Sunrise Labs executes succession plan | Personnel Moves - April 5, 2018

Medical device and life science development group Sunrise Labs said this week that it completed its succession plan, with president Eric Soederberg acquiring the majority of shares in the company through a stock sale with founder and board chair Drew Sunstein.

With the transaction, the Bedford, N.H.-based company said that it secured its planned ownership succession, and added that founder Sunstein will retain a minority stock position in the company and will remain active within it. Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Soederberg joined Sunrise in 2008, and prior to joining served as a programs executive director at KMC Systems. He also held positions at DEKA Research and Development, and helped lead the development of the iBot mobility system.

“I love working with innovators who are charged-up about developing a new device that will redefine the current standard of care, and in the process make the world a better place. At Sunrise we believe open and honest partnerships with our clients result in long term relationships and success after success,” Soederberg said in a prepared statement.

ResMed lifts Ghoshal to newly created CTO position

ResMed (NYSE:RMD) said this week it hired former Brightree COO Bobby Ghoshal as its first chief technology officer.

In the newly created position, Ghoshal will lead the company’s informatics and data analytics team as it continues its foray into cloud-based digital health platforms and emerging technologies, the San Diego-based company said.

“Bobby has played several key roles in ResMed’s emergence as a world-leading connected health company this past decade, and we’re excited to appoint him as our new CTO. I have worked with Bobby for many years and he has incredible energy, integrity, intelligence and an always-learning attitude that will guide ResMed’s emerging competence in artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep neural networks and other data analytics technologies to change the lives of millions more patients,” CEO Mick Farrell said in a prepared statement.

Ghoshal served as COO at Brightree after ResMed acquired it in April 2016, having previously served as information technology VP at ResMed..

“I’m excited to lead ResMed’s extraordinary healthcare informatics team to help drive the value of connected health, leveraging the power of technology and data for the hundreds of millions of people who suffer from sleep apnea, COPD, and related chronic diseases worldwide,” Ghoshal said in a press release.

ResMed’s healthcare informatics team was previously led by Raj Sodhi, who currently serves as software-as-a-service biz prez, the company said.

“I’m excited for Bobby’s return to the ResMed team. With Bobby as CTO, I can be fully focused on expanding the capabilities of ResMed’s SaaS solutions for out-of-hospital care, while Bobby leads the next level of tech innovation, investments and partnerships that will take our digital health capabilities to new frontiers, for the ultimate benefit of patients, physicians, providers and payers,” Sodhi said in prepared remarks.

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Smith & Nephew names Nawana as CEO

Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN) said this week it tapped former Alere (NYSE:ALR) head Namal Nawana as its new CEO, replacing former head Olivier Bohoun who announced plans to retire from the position last October.

Nawana will take the reins on May 7, when Bohoun will step down from the board. The London-based company said that Bohoun will serve as an advisor during the transition.

“In Namal I am delighted that we have secured an exceptional new chief executive with a proven record within the medical device industry. He has the experience as a CEO of a major listed company in the healthcare sector, and has demonstrated that he can energise businesses to deliver better performance and greater value to shareholders. We are looking forward to him joining our board and driving Smith & Nephew to the next level of success. I would also like to thank Olivier for his service. In his seven years as chief executive, Smith & Nephew has undergone important and necessary change and he has significantly strengthened the foundations of our company. This has delivered strong value to shareholders, almost doubling the share price and materially outperforming the FTSE100, whilst also increasing the dividend distribution by more than 100%. On behalf of the board and all of Smith & Nephew I wish him a happy retirement and all the best for the future,” board chair Roberto Quarta said in a press release.

Australian-native Nawana took over as CEO at Alere in 2014 after founder and then-CEO Ron Zwanzinger stepped down.

Nawana had previously served as COO of Alere, and had previously held various leadership positions with Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) over a 15-year tenure. During his time at the head of Alere, Nawana helped guide the company through its $5 billion acquisition by Abbott (NYSE:ABT), which closed last October.

“I am passionate about the medical devices industry where I have worked all my life and it is an honour to become the new chief executive of Smith & Nephew, a company I greatly admire. I am most excited by its portfolio of innovation which I believe gives an excellent platform from which to drive the business forward into its next exciting chapter,” Nawana said in a prepared statement.

Vascular Insights said last week it tapped current controller and finance director Lisa Gruttadauria as its new chief financial officer.

The Quincy, Mass.-based company said that Gruttadauria has more than 12 years of experience in finance and human resources within the medical device industry, and that she served with early-stage medical device companies in start-up phases before joining Vascular Insights.

“I’ve had the pleasure to be a part of this venture from an early stage, and proud to have helped support its sustained growth and expansion into new markets. I am delighted to join the leadership team in this role and look forward to Vascular Insights’ continued success,” Gruttadauria said in a prepared statement.

Medtech industry group AdvaMed said last week that it named IlluminOss Medical exec chair Martha Shadan as the board chair of its AdvaMed Accel group, with a two-year term.

The groups AdvaMed Accel division is specifically focused on smaller medtech firms and developers, AdvaMed said. Shadan has served on the Accel board since 2015, and on the AdvaMed board since 2017.

“Health care systems in the U.S. and around the world face enormous challenges providing the high-quality care patients demand and innovation – the kind emerging medtech companies create everyday – are meeting those challenges head on. I know the value our innovations provide, and we need to make sure policies are in place that foster that innovation. I am proud to lead AdvaMed Accel at this exciting time, when we are on the verge of so many breakthroughs that will fundamentally improve patient care,” Shadan said in a press release.

“Martha is a true visionary in the medtech field, and AdvaMed Accel is fortunate to have someone with her experience and leadership abilities at its helm. With over 30 years of experience in the industry, including serving as President and CEO for Rotation Medical as well as senior executive positions at Zimmer and Covidien, Martha understands every aspect of the innovation ecosystem from capital formation to demonstrating value to providers,” AdvaMed Accel investor relations global head Ashley Wittorf said in a prepared statement.

Shadan succeeds Cohera Medical CEO Patrick Daly, who has served as Accel board chair since 2016.

“Patrick has worked tirelessly to revitalize the medtech innovation ecosystem and to increase opportunities for capital formation. He has left in place a profound legacy, ensuring that smaller medtech companies have a strong voice within the association,” Wittorf said in prepared remarks.

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