These days it does not feel like there are many bright spots in the economy so when you come across them I feel like it is important to share them.

A recent report on the state of the VC funding industry did not have a ton of bright spots but the Bio-tech industry was one of them.  Here is an encouraging quote from the report:

“Investments in Life Sciences companies represented the highest percentage of total VC
investments since the inception of the MoneyTree Report,” noted Tracy Lefteroff, global
managing partner of the venture capital practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. “And,
while the largest deal of the quarter was a Biotechnology company, even if we exclude it,
the Biotech sector is still the largest single industry category for the quarter. With the
improvement we’ve seen over the past few months in the capital markets and a small
crack in the IPO window during Q2, we’re already beginning to see VCs turn their focus
back to new investments, as the 67% increase in Seed and Early Stage fundings in the
second quarter would suggest. Based upon the current pace of investing during the first
two quarters, it’s likely we’ll exceed $15 billion in investments for the full year, a total
close to what we saw in 1997 before the Internet bubble.”

This may be a cup have full type of comment but in general the tone is encouraging and certainly should provide a bit of extra encouragement for those in the early stages of developing medical device technology.  Here is a link to the full press release: (link)

One other notable exerpt from the report was an overview of the overall VC funding and number of deals from 2005 to the first quarter of 2009.  Though this chart does not convey the same positive ton as the press release it does help to understand the natural cycling of the funding.

(Full Size)

Here is a link to the raw data, the above chart illustrates a filtered version just highlighting the VC investment in Bio-Tech.  (link)

The only answer is to keep the engine churning, based on numerous developments (Doctor-Manufacturer Incentives, etc.) it is clear that innovation has to start at the bottom, fueled to degree by the entrepreneurial spirit.  For those of you sitting on one of those ideas, now is the time to act, to get ahead of the curve and to be ready for the next up tick.

Good Luck

-DMS

This is one of those ideas that turns the traditional approach on its head and I am sure will turn a few stomachs as well. This is a recent article from Wired Magazine, highlighting a new device for placing IV’s directly into bone marrow.

This video is not for the faint of heart…or stomach.

-DMS

Is Innovation Rocket Science? I guess it depends on who you ask…?

Whether it is Hewlett Packard’s- Garage or Edison’s- Menlo Park Laboratory there are many stories of mythic beings and their herculean efforts of Innovation. These stories are inspiring, and encouraging to designers, inventors and engineers who are in the trenches working towards the dream of changing the world. There is simplicity and a touch of the American Dream woven through each of these heroes journeys towards innovation and I love every ounce of these stories! I eat them up…devour them!
That being said, over that past several months, I have come to a realization about the disservice these stories can have on “true” innovation. Don’t get me wrong, we need these stories to inspire us and keep us focused on the potential that lies in hard work, dedication and a commitment to a better world. But we also need to be careful with these stories and how they affect our perspectives and expectations for the pace and difficulties lurking in the details.
Scott Berkun in his book The Myth of Innovation makes it clear that these stories often hide the ugly truth of innovation. He continues, “The future never enters the present as a finished product,” Berkun says, “But that does not stop people from expecting it to arrive that way.”
It is clear from this quote and from my experience that the one thing that these stories can cause is a watered down and linear interpretation of an activity which is for lack of a better term is absolute Chaos! I see this on a daily basis in attempts to try and estimate and schedule development activities which by their very nature escape these linear definitions. Though these definitions are necessary to a degree it is also important to ensure that they do not allow the Chaos to be hammered into a process, which wrings out the essence of innovation, because it is out of that unknown that amazing things can occur.

One other component of this Myth-ification of Innovation is in the over simplification of the process. This simplification is a devaluation of the hard work, the focus, the sleepless nights and the absolute and unabashed sacrifice that lies just beneath the surface of many great innovations. Yes, there are right-place, right-time events, those Eureka moments but those too are very often oversimplified. Malcolm Gladwell in his recent book, Outliers discusses this factor as it relates to success and, without giving too much away, reaches a fascinating conclusion. Gladwell asserts in essence that our success is very closely related to a variety of factors outside of our control, a few of which include cultural, social and economic influences. He recounts several examples which support this theory but more importantly most of us have experienced this phenomenon personally, in any number of settings. This may raise the hackles of those of you, myself included, who believe that you are the “master of your destiny”. Well, slow down a second and let me explain my interpretation of Gladwell’s findings. I believe that Gladwell is right on, that our surroundings play a huge role in our abilities to become innovative, it just stands to reason! But it also follows from Gladwell’s logic that we have some role in defining our environment, we choose our careers, jobs and our co-workers to a certain degree, all of which continue to contribute to our abilities/capacities to become innovative within our spheres. To say it another way, we decide whether to live our lives in a way in which we are supported and guided in our creative endeavors! The rest is up to a sort of Devine Providence or “luck” to be politically correct.  I close with a quote that I think sums up how best to proceed:

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back– Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”

-Goethe

Welcome to the journey, I hope you find your Genius…
-DMS

Welcome to the Blue Pool Design Blog, Please stay tuned for updates from the Medical Device Industry.

-dms