A Brave New Podcast

Product Management and innovation enthusiast, Hank Lander, currently serves as a Group Product Manager at HubSpot, focusing on Customer Data Protections. Hank's expertise lies in launching new products and building product pipelines. Prior to his current role, he was the Director of Product at ZoomInfo and worked at multiple early-stage startups. Hank holds an MBA in Entrepreneurship from MIT Sloan School of Management and a BS in Computer Science from Georgia Institute of Technology.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• How AI is reshaping sensitive data governance inside HubSpot.
• Which portions of HubSpot support HIPAA compliance via sensitive data
• Why AI features that touch sensitive data must be opt-in, scoped, and auditable
• How HubSpot is embracing the concept of "toggle off" data access so that customers can decide if they want AI to not touch specific data.
• How HubSpot is building in 'undo' capabilities with AI integrations like Claude, to provide more control to users.
• How AI can improve quality and streamline workflows before the work reaches your team.
• Why AI-powered audit logs will become a proactive tool for security and governance.
• What the future of CRM looks like as humans and AI agents work together.

Additional resources:

• Hank Lander on LinkedIn
• HubSpot's Website
• HubSpot Sensitive Data
• Understand how Sensitive Data is used in HubSpot tools
• Store Sensitive Data in HubSpot
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold and memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, hospitals and specialty care providers, and healthcare nonprofits. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• How your brand can serve as a multiplier of your marketing efforts if you've take the time to craft a bold and differentiated brand memory.
• How your brand can limit marketing performance if it's not fully thought through or expressed.
• The difference between brand and marketing, also why treating them as the same thing can create growth challenges.
• Why you can't optimize your way out of a brand problem when the brand foundation isn't strong.
• How brand acts as a multiplier on marketing efforts, increasing or limiting the impact of every dollar spent.
• Three signs you're facing a brand problem rather than a marketing problem.
• How to strengthen your brand by aligning what you're offering with existing memory, building consistent presence, and defining what makes you unique.
• Practical ways healthcare orgs can strengthen their brand without slowing growth initiatives.
• Three diagnostic questions leaders can use to evaluate whether their brand is helping or hindering growth.

Additional resources:

• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Jennifer is a seasoned healthcare leader with expertise in leading start-up and high growth organizations, with a proven track record of executing on go-to-market and growth strategies in the employer, payor and provider channels.

Jennifer currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Pacify Health, a leader in tech-enabled Maternity Management Solutions. Previously, Jennifer served as General Manager and Chief Commercial Officer for Vera Whole Health, an advanced primary care organization and at Optum as Senior Vice President, Commercial Growth. Jennifer serves as a board member for Zero Health, a leader in employer direct contracting and as the Board Chair for the Minnesota Milk Bank for Babies.

Jennifer holds an MBA from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management and an MS in Kinesiology from the University of North Dakota.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• How Jennifer and the Pacify team made the strategic decision to expand from on-demand lactation into a doula-led maternity management model
• What the research actually shows about doulas' impact on clinical outcomes and birth experience
• How to apply "calculated bravery" when making a fundamental shift to your business model
• Why Pacify chose to evolve its brand positioning rather than rename the company
• How to balance brand messaging across complex audiences, including members, providers, paying customers, and internal teams
• Why education and human outbound calls are essential to driving engagement, even for free services
• How Jennifer thinks about the role of AI and technology in a deeply human care experience

Additional resources:

• Jennifer Sargent on LinkedIn
• Pacify Health's Website
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold and memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, hospitals and specialty care providers, and healthcare nonprofits. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• Why branding decisions during mergers and acquisitions shouldn't be treated as an afterthought.
• The hidden cost of delaying brand strategy until after a deal closes.
• The three main brand architecture approaches: monolithic brands, endorsed brands, and house of brands.
• How to determine which brand architecture approach is right for your organization.
• Why understanding buyer behavior is critical when evaluating brand consolidation.
• How brand architecture and on the ground teams can serve as a driving force in aligning leadership around how to communicate about the future of the combined organizations
• Why tactical branding changes made under pressure often create long-term challenges.

Additional resources:

• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Bridget Locke is Vice President of Strategic Marketing at VitalPath, a leading contract design and manufacturing partner focused on complex catheter solutions for the medical device industry. She specializes in helping highly technical B2B organizations translate complex capabilities into clear market positioning, scalable growth strategies, and high-impact customer engagement.

With experience spanning strategic marketing, sales alignment, brand development, M&A integration, and commercial strategy, Bridget has built and led growth initiatives across the medtech manufacturing ecosystem. Her career has included leadership roles at Vantedge Medical, ATL Technology, Heraeus Medevio, and Northwire, where she partnered closely with executive teams to align marketing, sales, and business strategy in complex and regulated industries.

