Spotlight on BLOOM Media Co. Client Melissa Franks

Melissa Franks is a seasoned business strategist, Fractional COO, podcast host and speaker, and transformation leader with a track record of scaling businesses and driving operational excellence with a people-first approach that mobilizes teams for unprecedented results. A former Fortune 500 executive and OnCon Icon “Top 100 COO” Winner (2022-2024), she has led billion-dollar IT transformations, M&A initiatives, and revenue growth strategies, blending corporate expertise with small business agility. As the founder of On Call COO, she empowers female entrepreneurs by optimizing operations and increasing profitability with her knack for helping business owners break through growth plateaus, implement scalable strategies, and build profitable, sustainable companies. Passionate about women in leadership and business innovation, Melissa is also an advocate for high-performing women, helping them design lives they love while achieving balance and success. She is a strong voice for domestic violence awareness and family court reform. When not strategizing, she enjoys running, traveling, and cheering on her three sons at their sporting events.

Personal Story + Origin 

What inspired you to start your business/work in your field?

I have always been curious about how things work, “why” is my favorite question.  This curiosity helped me build a portfolio career in corporate that ultimately led me to the C-suite by the time I was 40.  In 2020 and 2021 many of my female peers left traditional roles to start their own endeavors and they failed one after another.  When I asked “why” I saw an alarming trend, 1 bad piece of business advice led them to failure and I knew that if they had been able to partner with somebody credentialed and seasoned that really knew what to do their outcome would be different.  In 2023 I started On Call COO to be just that, support for the female owned and led small businesses, ensuring they had the answers they needed when they needed to overcome obstacles and unlock exponential growth.

Was there a defining moment that made you realize you were meant to do this work?

There are many.  Whether it was providing a co-CEO the peace of mind to step away from the business to have her 3rd child and return to her a business that had grown successfully, or two different small businesses I helped earn $1M in one day, or the mom of 2 under 4 that was working around the clock and with some simple adjustments she got her evenings, weekends and Friday’s back and doubled her annual revenue in just 30 days or the CEO that recently said, “we were staring down bankruptcy until you came in to save us” it is hard to say which was THE moment.  What has become apparent is that every owner and business is unique and their problems are not.  Simple, steady solutions give them their life back, grow their businesses, and allow me the personal flexibility to do what I love while also being a single mom to 3 boys.

What’s one lesson from your personal or professional journey that has shaped how you show up in your business today?

Always say yes.  I grew my career by saying yes to every opportunity even if I had no idea what they were asking of me.  I graduated college with a BA in English Literature from a small state college, I had no business in operations or technology, yet every opportunity gave me the chance to learn and evolve. When I stacked those experiences on top of each other I was able to do things I never thought possible.  

The thru line is a story of resilience.  I vividly remember after getting myself to Global Executive in the largest financial services company in the world at 38, I was sitting in the Luftsana lounge with another executive, a mentor who I trusted.  He said to me “you will never get any further than where you are right now unless you go back to an Ivy League college and get an MBA.  You don’t have the C-Suite pedigree.”.  I was shocked and then disappointed in him, that he thought so little of me that he had arrived at that conclusion.  And then I became fighting mad.  I had never wanted to be a COO until that moment, and while we sat there in opulence about to board a 9 hour flight in first class (which was routine at that point), but he lit a fire in me.  And two years later, I sent one simple email to him, it said “I may not have the credentials or the Ivy League MBA, but I do have three little letters after my name now, COO.”  

How did your background or past experiences prepare you for what you do now?

I trained for 25 years to be here.  I learned how to build businesses, how to turn around businesses, how to take calculated risks and when to exit fast.  More than that, I learned how to read people.  I can tell you within moments of meeting somebody what their business blindspots are, and what they are gifted in business.  I can assess a business in an hour and tell you where it’s winning and losing and what it will take to get the business to the next milestone.

I learned this all while making deals in multi-billion dollar companies and now I take the skills I perfected and help small business owners reallize their dreams.

What’s the story behind your business name/brand name?

