Ready to launch your own podcast? Book a strategy call.
Frontlines.io | Where B2B Founders Talk GTM.
Strategic Communications Advisory For Visionary Founders
Conversation
Highlights
Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries, the show that explores the future of tech with innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Joe Gagnon, CEO of 1upHealth, a healthcare data platform that has raised over $75 million in funding.
- Joe’s passion for endurance sports and pushing the boundaries of human potential, epitomized by his experience running a marathon on six continents in six days, covering 157 miles and 37,000 miles of travel.
- The importance of embracing challenges and discomfort to develop problem-solving skills and resilience, both in endurance sports and in business leadership.
- 1upHealth’s mission to build a cloud-based, modern data platform for healthcare, enabling interoperability and computation across payers, providers, patients, and pharma companies.
- The historical and structural reasons behind healthcare’s lag in adopting technology and data standards, leading to inefficiencies, high costs, and poor care quality.
- 1upHealth’s focus on selling to payers (insurance companies) as their primary customer, leveraging the need for compliance with federal data standards and communication requirements.
- The company’s impressive growth trajectory, ranking 35th on Deloitte’s Fast 500 list with 5,100% growth from 2019 to 2022, along with 10x employee growth and significant funding rounds.
- The challenges and learnings from transitioning from a founder-led company to a professional CEO, and the importance of aligning skill sets with the stage and needs of the business.
- The competitive landscape in healthcare data, spanning cloud providers, health application companies, and data warehouse players, and the value of having competitors validate the market opportunity.
- The shift in market category from a regulatory compliance solution to a data lakehouse as 1upHealth scales and accumulates billions of records and trillions of resources.
- The impact of the macroeconomic slowdown on enterprise selling and the need for tighter operational control and market responsiveness.
Actionable
Takeaways
Cultivate Investor Relationships Continuously:
Joe emphasizes the importance of engaging with investors consistently, even immediately after closing a funding round. By building rapport, demonstrating progress, and proactively addressing common questions, founders can establish trust and credibility long before initiating a formal fundraising process.
Leverage Industry Events for Investor Connections:
Contrary to the perception that investor "speed dating" events are a waste of time, Joe highlights how a brief 20-minute meeting at such an event led to 1upHealth's Series C lead investor. Founders should view these gatherings as valuable opportunities to make multiple investor connections efficiently.
Know Your Target Customer Intimately:
In enterprise sales, deeply understanding your ideal customer profile, their buying behavior, budgets, and decision-making process is crucial. Founders should prioritize developing this customer knowledge to improve sales effectiveness and avoid chasing the wrong opportunities.
Embrace the Value of Competitors:
While it may seem counterintuitive, the emergence of competitors can actually validate your market and help educate potential customers. Founders should view competition as a necessary part of market development and an indicator that they are on the right track, rather than a purely negative force.
Align Personal and Company Mission for Maximum Impact:
Joe's personal commitment to health and wellness through endurance sports dovetails with 1upHealth's mission to transform healthcare through better data. By finding alignment between their individual purpose and their company's objectives, founders can tap into a deeper source of motivation and inspire their teams to achieve ambitious goals.
