MedTech Trailblazers

Allan Will is one of the founding architects of the medtech industry. Raised by parents who were outspoken supporters of equality and human rights, his desire to help people, passion for science, and business acumen came together in an early job helping Abbott Labs expand into interventional medicine. Just five years later, he was leading DVI, one of the first atherectomy companies, from a 16-person team to a 600-person powerhouse. With a leadership style marked by a patient-centric focus, high expectations, relentless questioning, and an emphasis on authenticity, he helped bring forth industry-changing products including the first minimally-invasive solution for mitral valve regurgitation, the first non-drug approach to reduce high blood pressure, and the first clot retriever for ischemic stroke. Over his 40+ year career, Allan has served as CEO of eight Bay Area venture and private equity-backed startups; visionary and founder of The Foundry; founder or co-founder of 12 companies, including Evalve, Ardian and Concentric Medical; founding general partner at Split Rock Partners; and named inventor on over 30 patents.  In this episode, Allan rejoins Andrew Cleeland to discuss what made him the leader he is today, his career superpowers – leadership and mentorship – and his advice for others in the industry. Don't miss part 2 of Allan's remarkable story.

Allan Will is one of the founding architects of the medtech industry. Raised by parents who were outspoken supporters of equality and human rights, his desire to help people, passion for science, and business acumen came together in an early job helping Abbott Labs expand into interventional medicine. Just five years later, he was leading DVI, one of the first atherectomy companies, from a 16-person team to a 600-person powerhouse. With a leadership style marked by a patient-centric focus, high expectations, relentless questioning, and an emphasis on authenticity, he helped bring forth industry-changing products including the first minimally-invasive solution for mitral valve regurgitation, the first non-drug approach to reduce high blood pressure, and the first clot retriever for ischemic stroke. Over his 40+ year career, Allan has served as CEO of eight Bay Area venture and private equity-backed startups; visionary and founder of The Foundry; founder or co-founder of 12 companies, including Evalve, Ardian and Concentric Medical; founding general partner at Split Rock Partners; and named inventor on over 30 patents. While he is proud of all of these accomplishments, he most proud of having mentored countless Bay Area medtech CEOs and in particular, having been honored with the Astia/Deloitte Excellence in Mentoring Award for mentoring women executives. Don't miss part 1 of Allan's remarkable story.

Sam Conaway is the president of U.S. Cardiology Sales for Boston Scientific and the chair of the company's Close the Gap program, which seeks to eliminate treatment disparities in underserved populations. He has been recognized as one of the most influential Black executives in corporate America (SAVOY Magazine), and in healthcare (BlackDoctor.org), and was the first recipient of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation's "Pulse-Setter Leader Award" for his commitment to advancing health equity. Sam's road to these achievements, however, was littered with obstacles that could easily have been roadblocks. Sam grew up poor, in a rough neighborhood in Baltimore. Strong family values and athletic ability might have been a way out until an injury ended his baseball prospects. He ended up working in the laundry room of Washington Hospital Center. There, his strong work ethic and passion for learning were noticed and rewarded with opportunities to advance, starting with an invitation to attend the cardiac catherization program at the hospital's School of Nursing.  Determined to always do the best he could with whatever job he had, Sam used this opening to launch a stellar career as a top device sales rep, then manager, then company and diversity leader. In this episode, Sam discusses stumbling over his lack of formal education on his way to leadership positions; getting his associate's degree and then an MBA (during Covid!); his personal work ethic; the sale of Guidant to Boston Scientific/Abbott; and his work in health equity, which started with the observation that "... there weren't a lot of Black people on the table getting pacemakers and defibrillators." Sam also describes the career high of receiving the Pulse-Setter Leader Award from his mentor, Dr. Marty Leon. Don't miss part 2 of Sam's remarkable story.

Sam Conaway is the president of U.S. Cardiology Sales for Boston Scientific and the chair of the company's Close the Gap program, which seeks to eliminate treatment disparities in underserved populations. He has been recognized as one of the most influential Black executives in corporate America (SAVOY Magazine), and in healthcare (BlackDoctor.org), and was the first recipient of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation's "Pulse-Setter Leader Award" for his commitment to advancing health equity. Sam's road to these achievements, however, was littered with obstacles that could easily have been roadblocks. Sam grew up poor, in a rough neighborhood in Baltimore. Strong family values and athletic ability might have been a way out until an injury ended his baseball prospects. He ended up working in the laundry room of Washington Hospital Center. There his strong work ethic and passion for learning were noticed and rewarded with opportunities to advance. Sam seized those opportunities and ran with them, setting in motion an unstoppable career as he overcame obstacles from a lack of higher education to racism. Along the way, he not only developed the self-confidence to embrace any new challenge, but found his life's work building programs to improve healthcare for underserved populations. Don't miss part 1 of Sam's remarkable story.

