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About Bessel

Our origin

by Chris Danek

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Bessel's roots are in product lifecycle support for medical devices and diagnostic products. With a foundation of more than 20 years of experience designing and developing medical devices, Chris Danek and Bessel have provided full-service support for over 5 years to diverse organizations ranging from startup companies to Fortune 50. We bring innovation throughout the product lifecycle—from a clean sheet of paper through commercial release. And we're committed to delivering results that fuel breakthroughs that scale, for startups, for teams, and for their projects. 

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Mentoring startup teams reminded me of my love of teaching. It was natural to step from putting the patient first as a medical device developer to putting the student first as a teacher. The core of the Bessel Origin program stems from my work helping students transform into excellent team members ready for the workforce.

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My co-founder, Carolyn Danek, inspired the start of Bessel. Trained as an architect, Carolyn is professionally versed in human centered design. Her deep-rooted empathy sparked the creation of Bessel. I'm fortunate to be her co-founder. 

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We saw the broad applicability of the Bessel Origin program and its mindsets, methods, and discipline to train the next generation of innovative thinkers and high-performance team members. Now we guide startups with the Powered by Bessel intensive accelerator program, shape teams through the Bessel Origin learning laboratory, and deliver critical development projects with Bessel Rapid Innovation.

​About Bessel

Bessel  is an impact accelerator for medtech companies. We're on a mission to deliver health and wellness breakthroughs that scale by empowering startups and technical teams. We believe that putting the patient first means keeping the clinician at the center of all we do. Bessel combines design thinking, agile teamwork, medical device startup experience, and technical expertise to deliver rapid innovation in our project work.  Our intensive program for medtech startups, Powered by BesselTM, combines specialized workshops and consulting to supercharge startups’ strategy, fundraising, and execution with expert guidance from Chris Danek and a network of expert mentors.

Team
Our Team
We share a passion to help startups & teams grow and succeed
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Chris Danek, PHD, MBA
CEO

Chris is an entrepreneur and teacher, experienced at building and leading teams to develop innovative solutions. He's proud to have led the development of two clinically and commercially successful medical technologies. Design thinking and agile development are in his DNA. Chris developed the Bessel Origin program, and refined it over four academic years in the university setting.

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“Chris blends strategic vision with excellent leadership skills — under his guidance the team delivered a clinically sound product, poised for commercial success. He is well versed in capital-efficient value creation."

Tony Chou, MD, General Partner, The Vertical Group and member of the Board of Directors of AtheroMed, Inc. (Acquired by Phillips Volcano)

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Andres Gutierrez, MSME
R&D Engineer

Andres is a mechanical engineer who loves helping people turn an idea or a sketch into a prototype they can hold in their hand. He is Bessel’s resident additive manufacturing expert, and you can find him testing new materials and designs with state-of-the-art 3D printing technology. As a medical device designer and developer, he combines his experience in digital engineering (CAD and simulation tools) with fabrication knowledge for prototyping and design for manufacturing. He made an immediate impact on a recent project by drawing on his supply chain expertise to source electronic components for a handheld surgical instrument, solving a 48-week backorder challenge. 

 

Prior to joining Bessel, Andres designed cables and wire performance products for OEM customers at BizLink Group, supporting development from design to sourcing to production. Andres has a BS and MS in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso, and a graduate certificate in 3D Engineering and Additive Manufacturing from the UTEP Keck Center. While at UTEP he was a graduate fellow in the Mike Loya Center for Innovation and Commerce. Andres is from Juarez, Mexico, and enjoys traveling and watching soccer with friends.

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John Barrett, MS, MBA

Company and Product Lifecycle Advisor

John is the founder and principal at PhysisPD Consulting LLC, a Bessel partner. He is a senior executive experienced in strategic planning, organizational development, project management, innovation, product development, engineering, manufacturing, M&A, tech transfer, and portfolio lifecycle management. As an executive leader, John contributed to the growth of Integra Lifesciences and Terumo Medical Corporation's businesses. John has a track record of introducing innovation through internal R&D and strategic acquisitions and successfully scaling manufacturing while improving margins. He has been a key participant, from due diligence and contract negotiation to integration, in a broad range of M&A deals exceeding $1B.  Today, John uses his background and experience to support the growth of early-stage businesses, tech transfer from the clinic to early-stage business, and the strategic growth needs of medical device and life science companies. He is a Board Member of the Chester County Economic Development Council Ideas X Innovation organization supporting the growth of entrepreneurial opportunities in the southeast Pennsylvania region.  John holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from the Catholic University of America, an MBA from Loyola University, and an MS in Engineering from Johns Hopkins. 

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Nandini Venkatesh, MBA

Marketing Advisor

Nandini is a former Director of Product Management with 20+ years of strategic marketing and product management experience in the medical device industry at companies such as Medtronic, Boston Scientific, and J&J.  For the past 15 years, Nandini has served as a strategic and commercial marketing consultant to a range of medtech clients, from early-stage start-ups to Fortune 500 companies.  Her voice of customer insights and go-to-market planning are valued by Bessel clients. She is a strong global commercial leader with a track record of identifying new markets, partnering with R&D on product innovation, and launching novel medical technologies to healthcare professionals and patients.  Nandini holds a BS in Civil & Environmental Engineering from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford University.

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Shauna Barker, MBA, CPA
Advisor

Shauna is a highly regarded finance professional and has served as CFO at companies of varied sizes, stages, and domains. She is an experienced advisor and strategic business partner to startup CEOs through her financial consulting firm. Shauna is a great mentor and entrepreneur. Shauna's clients and teammates value her friendly approach to direct feedback. 

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Chris St. Pierre, MBA

Commercial Advisor

Chris has twenty-plus years of venture-backed, growth-stage company experience, from research & development to commercialization, sales, and marketing leadership to venture funding to clinical study oversight in the U.S. and Germany, with a focus on biomedical and technology sectors.​​ Early in his career, he worked in Cardiology at the Medical Center of Louisiana - New Orleans and later followed a clinical-to-commercial personal career arc, putting patient and provider at the center of med-tech innovation and commercialization efforts with companies spun out of research associated with Emory, U.C. Berkley, and Stanford. He is the Co-Founder of Resolve Molecular Diagnostics. He currently serves on the Mentor Board for early-stage companies in the Real Advice Mentoring Program (RAMP) in the University of South Alabama's Office of Research and Innovation. Mr. St. Pierre studied Microbiology at Louisiana State University and earned a Bachelor of Science in Cardiopulmonary Sciences from Louisiana State University Medical Center, Health Sciences Center – New Orleans, followed by earning a Master of Business Administration from Tulane University's A. B. Freeman School of Business in New Orleans. He later completed the Emory University School of Medicine / Georgia Institute of Technology Mini-Med School Continuing Education program for Bio-Medical Science and Engineering.

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