Recommended Founder
Interviews
Amar Kendale
President and Co-Founder of Homeward
Amar Kendale, President & Co-Founder of Homeward: $70 Million Raised to Transform Rural Healthcare Through Technology
Brad Kittredge
CEO & Co-Founder of Brightside
Brad Kittredge, CEO & Co-Founder of Brightside: $150 Million Raised to Build the Future of Mental Healthcare
Rafid Fadul
CEO and Co-Founder of Zivian Health
Rafid Fadul, CEO and Co-Founder of Zivian Health: $3 Million Raised to Power the Future of Compliant Healthcare Collaborations
Mark Lehmkuhle
CEO & Founder of Epitel
Mark Lehmkuhle, CEO & Founder of Epitel: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Brain Health Monitoring
Danny Freed
CEO & Founder of Blueprint
Danny Freed, CEO & Founder of Blueprint: $13.7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Therapist Enablement
Alfred Griffin
CEO and Co-Founder of CEO and Co-Founder
Alfred Griffin, CEO and Co-Founder of LightForce: $150 Million Raised to Power the Future of Orthodontics
James Bates
CEO and Founder of AdviNOW Medical
James Bates, CEO and Founder of AdviNOW Medical: $24 Million Raised to Build the Future of AI-Powered Healthcare
Derek Streat
Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Dexcare
Derek Streat, CEO of Dexcare: $110 Million Raised to Help Health Systems to Find Time for the Best Care
Daniel Lambert
CEO of PathologyWatch
Daniel Lambert, CEO of PathologyWatch: Over $50 Million Raised to Build the Future of Digital Pathology
Austin McChord
CEO of Casana
Austin McChord, CEO of Casana: Over $46 Million Raised to Create the Future of In-Home Health Monitoring
Senan Ebrahim
CEO & Founder of Delfina
Senan Ebrahim, CEO & Founder of Delfina: $10 Million Raised to Build the Future of Intelligent Pregnancy Care
Dimitrios Skaltsas
CEO & Co-Founder of Intelligencia AI
Dimitrios Skaltsas, CEO & Co-Founder of Intelligencia AI: $15.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Drug Development
Henry O’Connell
CEO & Founder of Canary Speech
Henry O’Connell, CEO & Founder of Canary Speech: $26 Million Raised to Build the Future of Vocal Biomarker Technology
Richard Queen
CEO and Co-Founder of DignifiHealth
Richard Queen, CEO and Co-Founder of DignifiHealth: $7 Million Raised to Drive Better Patient Outcomes in Rural Healthcare and Beyond
Kyle Kiser
CEO of Arrive Health
Kyle Kiser, CEO of Arrive Health: Over $40 Million Raised to Improve the Value of Healthcare Through Informed Decision-Making
Nick Soman
CEO & Founder of Decent
Nick Soman, CEO & Founder of Decent: $43 Million Raised to Build the Future of Direct Primary Care
Stacy Edgar
CEO and Co-Founder of Venteur
Stacy Edgar, CEO & Co-Founder of Venteur: $7.6 Million Raised to Build the Future of Health Insurance
Itzik Cohen
Co-Founder and CEO of PayZen
Itzik Cohen, Co-Founder and CEO of PayZen: $240 Million Raised to Build the Future of Affordable Health Care
Dipanwita Das
CEO and Co-Founder of Sorcero
Dipanwita Das, CEO and Co-Founder of Sorcero: Over $20 Million Raised to Power Medical Affairs Teams of the Future
David Berry
CEO and Founder of Valo
David Berry, CEO and Founder of Valo: Over $500 Million Raised to Build the Future of Drug Discovery
Vicky Demas
CEO of Identifeye Health
Vicky Demas, CEO of identifeye HEALTH: $90 Million Raised to Power the Future of Retinal Imaging
David King Lassman
Founder of GigXR
David King Lassman, Founder of GigXR: $7 Million Raised to Bring Immersive Learning to Healthcare
Kristen Valdes
CEO & Founder of B.well
Kristen Valdes, CEO & Founder of B.well: $100 Million Raised to Reimagine the Healthcare Experience
Alex Zekoff
CEO and Co-Founder of Thoughtful AI
Alex Zekoff, CEO and Co-Founder of Thoughtful AI: $21 Million Raised to Power the Future of Healthcare Automation
Andreas Cleve
CEO and Co-Founder of Corti
Andreas Cleve, CEO and Co-Founder of Corti: $32 Million Raised to Power the Future of Patient Consultations
Ben Albert
CEO & Co-Founder of Upfront Healthcare
Ben Albert, CEO & Co-Founder of Upfront Healthcare: $30 Million Raised to Power the Future of Patient Engagement
Armon Sharei
CEO & Founder of Portal
