowing a neurosurgeon for the first time

06:46 Working multiple jobs to pay his own way through college

09:55 Navigating the pre-med path with almost no mentorship

12:35 Joining Pitt's medical school admissions committee

19:15 The problem with PE-backed admissions companies

20:30 Starting Admit MD with posts on Reddit

21:16 Paying for information versus paying for real help

22:32 Why qualified applicants still get rejected

26:07 Why Admit MD refuses to do piecemeal advising

27:42 Turning down acquisition offers

28:08 Building a team so the company doesn't depend on him

31:01 What's next for Admit MD

32:16 Final thoughts

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In this episode of Beyond The Deal, host Jill Yahnite sits down with Charlie Skinner, founder of Infinite Vision, a medical and biotech product development company specializing in optics and illumination engineering. Charlie also shares insights from his newer venture, Defense Audio Systems, a company developing technology designed to prevent crime and de-escalate dangerous situations. Drawing on decades of leadership experience across sales, engineering, and operations, Charlie challenges the traditional “hunter vs farmer” sales model. Instead, he argues that the best sales professionals remain deeply involved after the deal is closed — protecting relationships, managing expectations, and helping clients navigate complex projects.Charlie and Jill dive into the real dynamics of account management, including how salespeople can drive deeper account penetration, prevent scope creep disasters, and build long-term client partnerships that generate sustained growth.Guest Introduction:Charlie Skinner is the founder of Infinite Vision, a product development company focused on optical and illumination engineering solutions for medical and biotech applications. Founded in 2010, Infinite Vision provides engineering talent and full project development from concept through manufacturing.Charlie has spent decades leading teams across engineering, operations, sales, and marketing roles before launching his own company. He has worked with major organizations such as Carl Zeiss and built a reputation for helping companies scale complex product development initiatives.He is also the founder of Defense Audio Systems, a developing technology company focused on using sensory-driven technology to help prevent crime and reduce violent escalation situations.Key Takeaways:• Salespeople should stay involved after the sale to ensure promises made during the sales process are fulfilled.• Deep account penetration is often more profitable than constantly chasing new customers.• Long-term client relationships are built through trust, transparency, and consistent communication.• Scope creep isn’t always a problem — when handled correctly, it can become a growth opportunity.• Sales professionals act as translators between clients and internal teams.• Companies with long sales cycles must develop better ways to measure progress and reward persistence.Chapter Markers:0:00 Welcome to Beyond The Deal0:30 Introduction to Charlie Skinner 3:30 Charlie's background and founding Infinite Vision5:30 Building engineering teams and serving biotech and medical companies7:00 Sales vs account management: the traditional debate10:00 Why salespeople should remain involved after the deal13:30 Penetrating large enterprise accounts17:30 Why companies struggle with the hunter vs farmer model21:00 Preventing scope creep and managing client expectations25:00 Managing internal and client conflict29:00 Compensation structures for long sales cycles36:00 The challenge of measuring progress in enterprise sales38:00 Final Wrap Up Beyond The Deal podcast, Jill Yahnite, Charlie Skinner, account management strategy, enterprise sales strategy, sales leadership, account penetration, B2B sales relationships, business development strategy, product development consulting, engineering services sales

In this episode of Beyond The Deal, host Jill Yahnite sits down with attorney and entrepreneur Rocco Cozza, founder of the Cozza Law Group. Rocco shares his journey from the traditional corporate world to building a thriving firm grounded in authenticity, strategic growth, and empathy.
They dive deep into how business owners can step outside the frame — gaining clarity, aligning people and processes, and building real freedom as leaders. Rocco also opens up about the mindset shifts that helped him transform his career and guide clients through major pivots.

Guest Introduction:
Rocco Cozza is the founder of the Cozza Law Group and a strategic advisor helping founders build sustainable, scalable companies. With over 20 years of experience in corporate law and entrepreneurship, Rocco has counseled hundreds of business owners through growth, culture change, and leadership challenges. His “Step Outside the Frame” framework helps leaders gain clarity, align teams, and reclaim freedom in their businesses.

Key Takeaways:
• You can’t grow your business if you’re stuck inside the frame—clarity and alignment must come first.
• Most business problems boil down to people, process, and culture—not unique circumstances.
• Authenticity and direct honesty build deeper trust than polished sales tactics ever will.
• Social media, especially Instagram, can humanize professional brands when you lead with vulnerability.
• True leadership means creating freedom—for yourself and your team—by letting go of control.
• AI is a powerful tool, but it should enhance your skills, not replace them.

Chapter Markers:
0:00 Intro
0:11 Guest Introduction – Meet Rocco Cozza
2:40 Leaving Corporate and Starting Cozza Law Group
5:20 Identifying Opportunity and Redefining Legal Services
7:00 The Shift to Strategic Advising
10:20 Rocco’s “Step Outside the Frame” Process
13:40 Common Patterns in Business Owner Struggles
14:50 Finding Clients Ready for Change
15:30 How Instagram Became His Most Powerful Business Tool
18:30 Building Trust and Showing Authenticity Online
19:10 Leading with Empathy and Honest Communication
20:10 Training Teams and Creating Client-Centric Culture
22:00 Lessons Learned in Business Transformation
23:00 The Role (and Risk) of AI in Modern Business
24:30 Closing Thoughts and Takeaways

Keywords:
Jill Yahnite, Rocco Cozza, Beyond the Deal, Cozza Law Group, business transformation, leadership, entrepreneurship, legal services, business advising, adapting business strategy, strategic consulting, business growth, Instagram marketing, mindset shift, AI in business