At VitalPath, Bridget focuses on building a brand centered around collaboration, technical partnership, responsiveness, and innovation, helping OEMs accelerate the development and commercialization of next-generation catheter technologies. She is particularly passionate about aligning strategy with execution, creating strong sales and marketing integration, and leveraging emerging technologies like AI to enhance both customer experience and operational effectiveness.

Based in the Minneapolis-St. Paul medtech hub, Bridget brings a practical, growth-oriented perspective on branding, leadership, and the evolving future of medical device innovation.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• How VitalPath differentiates in a competitive market by being the responsive, collaborative specialist rather than the large generalist.
• Why the strongest MedTech brands are built on focus and people, not capabilities lists.
• The importance of understanding your customer journey and what it looks like to map that out in a B2B contract manufacturing context.
• How Bridget approaches sales and marketing alignment, including her perspective on having sales operations aligned within the marketing organization.
• What marketing in a PE-backed company looks like, and how to think about your four distinct audience profiles.
• Where AI is adding value today in MedTech marketing, and where the human touch can't be replaced.

Additional resources:

• Bridget Locke on LinkedIn
• VitalPath's Website
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Sharon Dayan is an accomplished, strategic marketing executive with over 15 years of experience driving growth for B2B, early-stage, and global technology and healthcare companies. Dedicated to working towards a "Healthier Tomorrow," Sharon has built a career around using cutting-edge technology to improve patient outcomes and solve complex market needs.

Currently serving as the VP of Marketing at Biobeat, Sharon leads the marketing strategy for the company's ground-breaking, FDA-cleared, cuffless 24-hour blood pressure monitoring platform. By replacing uncomfortable, legacy cuff-based measurements with, a wireless patch that provides day and night data, the platform empowers clinicians to detect hypertension early and manage this condition, transition care to reactive precise management. Prior to this, she was the VP of Marketing at BRIA AI, responsible, Visual Generative AI platform for enterprises, and the Head of Global Marketing at Medix Global, where she managed multi-lingual teams across 12 global offices to advance health equity. Her diverse background also includes pivotal early leadership roles.

A proactive, fast-learning leader, Sharon blends a strong academic foundation-including an MBA in Marketing & Entrepreneurship and a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) with a proven track record of building brand stories, fostering strategic partnerships, and scaling businesses.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• Why branding in medical devices isn't just about visibility, and why it's about building clinical credibility including giving physicians the confidence to rethink long-standing approaches.
• How Biobeat is redefining hypertension management with the first FDA-cleared cuffless 24-hour blood pressure monitoring patch, and why nighttime blood pressure data matters more than people realize.
• Why brand voice and creative strategy are still deeply human strengths, and why the soul of a brand can't be automated, even as AI continues to evolve.
• Why product-market fit is a powerful marketing tool, and how solving a clear, meaningful problem makes storytelling more impactful.
• Why nearly half of Americans are living with hypertension, and how earlier, more accurate diagnosis could prevent serious downstream health issues and costs.
• How to identify and empower early adopters in a highly regulated industry where change moves slowly, and why those champions are essential for building momentum.
• Sharon's perspective on using AI in regulated marketing: where it's valuable, where it falls short, and why human oversight remains critical.

Additional resources:

• Sharon Dayan on LinkedIn
• Biobeat's Website
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold and memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, hospitals and specialty care providers, and healthcare nonprofits. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• Josh's key takeaways from the 2026 NACCDO-CMCA Annual Conference in Toronto, Canada.
• Why cancer centers need to champion the value of cancer research, and what's at stake as federal research funding faces pressure.
• Why NCI designated cancer centers have a unique opportunity to become trusted information hubs in an era of AI search, misinformation, and fragmented media.
• How to think about differentiation for cancer centers in contrast to smaller facilities that can't match the level of care.
• How AI is accelerating cancer care through lung cancer screening, clinical trial matching, and AI-assisted radiation treatment plans.
• The challenges matrix cancer centers face when it comes to developing a differentiated brand and aligning all parties around a single communication strategy; and how enterprise content strategy and brand architecture can improve coordination, alignment, and consistency across complex health systems.
• Why findability is getting harder, and why the shift from informational keywords to mid-funnel, decision-stage content is critical for cancer center websites.
• How to show up in AI-powered answer engines like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity using structured data, schema, and answer engine optimization (AEO).

