One of the most critical decisions an Outside the United States (OUS) medical device company will make is when should they come to the U.S. and who should be their first hire and typically fast follow hires after that? Historically, hiring that first person in the U.S. has had less than desirable outcomes for most companies and Joe discusses how to guard against that and the best way to have a successful result.

The integration of acquisitions of high performing organizations continues to have less than ideal outcomes as you track those acquisitions a few years down range. One of the dynamics in nearly all acquisitions is the dilution of the culture, brand, and native mindset of the company that was so valuable, that is merited being acquired for a premium. The discussion of the recent Johnson & Johnson acquisitions of Shockwave and Abiomed is examined here.

Joe & Steve Bell discuss surgical robotics, more specifically the companies building a robot outside of the US who have begun the journey to participate in the US market. With many robots in development currently, the road to the US is critical to gaining momentum and market share. The micro and macro differences in how engineers globally approach designing a robot are already coming to light. Differentiators and solving existing problems for surgeons will be key in the race to access the US market.

Joe and Steve discuss the rapidly evolving dynamics of the soft tissue surgical robotics markets and what moves some of the current form factors and companies are committing to. 

Intuitive released the DaVinci 5 platform and it is creating a higher bar in the soft tissue surgical robotic market. Joe and Steve discuss how the table stakes for surgical robotics has been leveled up with the D5 platform. 

Tony Blauer wrote the book on the Management of Fear in Combat Sports as well as violent encounters. His body of work is even more applicable in the business world. Joe and Tony discuss how fear management and the control of our emotions can be the difference maker in success and failure. 

Steve and Joe discuss the emerging market of endovascular robotics and how it sets up to be a bigger market than soft tissue robotics and enabled by quicker development times, less cost, and more acquirers in the market. 

Joe and Mike Minogue, the recent CEO of Abiomed which was sold to Johnson & Johnson for $16 billion discuss some of the principles and the mindset of how to build high performing teams and enable success. 

In the inaugural episode of Joe Mullings Untitled, Steve Bell and Joe Mullings discuss the emerging trends, industry dynamics, the changing centers of care, and where the soft tissue surgical robotic market and technologies are likely going.