Your Roadmap into the FemTech Market
What is FemTech?
How do I enter the market?
Where do I begin?
Do I have the right skills and abilities to work in the industry?
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These are all questions I am asked regularly, so to help you get started in the FemTech field, I’ve collaborated with some of the most innovative FemTech Founders worldwide, each of whom have different aims, but share the same goal:
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To improve the women’s health space.
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As an international specialist FemTech and Women’s Health recruiter, it’s my role to bridge the gap between FemTech start-ups, and candidates globally.
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Follow along with me to learn more about the industry itself, and how you can get involved…
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Frame - Jessica Bell van der Wal (Co-Founder and CEO)
Jessica is the CEO and Co-Founder of Frame, a digital health platform that offers collaborative care and personalized 1:1 support for the fertility journey. Jessica and her partner and Co-Founder, Corey, recognized the demand for accessible support and identified key areas that needed development and improvement in their own fertility journeys. This was her “why”.
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If you’re looking to join the FemTech space, one key tip Jessica suggests is to consider your “why” – Why do you want to work in this environment? Why do you want to be a part of the movement? Why FemTech?
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Hiring in a start-up (specifically one you’ve established yourself) can be challenging, as each employee onboard plays a critical part in the success of the entire firm. To succeed, you need to align with the mission, work as a team and go through the dynamics of a ?new, fast-paced market, in an industry that has only recently recognized the urgency of women’s health.?
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So what sort of individual does Jessica look for to add to her team???
Someone passionate. You need to be resilient and have a hunger for the space and a connection to the company, so that you can be resilient with the unpredictability of the market.
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Experience in the market, whether gained via a personal journey, or in a consultancy or advisory position is also important to Jessica. If you’ve had any exposure to the digital health or FemTech space, you have a competitive advantage in the market.
Lōvu Health – Noel Pugh (Co-Founder and CEO) and Santosh Pandipati, MD, FACOG (Co-Founder & Chief Health Officer)
e-lovu tackles the FemTech space by leveraging the diverse experiences between its co-founders, utilizing this position to assert themselves as pioneers in the maternal care space.
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Together, Santosh and Noel have shed light on their FemTech journey thus far…
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Noel has a depth of business experience and a deep understanding of healthcare economics. Her career has been spent launching care models in large hospital systems and scaling organizations from start-up to acquisition. Her motivation to enter the space stems from her first-hand observations of the “fragmented delivery system that fails mothers and clinicians alike”.
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It is known that VC funding and investor decisions can lean often in favour of male-dominating industries or male-leaders, so securing funding in a female-focused market can be challenging – with the exceptional product market fit Santosh and Noel have established, their end-to-end delivery system speaks for itself, and should continue to see success and support from the market.?
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Given Santosh’s clinical background in women’s and pregnancy health specifically, he recognized the need to bridge the gap between patients and accessible care – with this expertize, e-lovu was created to break down these barriers.
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What advice do Santosh and Noel offer to those aspiring to contribute to the FemTech space?
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OCON Therapeutics – Keren Leshem (CEO)
Keren is the CEO of OCON Therapeutics, a leading women’s health innovator that focuses on developing intra-uterine therapies. Keren has overcome the fundraising, taboo conversations and regulatory hurdles, as well as the added pressure of being at the forefront of female representation, both as a female leader, and for women worldwide.
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Keren has considered the necessary steps to take to demonstrate their female-first ideology, by investing in an area of women’s health that is particularly under-researched, and has committed to deepening our understanding of fibroids, abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) and endometriosis, so that people with uterus’ can be better educated to seek assistance.
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Not only this, but Keren’s team demonstrate a clear passion for the industry they’re in, by partnering with women who have “escaped the cycle of prostitution” by offering support in providing local jobs (even if those are temporary) and a mentoring capacity. This dedication towards helping women succeed should be replicated by every individual in the industry.
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Where does Keren see the market heading, and what can you take from this?
With the prediction that the “FemTech market is poised for significant growth in the coming years”, the OCON team will continue to work hard to bring women’s health personalized solutions and menstrual health innovations.
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Keren seeks not only an alignment with technical, regulatory or medical skills, but also empathy, an interest in tech and scientific curiosity.
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The events of the year the C-level FemTech experts recommend to build your network is:
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So what are the key themes here?
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FemTech needs, not only skilled individuals, but also those who possess aspects that can’t be taught-
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One of the key thoughts shared among these Founders is that the Women’s Health market is going to continue its growth trajectory. There’s still a huge number of gaps in the space needing investment, specifically in the peri-natal, uterine and personalized healthcare space.
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Are you interested in a career in FemTech? Here are some of the top tips from the FemTech CEOs…??
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Key voices to follow, as per recommendations??:
If you have any other tips you'd like to share on entering the FemTech world, feel free to share in the comments, or reach out to me:
Group Business Manager | Metric Geo | MEP & Cx | Metric Exec
9 个月Great article Lauren!
Passionate about using AI and design thinking to drive innovation in HealthTech, creating human-centered solutions that transform businesses and improve digital product outcomes.
1 年Great article Lauren Pope!
CEO. Founder. Visionary. Commercially-minded Marketer. C-Level Executive. Consumer Health Angel Investor. Public Speaker. Community builder fixing healthcare one day at a time - with the human at the center.
1 年Such an important article and honored to be featured with In Women's Health. We exist to help those navigating this change in order to improve women's lives. We have so much work to do and need so much networked and developed talent to do it!
Chief Executive Officer at OCON Therapeutics / Board director at Aspivix / Mentor at 8400 the Health Network / World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer 2022
1 年THANK YOU Lauren for your support of women's health! I was happy to take part and contribute to the article and be amongst great innovators in this space.
Co-Founder + CEO @ Frame | Fertility & Women's Health | Angel Investor
1 年Honored to contribute to this article. I've been so excited to see such great talent come to this space, and we just need more, more, more. Thank you Lauren Pope!