From Paramount CCO to a Flatline: What a Near-Death Taught Me About Scaling | Travis Pomposello

In this episode of Season 2 of The Owner Seat – formerly The Valisights Podcast – Fractional CFO Albert Ramos sits down with Travis Pomposello, a creative leader who’s lived multiple professional lives at the very top of media and then chose to completely redefine what success looks like.Travis is the former Chief Creative Officer at Paramount Global, Co-Founder of EPIX, and Founder of Bella Vita Creative, where he scaled his agency past $5M+ in revenue serving clients like Netflix and Amazon. He’s also awarded more than $100M in contracts to agencies — so when he talks about what scales and what quietly kills a shop, it’s from both sides of the table.But the real turning point is what happened after all of that: a near-death, flatline moment that forced him to confront burnout, identity, and what actually matters. Today, through the Creative Agency Accelerator and his mentorship work, Travis helps agency founders scale with systems instead of chaos, and build businesses that don’t destroy their health or relationships.In this episode, we dig into:What 30+ years across MTV, Nickelodeon, Letterman, Discovery, EPIX, and Paramount taught Travis about storytelling and leadershipThe “quiet killers” of agency growth – and how to fix them before it’s too lateThe real playbook for going from $500K to $5M+ without burning every bridge (or yourself)How a flatline on an operating table changed his definition of success, ambition, and energyWhy systems, not hustle, are the real driver of long-term creative growthHow to protect creative integrity while chasing big contracts and big logosThe mindset shift founders in their 40s and 50s need if they’re afraid to start overIf you’re an agency owner, studio founder, or creative leader trying to scale without losing your health or your voice, this conversation will hit home.🔗 Work with Albert / Get the PlaybookWant to be on the show or explore working with Albert Ramos?→ Book a CFO Strategy Callhttps://calendly.com/albertramosjr-strategointel/youtube-podcast→ Apply to be a guest on The Owner Seathttps://calendly.com/albertramosjr-strategointel/youtube-podcast📘 Get the Stratego CFO Playbook→ Download the free Stratego CFO Playbook for Fitness & Wellness Brands and see how Albert builds 13-week cash flow, unit economics, and AI-powered finance systems:https://forms.gle/eJEEtCPdQ3tkWqb96🌐 Connect with Albert→ Connect on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/albertramosjr/→ Learn more about Fractional CFO services for fitness, wellness, HALO, and multi-location brands:https://www.strategointel.com/If you’re a $1M–$30M fitness, wellness, HALO, or multi-location operator and you’re serious about fixing cash flow, cleaning up QuickBooks, and getting real finance strategy (not just bookkeeping), this is where you plug in.👤 About the Host – Albert RamosAlbert Ramos is the Founder of Stratego Intel Consulting, a Fractional CFO firm built for fitness, wellness, HALO, and multi-location brands. He helps owners and finance leaders:Fix cash flow leaks with 13-week cash forecastsClean up and rebuild their QuickBooks + finance stackUse AI to automate reporting and forecastingBuild investor-ready financials for growth, M&A, and roll-upsAlbert has led $200M+ P&Ls, overseen 200+ locations, and managed 3,000+ employees across the fitness and wellness ecosystem — blending financial precision with AI so owners can scale without losing control of their numbers.