MedTech Trends to Watch in 2022

The pages of 2021 are dwindling in what seems like a blink of an eye. We head bullishly into 2022 with our wins, losses, and lessons along the way.??2021, in a philosophical sense, is really 2020 Two-Point-O.??We are now said to be recovering, although reimagining is a better term.??The world will never be the same, yet we evolve and move forward.????

I am fortunate to counsel with individuals driving company success globally.??Although our expertise is in the startup ecosystem across Medical Device, HealthTech, Biotech, and Life Sciences, many of these trends ripple across all industry lines.??As we forge ahead into the new year, I share my thoughts on trends impacting career.???

Following investment and market sentiment is key.??If you know where interest lies, and money follows, you have a trend that creates robust career opportunities for today and the future.?Although far from complete, here are areas of expected growth in 2022 and beyond that are expected to impact career opportunities.??

Technology and Value Based Healthcare

The market interest in Real World Evidence/Real World Data and its impact on Value Based Contracting/Healthcare is expected to continue.??The pressure from payers on demonstrated capabilities is seeing aggressive investment in technology in its wake.??Better trial management, data accumulation, and better insight will create opportunities all along the experience of the patient, payer, and healthcare system, hence providing career opportunities for those on the forefront.??

Technology and Infectious Disease?

How to diagnose, treat, prevent, and protect against infectious disease will remain on the forefront of the industry’s attention for the near future.??Expect opportunities in healthcare on the forefront in ID to grow in demand, as well as the wake of technological advancement around diagnosis, tracing, and treatment.??With that said, the specific opportunities from Covid will wane.??PPE and ventilators have flooded the market, and the interest will move towards better results with cost effectiveness in balance.??Hospitals will be managing the financial whiplash of the last several years and making decisions around new products accordingly.??

Marketing in a Digitally Driven World

If a business has not adapted a digital marketing presence, there is little chance of survival in our new economy.??The demand for marketing talent is changing rapidly.??Strategic marketing and business development, closely tied with the product development team, is coveted.??The ability to create and execute a marketing strategy on digital platforms will be important, as well as the ability to redirect based on reception and input.??For both product and service companies, having a digital marketing approach will be imperative to reach an audience that now digests media predominantly online.??The individual brand, grown organically by presence online in a profile and actions to engage with the marketplace, are as important as a company’s marketing strategy.??Through online tools and media, we have the power to create our own market value.??2022 will only socialize this concept further.?

WFX

No longer is it "remote work" if we are able to conduct business regardless of location. WFX, “Work from Anywhere” is here to stay, for the greater good of all.??The employer will enjoy the benefit of less cost per employee overhead as expenses decrease, as well as a more productive employee.??Employees are empowered to create their optimum work environment and cadence.??When expectations are clear and communication is open, WFX is a win-win and could be the greatest balance shift in our world post pandemic.????The sooner an organization embraces this empowerment into its culture, the greater the opportunity to engage the market’s most valuable team members.?

Reframing Education

A change in the works long before Covid,?higher education ?is in a state of scrutiny and change.??All historical processes are shifting, from the transformation to more robust digital learning to employer mindset on required credentials.??For those driving career decisions, mindfulness about this foundational shift will ensure you make deliberate choices around continued education and intention. Optimistically, this shift will move us from the “all or nothing” bachelor’s degree product, to “more nimble, lower-priced, digital “credentialized packages” of learning and mastery valued by employers”.??This could encourage a life-long learning mentality to keep up with the advances of the age and beyond.??

Personalized Medicine

Cell and gene therapies, which manipulate human cells and genomes, can help create customizable drugs targeting a specific patient’s response.??We have seen the power of mRNA-based technology with the outcomes of the Covid vaccines stemmed in this science.??Investors are continuing to watch promising young drug companies in early phase studies as they look for opportunities to address significant market needs.?

FDA Regulatory Science?

The Food and Drug Administration is responsible for protecting the public health by ensuring the safety, efficacy, and security of drugs, biological products, and medical devices.??No surprise that recent literature ?outlining the agency’s focus will continue to grow to support three key areas:??public health preparedness and response to emerging infectious diseases, choice and competition through innovation, and maximizing the opportunities with data.??These areas of interest with FDA are often aligned with investor spending interest.? As companies step up to meet demands, those individuals uniquely qualified to address these challenges will be important hires.

Empowering the Patient

Wearables and remote health are trends that will continue.??Both put more control in the hands of the patient, through education, accountability, and action.??This increasing partnership between patient and clinician, rather than the expectation of an omniscient clinician dictating the diagnosis and treatment path exclusively, will increase communication and can offer better clinical results.??By way of remote monitoring, telehealth, and data insights, the patient has more information to make behavioral decisions.??This patient driven marketplace directly fuels the innovation and competition in our economy.

Supply Chain, Distribution and Logistics?

From Amazon, to Best Buy, to Under Armor, we are seeing the leaders in supply chain and logistics excellence turn their sights on healthcare.??From better process and procedures for organ transplantation, to drug delivery, there is a greenfield opportunity with companies that already have established customer base and superior logistics chain to make a splash in the healthcare continuum.??If done well, these opportunities can offer pioneering experience for executives who make it happen.??We expect the interest here to remain high, although there will be, as there has been many times before, a tightening when companies outside of healthcare realize the barriers to entry are steep.??Ensure opportunities pursued in this space understand there is significant time and resources needed to move the needle in a historically conservative healthcare environment.??

Democratizing Surgery

I would be remiss to not mention the continued push in the marketplace to offer surgeons and patients together better clinical outcomes. Through robotics, imaging, and navigation, the opportunity for surgeons of all skill levels regardless of location and training to improve outcomes is becoming reality. The technologies that focus on improved outcomes with evidence, and balance adoption and cost, have a tremendous opportunity as we move forward in a healthcare system that is still in its infancy of utilizing technology. Product development and clinical trials in these complex technologies tends to be weighty. Leaders with track records of success in these competitive areas will remain in demand.

As we navigate our career over a lifetime, understand where the market is today, but more importantly, read the signs of where demand will be tomorrow. Your future marketability depends on the experience you gain now. Stay close to where there is unmet need, emotional interest in a solution, and investment dollars to determine where the action will happen. You can proactively drive your career when you stay on the pulse of trends in the marketplace.

Happy Holidays and a prosperous 2022 to All.