Free Workshop: From Scrappy Founder to Scalable CEO

The Stage Between Making It and Actually Making It

Sound familiar?

You're doing $5M–$20M in revenue but still operating like you did at $1M
Your team is growing but every decision still runs through you
You're the bottleneck you keep trying to hire around
People keep telling you you're "crushing it" — and you smile while running on fumes
You know you need to lead differently but nobody's showing you how
You're comparing yourself to founders who seem to have it figured out

There's a name for this stage. Mark calls it Founder Puberty — that difficult, awkward transition between being the scrappy founder who built the thing and becoming the strategic CEO the business actually needs.

You can't skip it. But you can navigate it with a lot less collateral damage.

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What Founder Puberty actually is

Why every company between $5M and $20M hits the same invisible wall — and why it's almost never about the market or the product.

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Why the founder is usually the bottleneck

The skills that built the company are the same ones now holding it back. Mark will show you exactly how this plays out.

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The shift from operator to strategic CEO

What it actually looks like in practice, not theory. The daily decisions, the identity shift, the things you have to let go of.

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What investors see that founders can't

The patterns Mark spots from the other side of the table that tell him whether a founder has made the transition — or is still stuck.

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How to start navigating the transition now

The first moves that create space for everything else. Plus a live Q&A where you can ask Mark anything.

Meet Mark

Your Host

Mark Rampolla built ZICO Coconut Water from a van and a crazy idea — sparked during his time as a Peace Corps volunteer in Costa Rica — into a global brand acquired by Coca-Cola for over $200 million. A 1 in 10,000 outcome in the beverage industry.

Then he did something most people thought was insane: he bought it back. And now he's doing it again.

After ZICO, Mark co-founded GroundForce Capital, a $700M fund, where he's sat across the table from thousands of founders as an institutional investor. He's backed nearly 100 companies, been on 40+ boards, and written two bestselling books — High-Hanging Fruit and An Entrepreneur's Guide to Freedom.

He's been through the founder-to-CEO transition three times himself. He's watched thousands of other founders go through it from the investor's chair. And he keeps seeing the same pattern: brilliant people with incredible businesses stuck in a stage nobody prepared them for.

This workshop is the first time he's teaching this material live.

ZICO: $200M+ Exit to Coca-Cola

Co-Founder, GroundForce Capital ($700M Fund)

Nearly 100 Portfolio Companies

40+ Board Positions

2x Bestselling Author

Forbes 30 Under 30 Mentor

This Workshop Is For You If

You're a founder or CEO doing $5M–$20M in revenue
You have a team of 5–30+ people and the complexity is getting real
You know you need to evolve how you lead — but no one is showing you how
You want to learn from someone who's been on both sides: the founder's chair and the investor's chair
You're ready to hear what's actually holding you back — even if it's uncomfortable

This Is Not For

Pre-revenue startups looking for a launch playbook
Founders looking for growth hacks or "10X" tactics
Anyone who wants to be told what they want to hear

The Details

Workshop Info

Date

Thursday, June 4, 2026

Time

9:00 AM PT — 60-90 min + live Q&A

Where

Virtual (Zoom link sent after registration)

Cost

Free

Register and you'll get the recording even if you can't make it live.

"Institutional capital doesn't back founders. It backs CEOs. What every investor is looking for is the rare founder who's made that transition. Because then we get the best of both worlds."
— Mark Rampolla

The hardest stage in business has a name. Come learn how to navigate it.

June 4. Free. Live with Mark Rampolla. If you're a founder between $5M and $20M — this was built for you.

From Scrappy Founder to Scalable CEO