🔸Inside Orthopedics

You will literally double the effectiveness of these assets. 

This is about career sabotage.  Orthopedic professionals miss out on startup opportunities every day by doing these 10 things. 

Software is slowing eating orthopedics.  Enhatch is exhibit one here. 

Enhatch is a pure software player, but they are not actually eating orthopedics so much as they are making the hardware better (implants, instruments and robots). They are a fast nimble startup, and when COVID hit, they quickly created a new tool called RepVision that enables remote rep support in the OR using a standard iPad.

Enhatch is a truly forward thinking startup in orthopedics.

Enjoy. 

Today, I am declaring today that…  Orthopedics is going bespoke and nobody can stop it!    In future procedures, implants will be designed and manufactured to fit the patient for better outcomes.  This will be the end of orthopedic implant sizes as we know them today.  This will be the end of inventory and closely fitting implants.

Software is changing Orthopedics forever.  Believe it or not, in the near future, many Orthopedic companies will discount or even give away “medical devices", in exchange for the data.  

TODAY most orthopedic companies will say that they “sell implants, disposables and capital equipment…  and, by the way, we provide software for the surgery or tracking clinical results or steps.”  The software is a free service provided to sell more implants.

TOMORROW most orthopedic companies will say that they “sell data captured by software….  and, by the way, we provide implants, disposables and capital equipment.” The implants are provided to get the data. It’s flipped.

Follow me through this thought experiment. 

Then tell me what company will be first to leverage the new software profit model in Orthopedics. [ tiger@tigerbuford.com ]

A “Sacred Cow” is a firmly held belief that is rarely questioned. The big orthos are not immune to Sacred Cows because of their defensive mindsets driven by a short-term finance goals.  I share 7 Sacred Cows that I see in Orthopedics today. 

An analysis of how the background of the Founder creates strengths/weaknesses for the startup business in the early years.  The Founder's strengths help to create the Founder's blind spots.  I dissect 7 Founder types by strengths/weaknesses and offer advice on early moves to compensate for weaknesses. 

This is a deep dive into how Orthopedic Companies can leverage Digital Media using new strategies and techniques. 

Lisa Denison and I cover these questions and more:

Lisa Denison can be contacted here - mdtr.denison@gmail.com

The first time this story has been told.  This is the real story of Danek as told by Ted Bird. Ted was there. He was one of the early employees at Danek and was part of the team responsible for the dynamic growth. In this podcast you will hear some great startup business practices, some brilliant gambles and the culture that enabled Danek to go from zero to world dominance in spine.

An inside look into a  successful orthopedic startup (OrthoHelix) from inception to being acquired.  The story is told by Marty Wynkoop, co-founder and head of operations, sales and marketing.  Marty shares nuggets of wisdom on how to build value in an orthopedics startup, hiring, funding, developing products, focusing on profitability and more. 

I share 16 specific pieces of advice.  This is real-life coaching for Engineers who want to accelerate their careers in our industry.  Nobody else in going to tell you this stuff.  I wish I had know these stuff when I was starting out in Orthopedics.  Enjoy. 

Don't blow it early.  The first 5 to 10 people that you hire in will either set your company up for success or break your company.  I discuss six hiring mistakes that I have seen in early stage orthopedic companies. 

Want innovation?  Interation could be the killer app for creating game-changing innovation today in orthopedics. 

Successful innovation giants that we all know like Danek, SpineTech, Kyphon, Arthrex, MAKO, Hand Innovations and Mazor Robotics used iteration to innovate.  

I will teach you how to use innovation today in your company. 

How does a surgeon take an idea and turn it into a solution that will change imaging in the operating room forever?  

Listen to this "live" interview with the Founder of Micro C, Dr. Greg Kolovich.  You will hear the story of product concept through design freeze, before FDA submission of his invention. 

Micro C is reinventing what is possible imaging in the operating room with handheld mobile fluoroscopy.   https://www.microcimaging.com/

Eavesdrop into a cell phone conversation between Joe and Tiger.  We discuss a variety of topics, including:  orthopedics buying decisions, LinkedIn, building medical device communities with digital marketing, the future of work, virtual consulting, and marketing direct to patients. 

This one is for my orthopedic friends who think they might want to work inside a startup but don’t really understand the upsides.  I share the 7 real-world advantages of startup work in orthopedics. 

This one is for orthopedic professionals working in big orthopedic companies and have an interest in moving to a smaller orthopedic company.  I share insights into how good people stuck and become "institutionalized".  Don't become the frog. 

Most people do not know if they would excel inside a startup.  Answer 8 simple questions to see if you have the RIGHT STUFF.  Take the startup test and see if you pass.  Good luck.

How did Ellipse go from a product concept to  an irresistible takeover target 8 years later?  I share 10 insights into this real-life success story from the early days to acquisition.  I was there.  

The story of how the Arthrex founder went from a startup to the king of Sports Medicine using a different focus and style from all the other Orthopedic giants.   Today, this little known executive is worth $5.9B (the 108th richest American). 

In this series, you will hear unique insights into the orthopedic industry. Tiger will share trends,  emerging startups that he believes are poised for success, and new ways of looking at successful orthopedic businesses. NOTE - Tiger has no allegiances or obligations to anyone in the industry so he can share  honest insights about what he sees. Enjoy. 

Startups can use RISK as a competitive weapon.  I share the experience at Ellipse Technologies where we used this weapon to blow past the competition and go from $0 to a $400M valuation. 

Marketing leaders make alot of mistakes, especially in Orthopedics. 

Here I share 6 Red Flags to look for that you may need to make a change to your Marketing leadership.

If your new product pipeline is not robust, then your R&D Leader could be the problem.  I review 8 specific Red Flags to look for in your R&D leadership.

Startup CEOs often ask for advice on the what kind of people to bring in early and in what order.  I will share my thoughts on the first six people to add. 

5 traits to look for when hiring entrepreneurs to inject innovation into your orthopedic company. 

Stop being ordinary!!!!   It's time to be Remarkable.