Additional resources:

• National Association of Cancer Center Development Offices Website
• Cancer Marketing and Communications Association Website
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Jacqueline Parisi is the Head of Marketing at Elektra Health and brings over a decade of experience in brand strategy and growth marketing. She kicked off her career as the first U.S. copywriter at HelloFresh before transitioning into the digital health space. She has consulted for Seed to Series C digital health startups like Ophelia, Tend, Local Infusion, and Proper (incubated by Redesign Health). Jacqueline is an alumna of Boston College and NYU. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• How Elektra Health is redefining women's healthcare through a virtual, evidence-based model that combines clinical care, coaching, and community support.
• Jacqueline's definition of branding and why it's not just what you say, but what customers experience and believe after interacting with your brand.
• Jacqueline's three pillars of a great brand including, consistency across every touchpoint, distinctiveness you can recognize without a logo, and the ability to deliver on your promise every time.
• Why a bold, positive brand is essential in breaking stigmas, especially in a space like menopause that has been historically overlooked or misrepresented.
• Why growth and brand-building should never be treated as separate efforts, and how strong branding improves performance marketing efficiency.
• How to think about measuring brand impact, from cost of acquisition (CAC and branded search to qualitative signals like perception in AI tools and customer feedback.
• Real-world ways AI is being used today to gain deeper research, social listening, and uncovering customer insights.
• The emerging trends shaping the future of marketing beyond AI, and why staying close to your customer will always be your biggest advantage.
• How to balance being critically rigorous and evidence-based while still sounding human, conversational, and actionable in your messaging.
• What Elektra Health wants to be known for in the next year, including approachability, unbiased care, and a commitment to science-backed outcomes.

Additional resources:

• Jacqueline Parisi on LinkedIn
• Elektra Health's Website
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Chad Kearns is a Senior Vice President at Fired Up! Culture, bringing nearly 15 years of experience in building teams and leading organizations to his work in helping leaders build culture and engagement in the organizations they lead.

Before joining Fired Up! Culture in 2022, Chad headed a 50+ person marketing agency, guiding the organization through multiple growth periods and acquisitions. During that time, he built seven-figure service lines from the ground up, developed leaders and executives who elevated their teams, and drove the kind of employee engagement that produces remarkable business results.

Today, as Senior Vice President at Fired Up! Culture, Chad partners with executive leadership teams of all sizes to navigate meaningful change management processes, cultivating healthy, high-performing cultures and business outcomes.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• The similarities and differences between building a great brand and a great culture
• The specific areas of overlap between brand and culture in an organization
• The markers of a healthy culture
• How to tell if you have a culture issue that needs to be addressed
• The level of influence and control that leaders have over their organizational culture
• The importance of alignment in building a great culture
• Why building a great culture almost always comes down to having the right people on the team
• Chad's hot take that middle managers are more important than people think and flat organizations may not be as effective as people assume

Additional resources:

• Chad Kearns on LinkedIn
• Fired Up! Culture's Website
• Fired Up! Culture's Newsletter
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website

Lon Hecht is a seasoned healthcare executive with over 25 years of experience leading transformative growth. He joined Care2U as Chief Growth Officer in 2023 and became CEO in 2024, reflecting his strategic vision and results-driven leadership. Previously, Lon was SVP of Growth at Optum Home and Community Care, where he helped integrate and scale innovative healthcare models, including naviHealth, Landmark, Prospero, and Optum at Home.

His leadership portfolio includes roles as Chief Commercial Officer at Utilize Health, VP of Payor and Provider Markets at Teladoc, Founder and CEO of QuickSeeMD, and VP of Sales at eviCore. Known for delivering exponential growth and building high-performing teams, Lon is a recognized leader in value-based care. He combines entrepreneurial drive with operational expertise and a strong network across payor and provider markets.

Lon holds a B.S. in Marketing from West Chester University of Pennsylvania and resides with his family on the Jersey Shore.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• How Care2U has positioned its brand around a disruptive care model, delivering high acuity care at home, and how that promise is translated into messaging that makes a complex healthcare service understandable to different audiences.
• How Care2U differentiates its brand by owning a distinct positioning around acuity, access, and cost in a way that resonates with both payers and patients.
• The real-world patient impact of receiving hospital-level care at home, combined with a rapid-response model that deploys clinicians within 2-4 hours to deliver high-acuity treatment at home.
• How payer alignment shapes credibility, and why the ability to speak directly to the insurance economics is important when scaling a healthcare brand.
• How Care2U aligns with insurers and differentiates from both hospital at home programs and urgent care providers.
• Why spending more time with patients and less time spent in waiting rooms leads to better outcomes and smarter care decisions.
• The measurable clinical outcomes behind the NPS (Net Promoter Score) model including hospital escalation rates, strong patient experiences, and effective and safe recovery at home.
• Where this care model is headed next and the broader vision for transforming the future of healthcare delivery, following its success in the New York market.

Additional resources:

• Lon Hecht on LinkedIn
• Care2U Website
• Josh Dougherty on LinkedIn
• Josh Dougherty's speaking site
• A Brave New's Website