An interview series spotlighting global tech influencers, disruptors, visionaries, and of course, innovators.
With over 25 years of experience leading the design, development, launch, and commercial growth of high profile, successful global technology products and services, Serial Entrepreneur / CEO / Board Member Laura Yecies leads the charge as a recognized industry thought leader. Frequently tapped for her expertise in the health technology, neuroscience, cloud, mobile, security, and collaboration sectors, the HBS, Georgetown and Dartmouth alum (and current Stanford student) joined the helm of Bone Health Technologies this past December. In addition to her roles at Bone Health Technologies and her community volunteer work, Yecies currently works as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at DigitalDx Ventures, consults for Fabric Genomics and serves on the Green D Ventures committee.
Dramatic shifts in bone density seem unavoidable: 1 in 2 women and 1 in 4 men over 50 will suffer an osteoporosis related fracture. Bone Health Technologies focuses on bringing new-age, alternative therapies for bone diseases to market, including the OsteoBoost vibration belt designed to prevent osteoporosis. Leveraging 15 years of published research (starting with NASA) proving that vibration at a precise amplitude and frequency stimulates bones, OsteoBoost delivers the optimal therapeutic dose directly to the most vulnerable anatomy, the hips and spine. The belt is currently being studied in a National Institute of Health (NIH) funded clinical trial, based on a successful pilot study that showed a significant reduction in bone loss after just one treatment.
The San Francisco-based tech company just closed a $2.5 million oversubscribed funding round led by Good Growth Capital that also included investments by Astia Angels, Ambit Health Ventures, Portfolia Femtech Fund, IT-Farm, Golden Seeds, Berkeley Angel Network, the Band of Angels, Reno Seed Fund as well as prominent individual Angel Investors. In addition, Bone Health Technologies just won the Grand Prize at this year’s Harvard Business School New Venture Competition and added three new three board members: Karen Drexler, MBA, Nancy Lynch, MD, MBA and Sam Goldberger, MD, MBA.
I caught up with Yecies via email to learn more about her career path that includes leadership and CEO roles at SyncThink, Catch (acquired by Apple), and SugarSync (acquired by J2), Check Point, Netscape and Yahoo. She also discussed the advantages of her multilingual background, teamwork and large family experiences, tech innovation, leadership experience, and books and podcast recommendations. Our interview follows.
EKMH: How can innovations like OsteoBoost help streamline, recalibrate and redefine technology’s unavoidable role in evolving medical practices and product improvement?
Laura Yecies: This is an exciting time for the role of technology in medical practice - we’ve seen it play an important and helpful part of patient care during the pandemic. In particular we see an important opportunity with home use medical devices empowering patients to improve their health. Under the guidance of their physicians, technologies such as OsteoBoost, help patients take control of and improve their health with a safe and effective treatment. This is especially important for chronic conditions such as osteopenia.
EKMH: What problems in the fight against osteoporosis and osteopenia do you anticipate as Bone Health Technologies grows? How will you address these growing pains?
Laura Yecies: One of the challenges in treating osteopenia and preventing osteoporosis is awareness. Typically patients with osteopenia don’t have symptoms that they notice; often times their first awareness of bone density issues is a fragility fracture (a fracture due to fragile bones rather than excessive force) and even then, they are often not referred for bone density assessment. Bone density tests are safe, available and relatively inexpensive, compared to the cost of fractures. We believe that it is important for all post-menopausal women to be screened for osteopenia and fracture risk; the more they are aware, the earlier they can intervene to prevent osteoporosis.
The OsteoBoost Vibration Belt includes an auto-shutoff feature that ends treatment after 30 minutes. Use daily or at least 4 days a week for full treatment effect.
EKMH: As an innovation leader, when do you prefer to work solo versus work on a team? How did you learn which personal qualities are key to leading and collaborating successfully?
Laura Yecies: This is an easy question for me to answer. I totally prefer to work as part of a team - it gives me energy and stimulates my creativity to work with others - plus I love being with and getting to know my team members. I learned about team dynamics as part of and leading teams throughout my career. Plus being part of a large family and being a mother of four and grandmother of five doesn’t hurt :-)
EKMH: What tips do you have for other CEOs building a successful Board?
Laura Yecies: Your Board plays a pivotal role in both building your company as well as achieving a successful exit. Choose wisely and be sure to have diverse experiences and people from different backgrounds to bring different perspectives. To the extent possible, make sure they can collaborate as a team and, of course, be aware of the key skills and experiences you need and seek them out for your Board.
EKMH: As a savvy CEO, Marketer and Strategist, how have you benefited from your own setbacks, risks and successes?
Laura Yecies: I’ve had marketing campaigns go well and not so well and have learned what contributed to those outcomes. As a CEO I’ve experienced some very dramatic ups and downs - good exits and missed opportunities - those have informed much of my decision making. I’ve had enough successes to be confident in my abilities.
EKMH: Theme song?
Laura Yecies: “Roar” - Katy Perry
EKMH: How have your prior academic studies and C-Level expertise informed your career and newest role?
Laura Yecies: My college undergraduate studies were not directly related to my career but I believe I learned important research, analysis, problem solving and writing skills. Certainly my MBA gave me a great foundation in critical business skills. Before I transitioned into health care technologies, I took classes at UCBerkeley extension in biology.
EKMH: How would you encourage more business leaders to become involved in their communities?
Laura Yecies: Choose an organization whose mission inspires you and dive in: your efforts will be very rewarding.
EKMH: How have you benefitted as a multilingual internationalist? Why should everyone learn at least one other language?
Laura Yecies: I’ve been able to use my language skills multiple times over the course of my business career. I did a stint in Brazil leading the Informix Software operations there and worked throughout Latin America. I also used my Spanish and Portuguese constantly and did meetings in French and Spanish when on business trips in Europe. I worked frequently in Israel for Check Point, and while my Hebrew wasn’t good enough for business, my colleagues appreciated my attempt and I enjoyed getting to practice.
EKMH: And finally, international travel is soon becoming a possibility -- which locations are on our your “Must Visit” list, which books will you bring and which podcasts will you download?
Laura Yecies: I’ve been wanting to go to both Patagonia and Bhutan for years - I love hiking and those destinations are high on my list. My Kindle and Audible queue is quite backed up with books including Michael Lewis’ Premonition, A World Undone, Why We Sleep. Also on my Kindle and Audible library are The Radium Girls, New Power, Wintering and A Long Petal of the Sea.
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