Petaluma strategist Melissa Franks to speak on founder bottlenecks and donate $1,000 scholarship

Melissa Franks, founder of On Call COO, will speak in Petaluma on Aug. 11 at an event hosted by the Petaluma Young Woman's Club and announce a $1,000 scholarship donation. Her talk will focus on how women leaders can break the cycle of carrying every decision themselves and build more scalable businesses.

Why it matters: - The event centers on a common growth problem for women founders: businesses can stall when every decision still depends on the founder. - Franks is pairing the talk with a $1,000 scholarship donation, linking business leadership with direct support for women in the community.

What happened: - Melissa Franks, a Petaluma-based fractional COO, business strategist, speaker and founder of On Call COO, will present at “Women Who Lead: An Evening with Melissa Franks.” - The Petaluma Young Woman's Club is hosting the event on Tuesday, Aug. 11, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. - Franks will speak on “The Founder Bottleneck: Why Everything Runs Through You (and How to Fix It).” - Franks will announce a $1,000 scholarship donation on behalf of On Call COO. - The event is free to attend. - RSVPs are due by Wednesday, Aug. 5, at courtney.kimble@n2co.com. - Attendees should note whether they need a vegetarian or vegan dinner option. - Full details are available in the event listing.

The details: - Franks is a Sonoma State University graduate and a former Fortune 500 executive. - Franks has been named an OnCon Icon “Top 100 COO” three times. - Her background includes billion-dollar IT transformations, M&A work and revenue growth strategies. - On Call COO was created to help entrepreneurs, especially women, move past growth plateaus and build scalable, sustainable businesses. - Franks’ talk will focus on women leaders who wear every hat, solve every problem and feel like everything depends on them. - Franks plans to share strategies for building systems, increasing trust and leading in ways that let both the leader and the business thrive. - Franks said founders often treat being the bottleneck as proof they are indispensable. - Franks said the goal is to help women leave with a path to building businesses that do not depend on them for every decision. - Franks is also a podcast host and a speaker. - Franks’ broader work includes helping female entrepreneurs increase profitability and design more balanced lives.

Between the lines: - The scholarship announcement adds a community-facing angle to a leadership talk that otherwise focuses on operational discipline and scaling. - The message reflects a broader push among women’s leadership events to connect personal empowerment with concrete business systems, not just motivation. - Franks’ local roots in Petaluma give the event a hometown feel and may help widen its relevance beyond a standard professional speaking engagement.

What's next: - Franks will speak at the Aug. 11 event in Petaluma. - The scholarship donation will be announced at the event. - The Petaluma Young Woman's Club will likely use the evening to build momentum around women’s leadership and local networking. - Franks’ website is melissafranks.com.