By Jeffrey Hayzlett
I love sitting down with founders who aren’t afraid to challenge the status quo. On a recent episode of All Business, I had that kind of conversation with Maxim Razmakhin, Founder and CEO of Resident, a man who has built, invested, analyzed data, competed as a Division I athlete, and now is taking on one of the biggest questions facing business leaders today: Where and how should we work?
Maxim isn’t just opening office space. He’s trying to redefine the role of community in business performance. And whether you agree with his model or not, his perspective offers some important lessons for CEOs and founders navigating this next era of leadership.
There’s No Single Path to Entrepreneurship
Maxim’s journey to entrepreneurship was anything but traditional. Born in Russia, immigrating to the U.S. as a teenager, competing at a high level in tennis, and then moving into data-driven roles before founding multiple ventures, he learned early that success doesn’t come from following a playbook.
In fact, one of his biggest lessons came from running multiple ideas at once early in his career. Like many founders, he discovered that passion without focus can dilute momentum. His takeaway? If you want to build something meaningful, you have to commit.
That’s advice I’ve seen proven time and again. Businesses don’t fail because leaders lack ideas; they fail because leaders lack disciplined execution.
The Broken Promise of Coworking
Coworking was once one of the hottest concepts in business infrastructure. The idea of flexible workspaces, shared environments, and built-in collaboration made perfect sense especially for startups and growing companies.
But somewhere along the way, the experience lost its soul.
Maxim believes many coworking operators focused too heavily on square footage, leases, and scale and not enough on the human experience inside the space. The result? Buildings full of people but not communities.
His concept of a “company club” is rooted in a simple belief: proximity doesn’t create connection; intentionality does.
And he’s right about one thing. A trusted community is one of the most powerful accelerators in business. I’ve seen it firsthand with CEOs across industries. When leaders surround themselves with peers who challenge them, support them, and share values, performance improves. Culture strengthens. Growth accelerates.
Remote Work Isn’t the Whole Answer
Let’s be honest, remote work changed the game. It gave companies flexibility, expanded talent pools, and forced leaders to rethink operations.
But Maxim raised an important point: many teams are now feeling isolated, disengaged, and disconnected from both leadership and each other.
You can’t build culture entirely through screens. You can’t spark every breakthrough over video calls.
There’s something powerful about face-to-face interaction, unexpected conversation, shared energy, and the accountability that comes from being physically present. Leaders don’t just build companies through strategy. They build them through relationships.
That doesn’t mean remote work disappears. It means the smartest organizations will find the right balance.
Curating Culture Is a Leadership Skill
One of the most fascinating aspects of Maxim’s model is his insistence on curating membership. Not based on industry or status alone, but on mindset.
He looks for ambition. A give-first mentality. Respect for others’ time. Transparency.
In other words, he’s designing an environment where values drive performance.
That’s something every CEO should think about not just when building a physical space, but when building a company.
Who you let in matters. Who you keep matters even more.
Great leaders understand that sometimes the hardest decision is saying, “This isn’t the right fit.” Not because someone isn’t talented, but because alignment fuels momentum.
Data Matters but It Doesn’t Decide Everything
Maxim’s background in economic data and venture development gives him a strong analytical lens. But he was quick to admit that relying solely on data led to one of his biggest failures.
The numbers said a product would succeed. Reality said otherwise.
That’s a reminder for all of us. Data informs decisions; it doesn’t replace judgment. Leadership still requires instinct, experience, and the willingness to take calculated risks.
The One Non-Negotiable
When I asked Maxim what founders should prioritize when building culture, his answer was immediate: transparency.
In early-stage environments especially, there’s no room for politics, hidden agendas, or fear-driven silence. Teams need clarity. They need honesty. They need leaders who create psychological safety, not just performance pressure.
And here’s what I’ve learned over decades in business: when leaders build organizations grounded in values, everything else gets easier. Employees engage. Customers trust. Partners lean in.
Values don’t slow growth. They enable it.
What I Took Away
Every episode of All Business teaches me something. From my conversation with Maxim Razmakhin, the lesson was clear:
Community isn’t a perk.
It’s infrastructure.
In a world obsessed with speed, scale, and digital transformation, the companies that win will be the ones that remember business is still deeply human.
Leaders who intentionally build environments, physical or cultural, where ambitious people connect, challenge each other, and grow together will create organizations that don’t just survive change; they shape it.
Watch the full episode of All Business with Jeffrey Hayzlett, live from the New York Stock Exchange
