CXO Exchange Temecula Valley — Peer Powered, Collectively Intelligent Agility

Why

It's lonely at the top — especially in the messy middle.

Leading a "Big Small" company is its own discipline. You're past the bootstrapping phase, but you're not yet swimming in big-company resources. Decisions are close to the bone. Culture is personal. The need to future-proof your leadership isn't abstract — it's existential.

71%

of US CEOs experience imposter syndrome

Korn Ferry, 2024 — 10,000 respondents

65%

of senior executives report "facing a massive number of challenges simultaneously"

Korn Ferry, 2024

100 → 200

local leaders in the room in 2025 · targeting 200 in 2026 — doubling the peer-leadership footprint of the valley

CEO/C-Suite Summit · Wilson Creek Winery

“The energy in the room is palpable. A lot of people think your C-Suite executives have it all figured out — and you're just kind of reminded that there's challenges out there. You're not alone in it. You've got peers that you can lean on.”

— Adam A. Ruiz, Vice President, Rincon Strategies · at the 2025 Summit

“I learned the challenges of leading Big Small companies the hard way. I've sat in your seat, with first-hand experience of your agility challenge. I know the eco-system of support I wish I'd had. That is what we are dedicated to providing locally — because sharpening the judgment of a hundred Big Small leaders moves the valley's economic needle in a way no single company ever could.”

— Mike Richardson, Serial CEO, Facilitator, Coach, Partner, REF Global · Convener, CXO Exchange

What

Filling the void of a local support eco-system.

We engage the collective intelligence of our local community — for the mid-market of "Big Small" companies and corporations. Four interlocking pillars, woven together by a monthly cadence of peer forums.

◇

Community

Our LinkedIn group and growing local network of CEOs, C-Suite executives and senior leaders.

◇

Events

An annual CEO/C-Suite Summit at Wilson Creek Winery, plus quarterly gatherings throughout the year.

◇

Incubators & Labs

Working sessions on the issues that matter most — starting with the AI Incubator (June 2026).

◇

Monthly Forum

Confidential, peer-advisory style forums where leaders go deep on real challenges with peers who get it.

"Peer Powered, Collectively Intelligent Agility … to be Future-Proofed." That's the promise — built on the formula Collective Intelligence = Artificial Intelligence + Human Intelligence.

Who

For peers, with peers, by peers — of "Big Small" companies.

This is built for the mid-market: leaders running businesses that are too big to be small and too small to be big. Decisions are personal. The realities of leadership hit hard. That's where we live.

What we mean by "Big Small"

Big-Big Big enterprises with big-company resources.

            Big-Small
            This is us. The mid-market — past startup, before enterprise. The messy middle. You're past the startup bootstrapping phase but not yet swimming in big-company resources. You are in the mid-market of too big to be small and too small to be big. This is the messy middle, where the stakes are high and the realities of leadership hit hard. Decisions are close to the bone. Culture is personal. The need to future-proof your leadership isn't abstract — it's existential. You've got real revenue, real responsibility and real people counting on you. Leadership here isn't theoretical, it's practical, personal, and urgent. It is your sharpest competitive edge.
          

Small-Small Small businesses and start-ups bootstrapping.

Who's at the table

CEOs, Presidents and Founders of mid-market companies
C-Suite executives — COO, CFO, CHRO, CTO, CRO, CMO
Senior leaders with full P&L or function ownership
Owners and operators of "Big Small" companies headquartered or operating in the Temecula Valley

Invitation only. We curate the room so every conversation is among true peers.

Where can you go locally to keep yourself sharp and on the cutting edge? Where you are confident that you will be rubbing shoulders with peers who can relate to your challenge? Where you can tap into a local community of collective intelligence? This is a community for business leaders, with business leaders and by business leaders of "Big Small" companies and corporations like yours — without the need to travel to San Diego, North Riverside County, or Orange County / Los Angeles.

Co-hosted by the REF Temecula/Murrieta CEO Peer Forum

A founding circle of local CEOs and presidents who anchor the community.

