As an associate at Apollo Global Management, Reed Rayman once considered quitting. He persevered through the brutal all-nighters, the perplexing spreadsheets, and the temperamental bosses who walked the halls of the midtown Manhattan investment firm.

Now 36 years old, Rayman has made it.

He is the chairman of Yahoo, and a partner at Apollo, with a seat on the board of eight different companies. His latest investments have pushed Apollo into a new playing field of tech companies, like the rescue financing of the online-travel-booking website Expedia — a company he and colleagues sunk $600 million into during the COVID-19 pandemic and nearly doubled their money in less than a year and a half.

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His position at Apollo, which manages more than half a trillion dollars in assets, also comes with a certain amount of social cachet. When helping to assemble a new board of directors for Yahoo, Rayman reached into his personal contacts and brought in the actress Jessica Alba to serve as one of its members, alongside the former Hollywood power agent Michael Kives. 

That's aside from compensation, of course.

When Rayman became a partner at the end of 2019, he received a cut of Apollo's profits, positioning him to earn tens of millions of dollars from the sale of companies — a path to extraordinary wealth made possible by management fees and huge paydays when buyers purchase their investments. 

"Reed was functioning as a partner long before he was a partner," said one of Apollo's outside advisors.

This person, with whom Rayman often consults about deals, watched the Harvard graduate rise ever since he joined the firm in 2010 as an entry-level associate from Goldman Sachs. His promotion to partner was announced in late 2019 at Apollo's annual holiday party. "He was always instrumental in helping drive deals to conclusion," the advisor said. 

At Apollo, executives tend to grow up quickly. 

The 9 ½ years it took Rayman to make partner is a faster track than what others experience at private-equity firms. While there is no set timeline for associates to become partners at rival firms like KKR and Blackstone, few if any of their investment professionals can claim to have made partner at age 33, as Rayman did. 

Others at Apollo are similarly situated.

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Rayman is part of a cohort of young executives in their mid-30s who are managing companies and working with investment bankers to chase down deals. In doing so, they are affording themselves luxuries like homes in the Hamptons, where Rayman bought one, with a pool in the back, that Zillow estimates to be worth $4.8 million.

Besides Rayman, there's Aaron Sobel, another 36-year-old who is the chair of the internet and telephone company Brightspeed. 

Sobel, who joined Apollo in 2011 from Goldman Sachs, helped coordinate Apollo's $760 million investment in Legendary, the production company behind the 2021 movie "Dune." He has racked up six board seats and is known for his active engagement with CEOs, sending one of them news clippings to keep him up to date on recent business trends. 

"I only realized as we created some of our official documents that he's 36 years old," said Bob Mudge, the CEO of Brightspeed, with a chuckle. Mudge said that Sobel played a critical role in negotiating Brightspeed's recent acquisition of Lumen, a fiber-optics network, and described his presence behind the scenes as calm and collected through tense negotiations that culminated in a $7.5 billion deal.

"The speed with which he operates is beyond me, yet he has a really good ability to slow down and communicate," Mudge said. 

The third of the prominent millennial dealmakers at Apollo is Robert Kalsow-Ramos, a Morgan Stanley alum who recently snapped up the recruiting company EmployBridge. He visits the company in Atlanta, sometimes brainstorming with its CEO about how to position the business amid economic uncertainty, on top of planning the rollout of layoffs as a result of overlapping operations in a recent merger.

"You don't typically get that — his willingness to go shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the field leaders," Billy Milam, EmployBridge's CEO, said.

These partners largely fly under the radar, with much of Apollo's media glare on the firm's cofounders,including Josh Harris, who owns the Philadelphia 76ers and whose homes away from homes cost in the $30 million range. 

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Insiders, however, believe they represent the future of the firm's private-equity division, a class of investor that comes with outsize status, a healthy ego, and lots of responsibility. 

The firm's website says that its portfolio companies employ some 335,000 workers, and the private-equity team will be responsible for spending billions of investor dollars on new companies as the economy tightens — a task they are gearing up for after years of losing out on deal auctions as other PE firms outbid them, according to current firm members. It's a reality they speak of openly, with a mix of frustration that their investments didn't proceed and pride that they didn't overpay. 