Kendal Whitlock is a problem solver. In her current position as the Head of Digital Optimization, RWE Clinical Trials for Walgreens Boots Alliance, she is working to make it possible for all patients to participate in medical research, regardless of where they live, through decentralized clinical trials and enabling digital technologies. In this second episode of a two-part interview with Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation, Kendal describes her career path, explains Walgreens' "game changing" approach to clinical trial recruitment, and reflects on learning from failure and being true to what is really inside.  

Kendal Whitlock is a problem solver. In her current position as the Head of Digital Optimization, RWE Clinical Trials for Walgreens Boots Alliance, she is working to make it possible for all patients to participate in medical research, regardless of where they live, through decentralized clinical trials and enabling digital technologies. Kendal's journey has always been about leveraging her passion for scientific evidence with her desire to be a bridge between that information and the communities and people who need it. Shaping her path has been a series of influential mentors – from her 7th grade health teacher – the first Black teacher she ever met – who explained complicated topics like cancer by "breaking them down like fractions," to health industry leaders who championed her desire to solve inequities in drug development and access to care. In this episode, Kendal joins Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation, to describe her career path, share lessons learned, and envision the next generation of clinical trials.

In this second of two parts, serial innovator and entrepreneur Mir Imran rejoins Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation, to discuss his reluctant path through medical school, the inspiration that led him to develop the first automatic implantable cardiac defibrillator, how he views innovation and chooses problems to solve, and the stories behind the founding of Ventritex and Rani Therapeutics. Mir has spent 40 years developing and commercializing breakthrough medical technologies that have saved millions of lives. He has founded more than 20 life science companies including Ventritex, Cardiac Pathways, Percusurge and most recently, Rani Therapeutics. Most of these startups have been acquired by larger companies or gone public.

Mir Imran has an insatiable interest in unsolved clinical problems and a relentless entrepreneurial drive. The result has been a 40-year career developing and commercializing breakthrough medical technologies that have saved millions of lives. Mir has helped shape the medical device industry, founding more than 20 life science companies including Ventritex, Cardiac Pathways, Percusurge and most recently, Rani Therapeutics. Most of these startups have been acquired by larger companies or gone public. In this episode, Mir joins Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation, to share the insights he's gained over his remarkable career, what drives him to identify problems, and the people and events that have shaped his approach to innovation.

World-renowned physician, venture capitalist and prolific entrepreneur, John Simpson, MD, rejoins Andrew Cleeland to discuss the impact he's had on the future generation of medtech innovators. Credited with inventing and commercializing the first over-the-wire balloon catheter used for percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) and helping to create the field of interventional cardiology, John also founded and successfully exited numerous companies, including Advanced Cardiovascular Systems (ACS) and Devices for Vascular Intervention (DVI), which were both acquired by Eli Lily; CVIS, acquired by Boston Scientific; Perclose, sold to Abbott; LuMend, acquired by Cordis Corporation; and Fox Hollow, acquired by ev3, which is now part of Medtronic. Today, he continues to innovate in his work as a senior advisor to Cordis-X.

A husband, father, world-renowned physician, venture capitalist and prolific entrepreneur, John Simpson, MD, has helped revolutionize the field of cardiology via his innovations.   Credited with inventing and commercializing the first over-the-wire balloon catheter used for percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) and helping to create the field of interventional cardiology, John also founded and successfully exited numerous companies, including Advanced Cardiovascular Systems (ACS) and Devices for Vascular Intervention (DVI), which were both acquired by Eli Lily; CVIS, acquired by Boston Scientific; Perclose, sold to Abbott; LuMend, acquired by Cordis Corporation; and Fox Hollow, acquired by ev3, which is now part of Medtronic. Today, he continues to innovate in his work as a senior advisor to Cordis-X. Andrew Cleeland had the pleasure of chatting with John to learn more about his career as a serial entrepreneur as well as his insights on what it takes to drive innovation.  

Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation, welcomes back world-renowned cardiologist Dr. Marty Leon, a visionary leader who has shaped the worldwide practice of interventional medicine. Dr. Leon is professor of medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC), Director of Columbia Interventional Cardiovascular Care and of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, founder and Chairman Emeritus of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation, and the driving force behind the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) conference. In this episode, Dr. Leon shares further insight into the later stages of his career and future aspirations.

