In this issue:
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Lazarus 3D: Test drives for surgeons
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Acumen: How to --> KPIs and executive compensation
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Twist Bioscience: Less means far more
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Pacific Hills Farms: Right crop in the right place
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Acumed: A great place to work
ICYMI (highlights of key news/updates):
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Free: Mini Bio Pro lunch and learn - August 17
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New Program: Makers & [bio] Markers - August 19
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Your news: Inquiring minds want to know
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For your business: Bio Business Solutions
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Lazarus 3D opens the doors
to more effective surgery
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Above: Scenes from Lazarus 3D Open House August 7, 2021 |
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Every professional racer – no matter how experienced – prefers at least one run of the course before the official start. They want a chance to internalize the turns, how steeply they bank, how long they last, and know when the next straightaway ends. No map, diagram or video of the course can replace a first practice run.
Surgeons – whether seasoned veterans or relative newcomers – haven't had the option of taking a practice lap in the operating room. The most vivid surgical model is often the prior case the surgeon operated on – not the patient on the table now. And while even healthy organs vary in size from one individual to the next, in patients, diseased organs or tumors can vary even more. The best option is that the surgeon can now rehearse a procedure on an exact replica of the patient’s organ before the actual procedure.
#ORBioMember Lazarus 3D intends to change that in a big way. The Albany, Ore. company recently announced FDA clearance for their PREoperative SUrgical REhearsal (PRE-SURE®) technology. Using patented, 3D printing technology and proprietary synthetic soft-tissue materials, Lazarus 3D creates a specific replica of a patient’s actual impacted organ(s) – that is, a nearly real-life copy. Surgeons can practice, or teach, a surgical procedure directly on these models, prior to the time they incise the patient.
The goal is to “enable surgical perfection,” says Smriti Zaneveld, Ph.D., founder and president of Lazarus 3D Inc. Although the current FDA clearance covers all genitourinary conditions, Dr. Zaneveld notes the present and future holds far wider applications. Expanded FDA clearance of PRE-SURE® technology for the full spectrum of patient conditions is planned by 2023.
“Whenever you need surgery, your doctor should be able to rehearse ahead of time. Rehearsals can help doctors, patients, and even insurance providers by reducing errors and improving outcomes,” said Jacques Zaneveld, Ph.D., founder and CEO of Lazarus 3D.
Lazarus 3D Founders credit several Oregon-based institutions for their support of Lazarus 3D’s vision.
"Together, we can really change the healthcare landscape and create a safer and better tomorrow for all of us. Lazarus 3D is proud to be an Oregon-based health tech startup defining a new standard of surgical care," Dr. Smriti Zaneveld says.
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Executive compensation and KPIs: Advice from Acumen |
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Today, executive compensation packages are heavily weighted toward salary and bonuses. As executive recruiters, companies ask us, “How do we set up a fair bonus structure?” #ORBioMember Acumen Executive Search tell us how.
The current consensus seems to be a bonus structure based upon 50 percent company well being and 50 percent personal goals or Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) is fair to both the company and the employee. A KPI is an established goal that is quantifiable and measurable over time and adds value because it provides a concrete basis for evaluating performance. KPIs should help operational teams define and examine not only their successes, but how to define the actionable steps needed to obtain those successes.
Establishing KPIs is a straightforward process, and the best ones aren’t overly complex. We are often asked, in the context of bonuses: What are the best metrics for a CEO and leadership teams? To answer that question, first answer this question: What are the company’s goals and what is to be accomplished with this new hire? Once goals and the new hire’s potential impact are identified, the last question is, are the capabilities in place to establish benchmarks in place to measure the KPIs?
The most common KPIs we now see:
1. Return on Equity (ROE) - We still measure a company’s success on EBITA, gross margins and profitability, but more companies are talking about ROE – including privately-held companies. Considering ROE takes into consideration the different profitability margins between products and services, delivering the best return on investment (ROI) of both financials and personnel resources. It also brings in goodwill and other activities to bring awareness to a company’s brand.
2. Recruiting and Retention - Leaders in each organization are responsible for setting tone and what is acceptable behavior. Culture is from the top down! One of the best ways we have seen it measured is by using a Net Promotor Score.
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Net Promoter Score is used to understand and predict the long-term health of your business. A simple survey to query internal employees and external customers is one way to obtain a baseline understanding. It’s a way to understand how customers and employees feel about a company’s products or services and how eager they are to share it with others. The more “promoters” a company has, the more successful it will be. If there are “detractors,” leaders must understand why and then build out ways of improving the score. Measuring the differences is key.
