

Steve O’Loughlin’s Optimistic Vision for St. Louis
In this episode of Fast Forward STL, Keith Alper sits down with Steve O’Loughlin, president of Lodging Hospitality Management (LHM), Missouri’s largest hotel operator, with 19 hotels and more than 5,000 rooms; plus Westport Plaza, St. Louis Union Station, several restaurants, and a growing portfoli…

Adam Birenbaum on St. Louis’ Financial Industry
In this episode of Fast Forward STL, host Keith Alper sits down with Adam Birenbaum, chief executive officer of Focus Partners Wealth. Adam shares his intern-to-CEO story at the St. Louis-based wealth management firm, explains why comprehensive financial planning beats old-school brokerages, and we…

WashU Olin and St. Louis’ Future ft. Mike Mazzeo
In this episode of Fast Forward STL, host Keith Alper sits down with Mike Mazzeo, dean of WashU Olin Business School. Hear about his journey from Stanford-trained economist and longtime Northwestern professor to university leadership during the rapid changes of 2020. Mazzeo outlines WashU Olin’s pr…

Constructing a Comeback: Rusty Keeley’s Vision for St. Louis
In this episode of Fast Forward STL, host Keith Alper sits down with Rusty Keeley, CEO of Keeley Companies and new chairman of the Regional Business Council. Keeley shares how he grew his father’s asphalt paving business into a diversified empire topping 5,000 employees, employing a “fail fast, fai…

From St. Louis to Global Tech Leader ft. Jim McKelvey
In this episode of Fast Forward STL, host Keith Alper sits down with St. Louis native Jim McKelvey, co-founder of Block (formerly Square), to talk about the lessons he’s learned from building a global company and how those ideas apply beyond business. From launching Mira and co-founding Third Degre…

Building Big Tech in St. Louis ft. David Karandish
In the debut episode of Fast Forward STL, host Keith Alper interviews David Karandish, an accomplished entrepreneur and CEO of Capacity, an AI-driven support automation platform. David shares his entrepreneurial journey from his early ventures to selling a company for nearly $1 billion and discusse…

Welcome to Fast Forward STL
Fast Forward STL is a business and innovation podcast hosted by entrepreneur, investor, producer, and CEO of The Nitrous Effect companies, Keith Alper. Each episode features leaders, entrepreneurs, and innovators doing remarkable work connected to St. Louis and the greater region. Together, they ex…