On Call COO was born from the overwhelming need small business owners have to just call an expert and be told what to do.  A business doesn’t need a full time COO until it achieves $20+ million (and even then it is dependent on the business model), however for businesses to get there they need expert help along the way.  On Call COO was born to fill the gap.  Whether an owner just needs to be able to text or call and ask or question, or they need daily support running their business, On Call COO is just that, On Call and available to help in anyway that is needed.

If you could go back to the very beginning of your career, what’s one piece of advice you would give yourself?

Perfect is a waste of time.  I am a high achiever and in the first decade of my career that translated into a drive for perfection and being the best.  It made me competitive and isolationist, paranoid and a work-a-holic.  When I learned to relax and allowed room for some things to be good enough, I began to rapidly advance through the ranks.  Why?  Because I had time for human connection, to build relationships and a network and to persuade.  I learned the nuance of business and that ultimately is what lead to my success.

Was there ever a moment when you thought about giving up? What kept you going?

What I didn’t realize about getting the the C-Suite was that somebody is always gunning for you.  I thought, once I arrived the battle was over, what I didn’t realize was I just entered another war.   You see, I was a COO in a tech company, and it was me, and 10 white guys, and we had DEI metrics that meant I couldn’t go unless they replaced me (or one of them) with another woman.  So that meant opportunity was scarce and every woman that got near me wanted my job.  It was lonely and complex and high conflict.  And many days I wanted to quit, to give up the fight, to lean into the sorrow that I had that I didn’t have an equal seat at the table, that I still had to work twice as hard for half the opportunity. It was demoralizing and frustrating and I learned I could trust no-one.  And during that period of time, I knew it wasn’t sustainable or healthy.  I gave myself a goal, make it 3 years and then you have the credentials and you can do what you want.  And I held myself to that promise.  At the 3 year mark, I hired a resume writer, I worked with a placement team and I plotted my exit strategy because I was unwilling to let all that work go to waste.

What’s something most people don’t know about your journey to get where you are today?

I never knew what I was doing, I was just really good at figuring it out.

Who has had the biggest influence on your career or business journey and why?

My first real corporate job was in retail, working at Gap Inc.  And the cool thing about that company is that a disproportionate number of women were executives. From day 1, I saw that it was normal and expected that woman would steer and be empowered to make decisions.  There were so many woman back then I can’t pick just one, but I was able to watch first hand as they were moms and powerhouses, married and single and could balance it without sacrifice.  They showed my by doing and living that I could have a big out loud role in a company and also have the family I dreamed of.  Without them, I likely would have ended up either immensely successful and single, or a homemaker, because since then I have not had a moment where I have had another woman show me the way.

What do you wish people understood about the work you do?

It takes skill, expertise and humanity.  I can’t teach what I know, I can’t train somebody to “be me”, it has taken me 25 years to learn, perfect and fail to understand truly what is needed to grow a business and have a life.  Nothing I do is cut and dry, you can’t simply implement a best practice or process or framework without also understanding how to adapt, adjust and be creative to achieve the results you are after.

Thought Leadership + Expert Positioning 

What’s the biggest misconception people have about your industry/work?

That a Fractional COO and a business coach are similar.  A Fractional COO is multi-faceted and is a business strategist, and operational practitioner and an integrator.  A Fractional COO may mentor and guide, at it’s core however, the work is productive, measurable and impactful to the business, its employees and it’s customers. By comparison, a business coach has developed a method, framework that is one dimensional.  That is one size fits all.

What’s one trend in your industry that you’re most excited about right now?

Monetizing expertise.  For many years small businesses were started to address a perceived gap in the marketplace by individuals that had an interest and not skill.  Today, many small businesses are born by bringing expertise to the marketplace, be it service providers, main street businesses or businesses selling tangible goods, the founders are beginning with a wealth of knowledge and as their businesses grow they know they need to surround themselves with complimentary experts. The quality of the small business landscape is improving because the caliber of the small business owner has as well.

What’s a piece of advice you find yourself giving to your clients/customers over and over again?