In total, there are only 19 partners responsible for deploying and managing capital from the firm's flagship fund, which has raised $25 billion from investors including state pensions and sovereign wealth funds. The fund recently bought the arts-and-crafts retailer, Michaels, and the operating company of The Venetian, the iconic Las Vegas property.

Through interviews with 35 sources — including current and former executives and employees — Insider took a look at this elite bastion of Wall Street investment professionals. Through their accounts, one can get a glimpse of the bullpen where these young executives honed their financial skills and developed the confidence to manage people nearly twice their age. 

Some of them depicted a high-testosterone workplace where executives yelled at their juniors.

One said that men and women often went to HR — and sometimes cried — complaining about disrespectful words that had been hurled at them by superiors. Several former firm members who worked there throughout the mid- to late 2010s said workplace stress played a big part in why they quit.

"A lot of people wake up and say, 'I don't want to spend my time doing this. I don't care how much you pay me,'" said one former firm member who left Apollo in the late 2010s. "For me it was that calculus." 

Such a nonstop work environment can overwhelm a recent college graduate, as Rayman, Sobel, and Kalsow-Ramos were in the early 2010s, growing up as associates. Some of their former colleagues have tried to make more money elsewhere, such as the hedge funds run by billionaire personalities that Apollo's executives quietly root against.  

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Rayman told Insider that he personally thrives in Apollo's fast-paced work environment. "I do my best work when I'm busy and when I'm challenged," he said. "And I think that would be the case for a lot of the other people who've grown up here."

"It's not for everyone," he added. 

A world that can be jarring to outsiders

One of the biggest reasons Apollo's executives rise so swiftly, according to current and former firm professionals, is that the firm doesn't send its associates off to get an MBA after two years of work — something that happens with some frequency at other private-equity firms.

One might even say there is an anti-MBA sentiment among some of the firm's executives, with one of them noting that the firm doesn't want to hire associates who will leave after a couple years. Instead, the firm hires even entry-level associates with a "long-term" mindset, several people said, attempting to evaluate whether the 20-somethings want to spend their whole career at Apollo.    

None of the three men — Rayman, Ralsow-Ramos, or Sobel — have MBAs.

"Had I gone to business school for two years — so just add two years to my age — do I really think I would be a better investor?" Sobel pondered aloud. "I really don't."

Of the 19 partners who staff the firm's flagship private-equity fund, three have MBAs.

Among those without the postgraduate degree are its two coheads who, like the others, grew up at the firm and learned much of what they know from experience. A broader look at the firm's private-equity-investing operations, which includes adjacent units such as impact investing, showed more than half of 50 partners didn't have MBAs either.

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Sobel concedes that he "might have potentially a bigger network" had he gone to business school, but he would argue that he has built a network of his own through Apollo. 

Once associates are in the door, however, they are introduced to a world that can be jarring to an outsider, with volatile personalities and an always-on mentality in its private-equity group, according to accounts from nine former firm associates, some of whom worked at the firm in recent years and others throughout the 2010s.

"Generally, associates were disposable resources in the eyes of most people there," said one former firm associate who worked at Apollo as recently as 2021. "My seat could be filled, given the gravitas of Apollo. I wasn't going in to make friends. And I wasn't that tight with anyone." 

A second former associate, who worked at the firm in the early 2010s and has remained friends with firm executives, explained that he achieved the respect of his partner only if he "yelled back at him." 

"It's almost like this strange world — it's very competitive, and yet they love each other," this person recalled. "They aren't friends with each other, but they are. They all have this common thing: They were trained the same way, and they have a differentiated way of how they do private equity." 

The culture has evolved over the years and some executives describe its workplace to be collaborative today, with a recent renovation to its offices bringing wellness amenities, such as a gym with classes, mother's rooms and meditation spaces, along with a cafeteria serving breakfast and lunch.

But when Rayman, Sobel, and Kalsow-Ramos grew up there, the firm was a different place. 

Rayman recalled that a single woman made up the entire HR department when he first joined the firm. Associates sometimes dealt with burnout from heavy workloads and demanding bosses by escaping for a walk through Central Park to let off steam, according to the former firm associates. 