There is virtually no aspect of the cardiovascular health ecosystem that hasn't been impacted by the work of Dr. Marty Leon, professor of medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC) and a legendary interventional cardiologist whose many roles and accomplishments have had an indelible effect on the practice of cardiology and the medtech industry. Dr. Leon's dedication is reflected by the many hats he wears, including Director of Columbia Interventional Cardiovascular Care and Director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories. He is also the founder of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation and the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) conference. In this episode, Fogarty Innovation CEO Andrew Cleeland had the pleasure of chatting with Dr. Leon to learn more about the factors that shaped his life and career.

While he needs no introduction, it's always an honor to list Dr. Tom Fogarty's many accomplishments over his nearly eight-decade career as one of the medical device industry's most prolific inventors. Dr. Fogarty has had a profound and lasting impact on patients, on healthcare, on innovation on our industry and many of its leaders. As an internationally-recognized cardiovascular surgeon, inventor, entrepreneur and vintner, he has dedicated his entire career to improving patient care and is named on over 200 medical device patents, including the "industry standard" Fogarty balloon catheter, which nearly 60 years later is still being used to save the lives and limbs of more than 16 million patients. Andrew Cleeland had the pleasure of sitting down with his mentor, Dr. Fogarty, to explore several themes: resilience and perseverance, a sense of curiosity and the importance of mentoring.

Dubbed as a "walking encyclopedia of medtech experiences, innovations and impact," Hanson Gifford, CEO and managing director of The Foundry, has been directly involved with or founded over 30 companies in the past 40 years. In this episode, he rejoins Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation, as he shares his views on teamwork, investing, digital health and the future of our industry.

Hanson Gifford, CEO and managing partner of The Foundry, is perhaps best known as a co-founder of this iconic Silicon Valley-based incubator that has blazed the path for numerous successful medtech companies, developing cutting-edge treatments that address a broad range of large, unmet clinical needs. In this episode, he joins Andrew Cleeland as he shares lessons learned from his youth, his earliest jobs and launching The Foundry.

Jan Garfinkle, founder and managing partner of Arboretum Ventures, rejoins Andrew Cleeland as she shares the reasons behind launching the firm and the grit it took to get the company started. Jan also discusses the pivotal role she played at the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) to help ensure venture-backed startups could apply for PPP loans during the pandemic, and why the creation of Venture Forward, which promotes diversity in venture funds and portfolio companies, is so important to her.

Jan Garfinkle, founder and managing partner of Arboretum Ventures, has played a key role in multiple foundational companies in the medtech industry. Today, she supports the early-medtech ecosystem at the firm with a mission that is similar to Fogarty Innovation's: driving down the costs of healthcare through innovation. Arboretum has invested in 60 portfolio companies, which collectively employ 5,000 people and help over 10 million patients, making a remarkable impact on human health and our economy. Jan joins Andrew Cleeland as she shares insights behind her successful career.

Paul Yock, MD, has had an unparalleled career as an accomplished physician, innovator and educator. In retrospect, Paul is proudest of the Stanford Biodesign program trainees, many of whom have gone on to lead health technology start-up companies, found innovation training programs, become faculty members of major universities, or return to clinical practice with a new understanding of how to evaluate and solve problems in care. Learn more about Paul and the organization he formed, as he rejoins Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation.

"In addition to the vast impact his inventions have had, I believe Paul's multifaceted legacy will be kept by his influence on the innovators of today and generations well into the future." The iconic Paul Yock, MD, joins Andrew Cleeland as he provides a glimpse into his stellar career as an accomplished physician, innovator and educator. Paul is the Martha Meier Weiland Professor of Medicine, founding co-chair of Stanford's department of bioengineering and founder of the Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign. He is known for his inventions that have improved care for millions of people around the world, including the Rapid Exchange stenting and balloon angioplasty system and the Smart Needle. Resources: Fogarty Innovation: www.fogartyinnovation.org MedTech Trailblazers podcast: www.medtechtrailblazers.libsyn.com Paul Yock, MD, bio: www.profiles.stanford.edu/paul-yock Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign: www.biodesign.stanford.edu

Josh Makower, MD, rejoins Andrew Cleeland as he shares his experience working at Pfizer, breaking new ground by launching ExploraMed, and coming full circle as co-founder and now director of Stanford Biodesign.