Ajax Health

$200 billion on the balance sheets of the big Medtech acquirors. Good news for the LSI community of investors and innovators, right? Yes. But as Duke points out, you still "need to prove you can execute." This was such a fascinating session. I had read about Duke Rohlen's / Ajax Health thesis on "The Middle Path to Innovation" but this talk by Duke and moderated by Mano Iyer at LSI Europe last month really brought it to life for me. For anyone interested, the full session can be found in the world's largest open source video library of medtech-focused innovation and investment content here: https://lnkd.in/efHgcqT9

🎥 “Learn it and return it” – Empowering Future Leaders with the Ajax DRIVE Program   At Ajax Health, we recognize that elite athletes possess unique qualities that translate powerfully into business leadership: grit, performance under pressure, and the ability to unite teams toward ambitious goals. Through our partnership with Stanford University's Athletic Department, we're creating bridges between athletics and business so these future leaders can combine what they’re learning in their sports and in the classroom to set themselves up for impactful careers.   I believe in “Learn it and return it”—the skills we develop should not stop with us but should be shared to empower others. I love how Duke Rohlen and the Ajax team embody this mission, showing what it means to live with purpose and a competitive spirit. They developed DRIVE to come alongside these promising student-athletes, helping them apply the discipline, resilience, and teamwork they honed as athletes to future careers in business and leadership. It’s inspiring to watch these students’ transformation. As they transition from student-athletes to professionals, the lessons they learn today will shape the organizations and communities they will lead tomorrow. 🌍 Here’s to investing in their growth today—because the future belongs to those who are prepared to lead it. 🚀 #AjaxHealth #LeadershipDevelopment #FutureLeaders #Mentorship #StudentAthletes #LearnItAndReturnIt

The ABCs of LSI Europe ‘24 — Today’s letter of the day is “K” for Keynote Here’s a recap of all 3 Keynotes from each day of LSI Europe ‘24: 🔑 Day 1 Keynote — With Todd Brinton, MD, Chief Scientific Officer & Corporate Vice President at Edwards Lifesciences - Moderated by Josh Makower, Co-Founder and Director of the Stanford Mussallem Center for Biodesign. A champion of cardiovascular innovation and a practicing clinical cardiologist, Dr. Brinton has deep ties to the Medtech community as a founder, board member, and advisor to several startup companies, including his role as physician founder, board member, and chief medical officer of Shockwave Medical, Inc. (SWAV). 🔑 Day 2 Keynote — “The Path to Middle Innovation”, with Duke Rohlen, CEO and Managing Director of Ajax Health - Moderated by Mano Iyer, Partner in the Sofinnova Partners MD Start Strategy and Founder of Recor Medical. Duke’s Keynote is based on his recently published thesis, "The Middle Path to Innovation," published in the Harvard Business Review. He discusses strategies for developing high-growth products in slow-growth companies and present the growth driver model—a framework that partners corporations with external investors to identify and develop innovation opportunities, drawing on corporate resources and talent and externally recruited entrepreneurs. 🔑 Day 3 Keynote — “The TechMed Movement Has Arrived”, Alan Cohen, General Partner at DCVC Alan's Keynote is based on his recently published thesis "The TechMed Movement Has Arrived." Drawing from his experience with groundbreaking TechMed companies like Proprio and Caption Health, Alan explored how the TechMed movement will revolutionize healthcare. Stay tuned for the full video recordings of each of these Keynotes which will become available in the coming weeks. PS: Registration is now open for LSI Europe ‘25 next September 7th - 11th in London. Secure your spot today to take advantage of our best rates and secure your hotel room onsite.

Welcome to Ajax, Carla Jung! Carla will expand the commercialization capabilities of Ajax’s growing platform portfolio with her 24 years of experience as an award-winning sales leader at two of the industry’s top companies, Boston Scientific and Medtronic. Ajax Health, backed by KKR, partners with leading medtech companies to establish dedicated platforms focused on aggregating and developing medical device assets within a specific therapeutic area of interest into high-growth portfolios. With her extensive commercial expertise, Carla will create enormous value across these new platforms. We look forward to the impact she will create in our ecosystem! Read more: https://lnkd.in/e9Dc9EQC

Medical device innovation is notoriously challenging but several companies, including Smith+Nephew, Hologic, Inc., and Ajax Health, have found new ways to drive innovation. I’m excited to moderate a panel at The MedTech Conference on October 15 with John Rogers, Essex David Mitchell, and Duke Rohlen to learn about the new models they've implemented to drive medtech innovation and how we can apply these models more broadly to revolutionize our medtech industry. #MTC24 #MedTechCon #KPMG