You aren’t supposed to be good at everything.  Nobody starts a business to run a business.  Identify what you are best at and hire people to help you with the rest, because they will be better and faster than you.

If someone is just starting out in your industry, what’s the #1 thing they should focus on?

Quality of delivery.  Satisfied clients pay dividends, they bring referrals, they open doors and they help you gain clarity about who you do and do not want to work with.

What’s one thing you’ve learned the hard way in your business/career that you wish more people knew?

Having a healthy network that is ever evolving is critical.   You just never know when you will need to ask for help.  Whether it is a job, an expert to help you solve a problem, a reference, you just never know.  Nurture your relationships, stay in contact with everybody and offer help whenever you can.

What do you believe sets you apart from others doing similar work?

I am an individual. I provide individualized services, my business is not a staffing agency.  We verify that we can help a business before we make a proposal and if it isn’t a good fit we say it.  Those that work on behalf of On Call COO work together across accounts, forming a brain trust to collaborate and ensure the highest quality of support is always provided.  There is no competition or fight for business, there is a genuine care for the entrepreneur and a willingness to help.

What’s one thing you wish the media would cover more in your industry?

Female owned and led businesses and how their operating models while different than traditional corporations are the future of doing business.  Woman lead and grow businesses differently and it is why they are winning in the small business space.

If you had a microphone to reach millions of people, what’s the message you’d share?

Take the risk, the worst thing that will happen is you will fail.  Stop letting what if win.

What’s the biggest challenge you’re seeing your clients/customers face right now, and how are you helping them navigate it?

There are two.

Understanding their business financials, fixed expenses and how to pull levers in their business to increase profit margin.  Simply, we create a budget.  We go line item by line item through every expense, determine if it is a must or a nice and once we know how much it takes to run the business, then we build the revenue plan.  Most businesses are operating at a loss or barely breaking even and the fastest way to increase profit margin is to define and operate within a budget.

Staff management.  Many business owners don’t know or understand employment law, can’t afford an attorney or a HR consultant and struggle to define roles, hire qualified individuals and manage performance.  And most hate doing it, so they avoid it.  The solution?  Hire somebody to do it for you.

What’s one unpopular opinion you have about your industry?

Just because somebody calls themselves a COO, CMO, CFO, etc. doesn’t mean they are actually qualified to be one. In today’s world anybody can give themselves a job title, its work experience and credentials that will tell you if the person in front of you is really deserving of the C or if they are just a specialist with a fancy title.

Media Readiness + Visibility 

Why do you think your story or expertise is valuable to the media right now?

My story has 2 dimensions, the professional and personal.  In today’s media you get one or the other.  A woman that overcomes the odd’s to become a business powerhouse, or a woman who fights through battles in her personal life to come out the other side.  But what about the women that are fighting wars on both fronts, at home and at work?  Who do they have to look up to? To be inspired by?  To learn from?  I think I fill that gap.

If you could land a feature in any media outlet, which one would be a dream come true — and why?

Dream podcasts would be Mel Robbins, Rachel Hollis or Oprah. Why?  Because my story of resilience and rebirth professional and personally will be meaningful and impactful to their communities.  I believe we could have a transparent and authentic conversation.

Dream TV Media - Today Show/GMA, Kelly Clarkson - all of these to tell the same story inspire others as th podcasts listed above.

Dream TV Media - Business Segment on CNN, CNBC, (left leaning media no Fox news) - recurring segment where I can speak directly to the small business community and provide detailed, specific actionable insights.

What’s one topic you feel uniquely positioned to speak about in the media?

Female perspective on the small business landscape.

How to navigate parenthood and business ownership.

What’s a headline you’d love to see written about you or your business?
Meet the Growth Architect Helping Women Entrepreneurs Build Stronger, Smarter Businesses

 From Chaos to Clarity: Melissa Franks’ Planning System Unlocks Growth for Entrepreneurs

Melissa Franks is the Business Insider You Need to Follow for No-Nonsense Growth Advice

The Real Talk CEO: Melissa Franks Breaks Down What Women Entrepreneurs Need to Succeed in Today’s Economy

Challenging the Status Quo: How Melissa Franks is Using Business to Drive Meaningful Change

If you were invited to speak on a major podcast or TV show tomorrow, what’s the core message you’d want to share?