Armon Sharei, CEO & Founder of Portal: $5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Cell Engineering
Hala Borno
Founder and CEO of Trial Library
Hala Borno, Founder and CEO of Trial Library: $5M Raised to Improve Patient Recruitment and Diversity in Oncology Clinical Trials
Brett Kleger
CEO of Datacubed Health
Brett Kleger, CEO of Datacubed Health: $43 Million Raised to Revolutionize Clinical Trial Data Collection
Justin Dearborn
Founder & CEO of Praia Health
Justin Dearborn, Founder & CEO of Praia Health: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Consumer Experience in Healthcare
Kourosh Davarpanah
Co-Founder and CEO of Inato
Kourosh Davarpanah, Co-Founder and CEO of Inato: Over $35 Million Raised to Build the Future of Clinical Trials
Joseph Schneier
CEO of Trusty Care
Joseph Schneier, CEO of Trusty Care: $13+ Million Raised to Shape the Future of Medicare
Dilpreet Sahota
CEO of Trek Health
Dilpreet Sahota, CEO of Trek Health: $3 Million Raised to Help Mental Health Providers Accept Insurance
Daniel West
CEO of Prospection
Daniel West, CEO of Prospection: $36 Million Raised to Build the Future of Patient-Centric Intelligence
Viral Patel
Founder and CEO of Radish Health
Viral Patel, CEO of Radish Health: $5 Million Raised to Connect Employees with a Better Healthcare Experience
Samson Magid
Co-Founder and CEO of HealthSnap
Samson Magid, Co-Founder and CEO of HealthSnap: Over $12 Million Raised to Build the Future of Remote Patient Monitoring
Aasim Saeed
CEO and Founder of Amenities Health
Aasim Saeed, CEO and Founder of Amenities Health: $10 Million Raised to Build the Future of Patient Engagement
Dr. Nan-Wei Gong
CEO and Founder of FIGUR8
Dr. Nan-Wei Gong, CEO & Founder of FIGUR8: $40 Million Raised to Build the Future of Musculoskeletal Health and Injury Data Solutions
Matthew Stoudt
CEO and Founder of AppliedVR
Matthew Stoudt, CEO and Founder of AppliedVR: Over $70 Million Raised to Build the Future of Chronic Pain Relief
Joshua Miller
CEO and Co-Founder of Gradient Health
Joshua Miller, CEO & Co-Founder of Gradient Health: $5.7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Medical Imaging
Ignacio Medrano
Founder & CMO of Savana
Ignacio Medrano, Founder & CMO of Savana: $44M Raised to Transform Healthcare Intelligence Through AI
Ty Allen
CEO of SocialClimb
Ty Allen, CEO of SocialClimb: $12 Million Raised to Power the Future of Healthcare Marketing
Matt Renfro
Co-Founder & CEO of Lynx
Matt Renfro, CEO of Lynx: $17.5 Million raised to Bring Modern Fintech to Healthcare
Michael Gorton
Founder of Teladoc
Teladoc Founder Michael Gorton on the Early Days of Pioneering the Telemedicine Category (And What’s He’s Up to Next)
Brock Leonti
CEO & Co-Founder of Prescribe FIT
Brock Leonti, CEO & Co-Founder of Prescribe FIT: $15 Million Raised to Build the Future of Orthopedic Care
Cesar Herrera
CEO and Co-Founder of Yuvo Health
Cesar Herrera, CEO and Co-Founder of Yuvo Health: $28 Million Raised to Revolutionize Healthcare Access
Amy Brown
CEO and Founder of Authenticx
Amy Brown, CEO and Founder of Authenticx: $28 Million Raised to Build the Future of Listening AI
Elad Ferber
CEO & Co-Founder of Synthpop
Elad Ferber, CEO & Co-Founder of Synthpop: $8 Million Raised to Build the Future of Healthcare Administration with AI
Rishi Nayyar
CEO and Co-Founder of PocketHealth
Rishi Nayyar, CEO and Co-Founder of PocketHealth: $22.5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Medical Image Sharing
Khaled Boukadoum
Founder of Torch Dental
Khaled Boukadoum, Founder of Torch Dental: $49.5 Million Raised to Transform Dental Supply Management Through Digital Innovation
Kevin Flyangolts
CEO and Founder of Aclid
Kevin Flyangolts, CEO & Founder of Aclid: $4 Million Raised to Build the Future of Biosecurity
Trenor Williams
CEO and Co-Founder of Socially Determined
Trenor Williams, CEO and Co-Founder of Socially Determined: $34 Million Raised to Build the Social Risk Intelligence Category
Dr Thomas Oakley
CEO of Feedback PLC
Dr Thomas Oakley, CEO of Feedback PLC: £20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Patient Data Sharing