Join Ajax Health's Luke Rohlen and Cordis' Greg Schiffenhaus at Innovation Summit San Diego 2024 in the panel session "The Ajax Model: A Middle Path to Innovation." Successful innovation in medtech remains a challenge as the process is becoming more polarized with large companies continuing to focus primarily on incremental advances, while venture capitalists are looking for transformational home runs. This panel will discuss a different approach that Ajax has developed, which it calls the growth driver model, explaining how this strategy has revived innovation in Cordis, a large medtech firm.  🎙️ Stephen Levin, Editor-in-Chief of Market Pathways, will be moderating the discussion featuring these esteemed panelists on Wednesday, November 20 from 3:50-4:30PM: Luke Rohlen is an Associate at Ajax Health, an investment firm that operates dozens of companies in the healthcare technology sector. He is also a Director of Business Development at Cortex, an electrophysiology company focused on the diagnosis and treatment of atrial arrhythmias, and a Project Manager for Cordis-X, an independent innovation engine dedicated to delivering transformational products to Cordis. Greg Schiffenhaus is a Director and the Chief of Staff to the CEO at Cordis, a global leader in cardiovascular and endovascular technologies. In this role, Greg supports the CEO and broader leadership team in shaping, managing, and executing key strategic initiatives that drive value across the organization. Welcome to #InnovationSanDiego, Luke and Greg! Climb the Summit to MedTech Innovation November 19-21, 2024 at The US Grant Hotel in San Diego, California to easily connect and network with the industry's top key players without the typical conference hurdles. Register today: https://bit.ly/4gBjKW6 Duke Rohlen Aftab Kherani Garheng Kong Jared Teo Basile Montagnese Cason Kynes Sarah St. Laurent Casey Dougan Gustavo Gurgulino George Adams Chris Bingham Lorin Kalpic Monique Rochard - Marine CMM CMP CTSM Denise Clemons Hite Lilly Green

In just one week, Duke Rohlen will take the stage as our day 2 keynote speaker at LSI Europe ‘24 in Sintra, Portugal. Duke Rohlen is a serial entrepreneur and currently serves as CEO and Managing Director of Ajax Health, a turnkey growth solution for commercial-stage Medtech companies. Ajax Health specializes in developing comprehensive product portfolios that can be seamlessly integrated into a commercial framework. Prior to Ajax Health, Duke co-founded and served as the Chairman and CEO of EPIX Therapeutics (acquired by Medtronic in 2019), served as co-founder and CEO of Spirox (acquired by Entellus in 2017), co-founded and served as CEO of CV Ingenuity (acquired by Covidien in 2013), served in a variety of roles at FoxHollow Technologies before being named President where he led the sale of the company to ev3 (now Medtronic) in 2008. The Keynote will be moderated by Mano Iyer, Partner in the Sofinnova Partners MD Start Strategy and Founder of Recor Medical. Mano was also among the co-founders of the original MD Start team that incubated companies including CorWave and LimFlow. Duke’s Keynote will be based on his recently published thesis, "The Middle Path to Innovation," published in the Harvard Business Review. He will discuss strategies for developing high-growth products in slow-growth companies and present the growth driver model—a framework that partners corporations with external investors to identify and develop innovation opportunities, drawing on corporate resources and talent and externally recruited entrepreneurs. This Keynote will take place on September 18th (Day 2) at LSI Europe ‘24 in Sintra, Portugal.

Looking to stay ahead of market trends and build a high-performance company? Ajax Chief Medical Officer and Managing Director Aftab Kherani will be participating in the featured panel on "Navigating the MedTech Investment Landscape" at AcuityMD's #Flywheel2024 event along with Greg Banker (Vensana Capital) and Erik Anderson (Hologic, Inc.). They will discuss how companies can: - effectively attract and secure funding from inception through to market entry and beyond. - align with larger organizations and better position themselves for successful exits or accelerated growth. https://lnkd.in/eBMSh-RR

“The job of a CEO is to raise money, and then get a return on that money.” For Duke Rohlen and the Ajax Health team, every investment decision begins with an assessment of the company's strategy. Before diving into the details of technology, operations, or management, they need to know how the company is going to create liquidity. As market conditions evolve, the ability to identify and execute on multiple pathways to monetize a business—whether through partnerships, roll-ups, or private equity funding—has become essential. CEOs who prioritize these strategies are better equipped to navigate the complexities of today’s market, positioning their companies for sustained growth and successful exits. Catch the full panel, “Medtech Buyouts by Private Equity” now available on our website and YouTube channel. Featured Panelists: • David Uffer (Moderator) — Trinity Life Sciences • Antonio Sánchez-Cordero — ARCHIMED • Duke Rohlen — Ajax Health • Erich Wolff — Partners Group You can hear more from Duke Rohlen, CEO and Managing Director of Ajax Health, at LSI Europe '24 where he will be giving a Keynote Presentation based on his recently published thesis, "The Middle Path to Innovation," published in the Harvard Business Review. He will discuss strategies for developing high-growth products in slow-growth companies and present the growth driver model—a framework that partners corporations with external investors to identify and develop innovation opportunities, drawing on corporate resources and talent and externally recruited entrepreneurs.

We welcome our lead investor Omega Funds and new investor Intuitive Ventures, and are grateful to our existing investors including founding investor Cleveland Clinic Innovations, Ajax Health, Broadview Ventures Inc, Longview Ventures, Aperture Venture Partners, JobsOhio Growth Capital Fund, CincyTech and our unnamed strategic investor. Saoussen Ben Halima, PhD Claudio Nessi Marla Jalbut, MD, MBA Murielle Thinard McLane Jotthe Kannappan Vijay Rajasekhar, MD, MBA Vivian Emmely Golfin, MD JD Friedland Zach Eisen Duke Rohlen Aftab Kherani Doug Koo Shane Kreidel Daniel Gottlieb Maria Berkman, MD Anthony Natale, M.D. Eric S. Tatyana Hower Steph Ison Samuel Lee, MD, MBA Ashley Keating Anthony Caparso John Sam Bhavesh Patel Rabih Nassif Andrew Wu