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Today, Marc Rowan, the firm's current CEO, said he prioritizes partners when managing the firm's culture. 

"With all the stuff that we heard in the pandemic and the financial-services industry about the associates and the young people, that's not where we focused," he said onstage at a Forbes event in Manhattan this November.

"I decided the single best thing we needed to do was to make sure our partners were happy. And we wanted to be the best place to be a partner in the financial-services industry. Because if your partners are happy, your principals will be happy, and your associates will be well mentored."

Such trickle-down happiness wasn't always how things worked at the firm, according to the accounts of former associates. 

One who worked there in the mid 2010s said that work assignments on weekends and weeknights — regardless of how time-sensitive they were — wore on his mental and physical health, leading to a breaking point when he resigned. 

He said he had developed shingles at age 26 — a development he believed to be related to work stress — and his managers lacked empathy, with one demanding a research assignment but changing his mind the following day, asking him to do something completely different instead. 

"He'll just keep asking you: 'Change it again, change it again,'" he said of one of his former bosses. "It's the intensity, the amount of work he asks about, and how little he cares about you."

When associates resigned, whether it was for a better opportunity or lifestyle reasons, Apollo executives cast them as not being able to cut it, sometimes resorting to name-calling, according to three people who heard the comments firsthand. And when associates stayed at the firm and were promoted to principal, they could sometimes go through a metamorphosis, almost forgetting how they were "treated so poorly" and no longer understanding that they shouldn't carelessly overwork their subordinates, according to the former firm associate who worked there in the mid 2010s. 

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One principal who received internal coaching for his demeanor toward colleagues, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter, was Kalsow-Ramos, who bears a scar down the side of his face from being struck with a glass beer mug in college. 

"I always tell my team, 'Please, you can't miss a comma,'" said one of Apollo's outside advisors, of Kalsow-Ramos's attention to detail. "He's going to read everything." Two current colleagues described him as "intense." Two former colleagues said they witnessed him openly berate a colleague in a way they found to be alarming or inappropriate. 

You wouldn't necessarily know it from meeting him, according to one former colleague who suspected his management style had improved with age. 

"When you are younger, you are so maniacally focused," said this person. "That can waver a little when you are more secure and successful."

In his spare time, Kalsow-Ramos volunteers at the TEAK Fellowship, which helps students from low-income families get into elite high schools and colleges. Lauren Girshon, one of its directors, said Kalsow-Ramos is serving as a coach to two of TEAK's fellows who are college students interested in finance.

"He's all-in," she said.  

Besides his investment in EmployBridge, Kalsow-Ramos is known for his work in the technology space, helping to acquire the IT distributor Tech Data for $5.4 billion, before merging it into a larger firm, rebranded today as TD Synnex. 

Asked about some people's perception of him as intense and demanding, Kalsow-Ramos said that everyone at Apollo is hard-working and that "we are really passionate about what we do."

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"I'm one of such people."

Founder left cultural imprint on the firm

Many sources attributed the firm's competitive culture to the private-equity executive Josh Harris, who held Sunday meetings at his home in the Hamptons so that his team could get a jump-start on the week ahead.  

"By the time Monday morning would come around, they'd be off to the races and everyone else would be coordinating still," said one person familiar with the ritual. "Josh ran these guys ragged."

In recent years, some former firm professionals said that at times Harris swooped in to exert control over deal teams, peppered them with questions, and instilled fear throughout the junior ranks. 

This approach was thought by some to facilitate an ideal environment for seasoning young investment professionals who are told "no" by partners more times than they can count and have to develop thick skin. And the perpetual fear of not knowing something important about their investments was thought to keep investors on their toes and ensure they did their homework before coming to a meeting. 

Theoretically, the scrutiny — as well as internal competition between partners — creates a filter through which investor dollars are siphoned and ensures that Apollo earns good returns on its investments, both for themselves and for clients.

But in practice, some executives felt stifled by Harris' management, according to people who worked at Apollo.

Harris' departure early this year following a management shake-up has given the private-equity division some newfound freedom, according to people who have worked with Apollo's executives. 