Mike Richardson

CEO, Facilitator, Coach
REF Global

Ryan Christopherson

President
Unified Orthopedics

Katelyn Gilmore

General Manager
Paradise Chevrolet Cadillac

Kim Kelliher

President
Grapeline Wine Tours / Stryder Transportation

Jason Kendall

President
Kendall Farms

Tammy Marine

CEO
Habitat for Humanity Inland Valley

Jeff McClain

President
Patriot Pipeline

Ross McCune

President
Caisteal Builders

Brooke Nunn

CEO
Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce

Heather Sanford

CEO
Mission Hope

Colton Telford

Co-Founder & CEO
Oili

Greg Thomas

General Manager
Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District

Scott Thornton

President
Temecula Winnelson

Jim Toth

Franchise Owner
Chick-fil-A Temecula

Bill Wilson

CEO
Wilson Creek Winery

Convened by

Mike Richardson

Chairman of the Board of Wilson Creek Winery (a Big-Small company itself), serial CEO of high-technology companies (most recently running the Aerospace Division of a British public company), and for the last 20 years a facilitator, coach, author and keynote speaker working with CEOs, C-Suite executives and senior leadership teams of mid-market companies and corporations globally — specializing in Agility (Enterprise Agility, Organizational Agility, Leadership Agility) — to be future-proofed, in business and life.

Resident of Temecula for 13 years, in SoCal for 25, originally from England. Mike anchors his work in governance boards, advisory boards and peer-advisory boards — initially with Vistage for 15 years, now with REF (Renaissance Executive Forums) locally in Temecula/Murrieta and globally.

"I'm passionate about helping CEOs, C-Suite executives and senior leaders future-proof their leadership with agility, collective intelligence and the power of peers — and doing it locally, at a scale where the compounded effect on Temecula Valley's economy becomes real."

How · Where · When

How we gather, where we meet, and what's on the calendar.

Our flagship is the annual CEO/C-Suite Summit at Wilson Creek Winery. Around it, we run quarterly gatherings, focused incubators and monthly peer forums.

Tuesday · November 17, 2026

Annual CEO/C-Suite Summit

Where: Wilson Creek Winery, Temecula · Time: 10am–6pm

Theme: Unlocking Potential

A full day of TED-style talks, expert-facilitated breakouts, a moderated panel of local CEOs, and curated networking — for peers, with peers, by peers.

See the Summit page →

Monthly

REF Temecula/Murrieta Monthly Forums

Format: Confidential peer-advisory forums

Standing monthly forums for CEOs, next-gen leaders, operations leaders, HR leaders and more — bring your real issues, get peer challenge, leave with clarity and momentum.

See the Monthly Forums page →

Coming Soon · Quarterly

Community Gatherings

Format: Mixers, panels, and roundtables across the Valley

Lower-commitment touchpoints to keep the community connected between flagship events.

Past · Tuesday · June 23, 2026

AI Incubator

Where: Temecula Valley

For: CEOs, C-Suite, and senior leaders ready to put AI to work in their business

A working session on practical, "Big Small"-ready applications of AI — moving beyond the hype to what's actually shipping inside member companies.

Headline Speaker

Riley Stricklin

"How AI Transforms Business — One Use Case at a Time!"

Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer at Cadre AI · OpenAI & Anthropic Enterprise Partner. Serial entrepreneur, previously Co-Founder / President / CEO of Lume Cube (Kickstarter to $100M+ lifetime revenue). cadreai.com →

Accelerants — in the room

We were joined by local expert Accelerants — the resources who can support and accelerate your progress with AI inside your own business.

Vivian Welsh

Co-Founder & CEO
Vivians.io — AI & CRM

Jeran Fraser

CEO of FLAG50
AI Trailblazer & Consultant

Andrew Yoshikawa

Co-Founder & CEO
TETHiK — AI & EdgeTech

Robert Welsh

Co-Founder & VP Technical Services
Vivians.io

Past · Wednesday · November 19, 2025

The Inaugural CEO/C-Suite Summit

Where: Wilson Creek Winery, Temecula · Theme: Agile Leadership in the Era of Collective Intelligence

100 CEOs, C-Suite executives and senior leaders convened at Wilson Creek Winery for a full day of TED-style talks, expert-facilitated breakouts, a moderated panel and curated networking — including a visit from Temecula's 2025 Mayor, Brenden Kalfus. Watch the 90-second recap at the top of this page.

Watch the 90-second recap

Headline Keynote

Keynote: Agile Leadership in the Era of Collective Intelligence (= AI + HI) — to be Future-Proofed

Headline Speaker

Mike Richardson

"Agile Leadership in the Era of Collective Intelligence (= AI + HI) — to be Future-Proofed."

Convener of CXO Exchange Temecula Valley, Partner with REF, Chairman of the Board of Wilson Creek Winery, and career serial CEO of global high-technology businesses. For 20+ years Mike has worked with governance boards, advisory boards, and peer-advisory boards — his greatest passion — coaching leaders to future-proof their organizations with agility. mikerichardson.live →

Hosting Coalition

A growing coalition of community organizations across the valley supporting this initiative for the economic impact it can have on our region: stronger local leaders, stronger local companies, a stronger regional economy.