You can achieve success even amongst uncertainty.

How do you hope being featured in the media will impact your business or mission?

Will bring new clients to the business, and I will be able to broaden my impact improving the small business landscape and inspiring women to take brave action.

What’s one question you wish interviewers would ask you — and how would you answer it?

"What makes your approach to business growth and operations different from everyone else?"

What’s something you’ve been dying to share publicly but haven’t had the platform to do so yet?

I would like to be more transparent and speak to high performing women about domestic violence and abuse in our marriages and the tactics that can be used to get out.

What do you want people to remember most about you and your work?

That my mission is to see more female owned businesses succeed.  For me it isn’t about building an empire it’s about enabling millions to leave an impactful legacy.

Fun + Personality-Driven 

What’s your morning routine or daily ritual that keeps you grounded?

I wake up hours before my house and drink a lot of water and a cup of coffee in silence.  I read the news and find one piece of news to share with my community everyday. The quiet time is my sanctuary. As a single mom of 3 boys those few hours are all I get that are truly mine.

What’s one song that would be the soundtrack of your life right now?

This Girl is on Fire - Alicia Keys

If you could have dinner with any 3 people (living or deceased), who would you choose and why?

Maya Angelou - her work has left a profound impact on my life and I just want more of her.

Michelle Obama - can I be her best friend?  The combination of down to earth, direct and inspiring would allow for a full night of laughs and ah ha moments.

Kamala Harris - I want to talk about everything with her for days on end.

What’s your guilty pleasure when you need to unwind?

True crime documentary’s and podcasts.  Reading, literally anything that will catch my attention.  Crime, thriller, fantasy, rom com, I am an avid reader generally reading 3-5 books at one time.  And reality tv, give me a housewives show and then offer to talk with me about it - SOLD.

What’s one book, podcast, or piece of content that has had a profound impact on you?

Rachel Hollis - Girl Stop Apologizing changed my life.  Her podcast in fact and her subsequent books, all transformational. I found her when I was at my lowest point.  I had just been physically assaulted by my husband significantly and nobody knew.  I was trapped and scared and had no way to leave.  I was worried he would kill me and she gave me strength.  Strength to pick myself up, to make a plan to wait.  Nothing she said or wrote explicitly gave me the game plan, but she was the friend in my ear, literally that stayed with me.

What’s your personal mantra or quote you live by?

Affirmation - I am so lucky, everything works out for me as intended.

Anything is possible as long as I don’t give up.

If you weren’t doing this work, what’s an alternate career you’d love to pursue?

I would have been a lawyer.  Law and justice is my first love and often I think about making the pivot.

How do you stay inspired when things get tough in your business?

I stop and write down everything good that is going on and that I am grateful for.  Gratitude always centres me and inspires me to keep going.

What’s one thing on your personal or professional bucket list right now?

Landing a recurring TV media opportunity.

What’s something surprising or unexpected about you that most people don’t know?

I don’t really have any friends.  My marriage isolated me and all of a sudden I looked up at 46 and there was nobody.  It’s something that I am now putting energy into because it’s been way  too long.

Call-to-Action 

Where’s the best place for people to connect with you or learn more about your work?

My website: www.melissafranks.com or Instagram @melissa_franks

What’s the #1 thing you want people to know about your work/business right now?

The business is growing and we are looking for more clients.  We support businesses that are $3M+ with Fractional COO Services and have options for businesses below that threshold as well that need an On Call COO.

How can people support you or your mission today?

Connecting with me on social, subscribing on YouTube and listening to my podcast.  Referrals too - love those!

Do you have any upcoming launches, events, or news you’d like to share?

Nothing at this time.

What’s the best way someone can collaborate or partner with you?

Email me at melissa@melissafranks.com