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"The speed at which they are moving now are multiples of where they were a few years ago," said one banker. "That is in large part by having one true leader and not having to deal with the intramural politics of having three different owners."

And one former colleague of Apollo's investment professionals said that Harris' departure is particularly good for Rayman and others in his class, in that they hope to introduce new types of investments for Apollo to consider, such as technology deals that may include a growth component.  

Harris declined to comment for this article.

Apollo's young partners have a gentler touch

Others who have worked with Rayman, Sobel, and Kalsow-Ramos believe that the younger generation of partners bring a softer personality to the table.

"There is a brand association with Apollo: really sharp elbows and rough edges," said one banker, who has worked with the firm. "This generation of partners is hardly that. I think they are, when we engage with them, smart, creative, very constructive, very thoughtful and forward-leaning." 

Sobel, for instance, helped coach Leon Black's son on investing when he was an associate. And Joshua Grode, the CEO of Legendary, said he exhibits a thoughtfulness that's not always associated with members of a dynamic boardroom. "One of the terrific character traits Aaron has is that he approaches every conversation with a very open mind," Grode said. "He wants to listen to it, absorb it, and think about it, and not bring his preconception to the conversation."

Rayman, on the other hand, is known for his doggedness, frequently setting up meetings at his favorite sushi spot, Nobu, across from Apollo's office, inside the gleaming and curved skyscraper that Manhattanites know as 9 West. 

His zeal also means that Rayman has received a fair share of needling from colleagues, particularly his lengthy list of contacts, which he has eagerly expanded since he was a student at Harvard, rooming with venture capitalist Joshua Kushner, and working on the school newspaper with Alex Blankfein, the son of Goldman Sachs' then-CEO.     

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Rayman, like others who have become successful in private equity, has sought to capitalize on those kinds of personal connections. One former colleague said he once referenced Ivanka Trump during an internal meeting, given his close relationship with her in-laws, suggesting he could call on her support for a portfolio company. 

It wasn't the only time his network presented an opportunity. 

When Apollo was reported to be considering financing Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter, the opportunity arose, at least in part, because Rayman knew Musk's former chief of staff. And when one of Apollo's portfolio companies, EcoATM, sold a $200 million stake to Cowen's sustainability fund, the deal originated from an old Goldman friend of Rayman's who coheaded the fund.

Despite their accolades, some believe that it is Apollo, the institution, that is responsible for these executives' growth, much more than any individual achievements — a point of view that credits the firm as a talent-grooming machine. Apollo staffs its investment professionals on three-person deal teams and invites associates to participate in investment committee meetings. 

At age 27, when Rayman was still an associate, he joined the board of directors of a public company Apollo owned, and the appointments kept building from there. 

"If it weren't them, it would be some other partners who were roughly the same age," said one former firm associate. 

Another said that many partners discourage individual credit, noting that any media article about Rayman's success would likely be met with colleagues ribbing him about the news coverage.

"I can just see it — they'll say, 'Guys, we're no longer Apollo! We're Rayman Apollo!'" this person said.

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At multiple points in a recent interview, Rayman deflected credit, noting that it was another partner, Marc Becker, who led the 2016 buyout of home-security-alarm maker ADT. His comment played down a former colleague's remarks that Rayman helped source the deal as a principal — a level of involvement his colleague found to be rare for investment professionals that age. And when talking about his investment in Yahoo, Rayman said he doesn't actually run the company, despite chairing its board. 

"We don't run our portfolio companies," he said. "Our CEOs run our portfolio companies. And that's the spirit in which we do everything."

Still, the decision to invest in such businesses will ultimately dictate the respect and support Rayman, Kalsow-Ramos, and Sobel get from their superiors in the future when it comes time to realize their gains or losses.

Even as they seem to be thriving today, many things could stand in their way to further ascension at the firm as the economy shows signs of sputtering, and they have much work to do in managing their investments before selling them at a profit.

"Ten years from now, there may be two different rising stars from that class," said one former firm member. 

"Maybe Reed's deals won't be as good."

Correction: November 21, 2022 — An earlier version of the photo caption with this article misidentified Robert Kalsow-Ramos and Aaron Sobel.  Sobel is pictured left, and Kalsow-Ramos, right, not vice versa. 

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