3. For KPIs for other leaders and direct reports, most CEOs are bonused on their direct reports hitting their individual targets and goals. Working across the organization, here are the top measurements now happening:
- Marketing and Sales: Cost per lead, marketing qualified leads, customer retention, cost-per-customer acquisition, marketing ROI and revenues
- Accounting and finance: Operating cash flow, current ratio, net profit margin, gross profit margin, working capital, budget variance, team recruiting/retention
- Operations: labor utilization, turnover rate, labor materials, operating margins, training, customer lifetime value, processes/procedures development and improvements, cash flow.
This is a broad overview of establishing KPIs for your leadership team. Part of Acumen Executive Search’s value proposition for client companies, is expertise in consulting for successful outcomes, laying a solid foundation for success. We find great leaders and structure a win-win outcome that reaps reward over time.
Contact us at Acumen Executive Search for expert guidance before and after your critical hiring needs, further assistance on establishing executive compensation or KPIs, or to talk more about its proven, 9-step process to successfully engage and capture top talent.
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Twist grows bigger
by going smaller
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#ORBioMember Twist Bioscience won plaudits earlier this year when the growing Bay Area-based biotech company announced it would build the “Factory of the Future” and create up to 400 jobs in Wilsonville, Ore. Six months later, the bioscience firm exercised an option to nearly double the square footage of their lease as part of a $70 million dollar investment.
Twist’s specialty is synthetic biology, particularly synthetic DNA. Last year investors poured nearly $8 billion dollars into that sector. The market for synthetic biology will surpass $30 billion within five years, experts estimate, which helps explains Twist’s expansive Wilsonville move.
While Twist is investing big, its advantage lies in managing its technology on a very small scale. As Twist Bioscience cofounder and CEO Emily Leproust explained in a Fast Company podcast, Twist Bioscience synthesizes DNA at 10 picoliters – which is one trillionth of a liter, whereas most producers work at the scale of 50 microliters – or a teardrop. This seismic shift of scale allows Twist Bioscience “to put a million drugs on a piece of silicone the size of a large iPhone and then we build a million different sequences at the same time on the same chip.”
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Unique location helps
Pacific Hills Farms produce
high quality hemp
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Pacific Hills Farms is more than a hemp growing operation. The family-run company also operates its own testing lab, provides hemp harvesting services like hang drying facilities for third parties, and produces its own line of CBD topicals, wellness products and hemp flower.
A key factor in #ORBioMember Pacific Hills Farms success is their growing location in Oregon’s Van Duzer Corridor. The site is “incredibly windy” which provides their hemp crops protection from powdery mildew, bud rot and mold, according to Taylor Pfaff, owner and CEO of Pacific Hills.
The grower uses only natural pest controls and eschews plastic mulch, which Pfaff explains “means that our fields can be farmed and rotated easily without any adverse long-term effects on our land or soil, which is highly important since hemp is a bio accumulator and will absorb any inputs directly from the soil.”
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Acumed earns 'Great Place to Work' certification |
Acumed (along with OsteoMed - to which it is merging) has been awarded the Great Place to Work® certification. This prestigious award is based entirely on what current employees say about their experience working at Acumed and OsteoMed. This year, 80 percent of employees said it's a great place to work – 21 points higher than the average U.S. company.
Great Place to Work is a “global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention, and increased innovation.”
"The Great Place to Work certification isn't something that comes easily— it takes ongoing dedication to the employee experience," said Sarah Lewis-Kulin, vice president of global recognition at Great Place to Work®. "It's the only official recognition determined by employees' real-time reports of their company culture. Earning this designation means that Acumed | OsteoMed is one of the best companies to work for in the country."
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Mini BioPro virtual Lunch & Learn: Lean Six Sigma is happening August 17 and its free!
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BioPro is Oregon Bio's professional workforce training program. Now we're pleased to offer complimentary Mini BioPro programs that inform on their own as well as offer a preview of their full-length versions. Questions will be welcome at all sessions.
Lean Six Sigma is a disciplined, data-driven methodology geared at eliminating “defects” in any manufacturing or transactional process. Find out its relationship to a company's bottom line.
Presenter: Steve Phinney, Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt
When: Online; Tuesday, Aug. 17; 12-1 p.m. PT
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New series: Check out André Petett and his take on the fundamentals of long-term health
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Join us as we welcome Portland native André Petett as our first guest on Markers & [bio] Markers. André founded Fundamental Fitness Labs in 2019 because he was tired of seeing “friends and family members struggle with their health.” Today he speaks frankly about the fitness landscape and explains his firm’s approach that combines science-based knowledge with personal attention.
In this fast-moving program, André will introduce himself and provide a brief overview of his company’s approach to a sustainable wellness program, including:
• Using biomarkers to achieve long-term health
• Posture: addressing common defects with easy fixes
• Diet and weight: addressing the galactic center of misinformation
When: Online, Thursday, Aug. 19, 2021 / 8:30 - 8:55 a.m. PT
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Creating relationships that matter for
you and your organization
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Oregon Bioscience
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Portland, Oregon 97201
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