119 | From Royalties to Rocket Fuel: Building Profitable Franchise Systems | Michael Iannuzzi

Michael Iannuzzi, Partner and Franchise Practice Leader at Citrin Cooperman, joins host Brendon Dennewill to unpack the financial and operational fault lines that quietly derail growing franchise systems. From the tension between top-line and bottom-line incentives to the infamous "100-unit ceiling," Michael brings a practitioner's lens to unit economics, royalty self-sufficiency, and the decisions leaders delay until it's too late. If you're scaling a franchise brand and wondering when to rebuild your systems, hire your next leader, or fire yourself from your current role, this episode delivers the framework. What You'll Learn • Why franchisors and franchisees have competing financial interests • The metric that signals when real growth begins • What the "100-unit ceiling" looks like in practice • When to fire yourself as a founder • How to build a tech stack from day one • What private equity actually looks for in a franchise system • The rule of threes and tens in franchise growthResources Mentioned • IFA (International Franchise Association) (https://www.franchise.org/) • Restaurant Leadership Conference (https://informaconnect.com/restaurant...)   • Franchise and Fitness Conference (Chicago) (https://www.franchisetimes.com/fitnes...)   • Citrin Cooperman Franchise Practice  (https://www.citrincooperman.com/Indus...) • QuickBooks (https://quickbooks.intuit.com/) / XERO (https://www.xero.com/us/xero/)   • FDD (Franchise Disclosure Document)  (https://msaworldwide.com/about-franch...) • Franchisee Advisory Council (FAC) (https://www.franchise.org/2013/03/a-s...)   • The Rule of Threes and Tens - Growth framework referenced by CEO of Rakuten (https://articles.sequoiacap.com/the-r...)   Is your business ready to scale? Take the Growth Readiness Score (https://www.denamico.com/growth-readi...) to find out. In 5 minutes, you’ll see:  • Benchmark data showing how you stack up to other organizations • A clear view of your operational maturity  • Whether your business is ready to scale (and what to do next if it’s not) Let's Connect • Subscribe (https://revopschampions.denamico.com?...) to the RevOps Champions Newsletter • LinkedIn (  / denamico  ) • YouTube (   / @revopschampions4909  ) • Explore the show at revopschampions.com (https://revopschampions.denamico.com?...) .  Ready to unite your teams with RevOps strategies that eliminate costly silos and drive growth? Let's talk! (https://www.denamico.com/?utm_campaig...)