Latest news with #technologyadoption
Forbes
12-08-2025
- Health
- Forbes
Peer Education: One Of The Most Underrated Growth Engines In Medtech
Tlalit Bussi Tel Tzure is the Vice President of Business Development and Global Marketing for the Medical Device Company, IceCure Medical. In medtech, where adoption of new technologies can be cautious and slow, one powerful driver that often goes overlooked is peer education. We've all experienced the power of a referral—when someone you trust recommends a book, a treatment or a restaurant, you're far more likely to give it a try. It's not about the pitch. It's about trust. In medicine, that same dynamic plays out every day. When physicians learn directly from their peers—not sales reps or marketing teams—it carries real weight. A simple, authentic statement like 'I've used this technology, and it really helped my patient' can open doors that no polished demo ever could. In this article, I will share my experience on why peer education works so well in medtech—and how, when done right, it can become a strategic engine for growth and lasting adoption. When Trust And Confidence Start With Peer Experience In healthcare, it makes perfect sense that doctors are cautious with new treatment options. These are decisions that deeply impact the health of patients, and no one takes that lightly. That's why it's so powerful when a physician can speak to someone who's already using the technology and come out the other side more confident. I remember clearly the first time I witnessed this in action: the power of one physician describing their experience with my company's cryoablation system to a colleague who was still on the fence. There was no fancy presentation. No pressure. Just a real, honest conversation rooted in clinical experience. That kind of exchange doesn't just build trust; it fosters real confidence. This is why peer education is more than just a helpful tool, but rather a growth engine that can open doors and create the kind of clinician-led adoption that drives long-term success. Why Peer Learning Works—Business Value, Not Just Clinical Comfort Doctors are not interested in being 'sold to' by companies. They want stories from the field from someone who has used the same tool in real-life situations and can speak authentically about patient outcomes. Peer education works because it bridges the gap between theory and practice and opens a dialogue. Sharing a lived experience delivers clinical credibility and emotional reassurance. It shortens the path to adoption and lowers the perceived risk of using a new technique. This is why I see peer-to-peer education as an extension of a company's go-to-market strategy. It's how companies can accelerate confidence, build adoption and, ultimately, support better care. Peer Learning Models That Work: Intimate, Strategic And High-Touch In medtech, the most effective peer education models are those that align closely with how physicians prefer to learn: through authentic, practical interactions with their peers. Rather than relying on sales-driven presentations, smaller hands-on sessions—often led by experienced users or key opinion leaders (KOLs)—create space for authentic clinical discussions. I have found these intimate, peer-led formats consistently foster deeper engagement and greater confidence in adopting new technologies and can do more to shift clinical perspective than months of traditional follow-up. Tailoring Peer Education To Different Prospect Types Not every physician learns the same way. Senior clinicians and KOLs often benefit most from direct, strategic dialogue with respected global peers. I've seen this in action: A leading breast surgeon from the United States and a radiologist from South Africa engaged with a highly regarded breast surgeon who is one of the pioneers of breast cancer cryoablation. The learning went far beyond technical instruction—it became a strategic conversation between peers shaping the future of care. But other surgeons and breast radiologists who are focused on broadening their treatment offerings may prefer accessible formats like hands-on workshops at events such as those held by the Society of Breast Imaging or the American Society of Breast Surgeons. Sessions like these can offer practical exposure and structured learning through a recognized association of experts in their medical specialty. Building The Right KOL Relationships—Years In The Making Building successful KOL relationships relies on trust built over the years. KOLs aren't just spokespeople; they are strategic collaborators, early product co-creators and long-term champions. The most impactful KOLs often: • Help shape device usage and treatment protocols. • Participate in investigator-led studies, case reports and webinars. • Provide critical feedback that informs product direction. Throughout my years in the medical device field, I've seen firsthand how building the right relationship with a KOL who is truly passionate about delivering the best patient care can turn them into an exceptional product advocate. Involving physicians in shaping your technology and empowering them to help educate the next generation of doctors is not only rewarding—it can become a powerful driver of your business model. As another example, an interventional radiologist from CHU de Nimes in France hosted several fellow radiologists from throughout Europe who were looking to expand their knowledge in treating a broader range of tumor types. Through case discussions and observation, he helped his fellow professionals to explore how to apply new tools more widely in their own clinical settings. Why Trust Is The Real Growth Strategy Peer education isn't just a marketing gimmick. It is a key business strategy that plays a central role in adoption, especially for high-consideration products that require trust, not just awareness. When it's done well, peer education delivers more than conversions. It leads to stronger relationships, richer feedback loops and long-term growth. It transforms passive users into active champions. When people believe in your product and your team, that belief spreads faster than any campaign ever could. Forbes Business Development Council is an invitation-only community for sales and biz dev executives. Do I qualify?
Bloomberg
05-08-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
OpenAI, Google and Anthropic Win US Approval for Civilian AI Contracts
The US government's central purchasing arm is adding OpenAI, Alphabet Inc. 's Google and Anthropic to a list of approved artificial intelligence vendors, opening the door to widespread adoption of the technology across civilian federal agencies. The move by the General Services Administration, to be announced Tuesday, will speed up the adoption of AI tools in the federal government by making them available through its Multiple Award Schedule, a federal contracting platform with contract terms already set. Without that flexibility, agencies would ordinarily spend months negotiating their own terms for use of the technology.
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
OA Group and CKP Form Strategic Alliance to Empower SMEs Across Southeast Asia
SINGAPORE, June 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- OA Group of Companies (Singapore) and Chia, Ka & Partners PLT (Malaysia) have entered into a strategic alliance to accelerate SME growth across Southeast Asia through digital transformation, technology adoption, and trusted regional advisory. The alliance brings together two award-winning professional firms recognized for championing innovation and client-centricity in the accounting and advisory sectors. With a shared vision for enabling SME growth beyond national borders, the OA-CKP partnership helps business owners shift their revenue focus to high-growth markets while enhancing operational efficiency by tapping into regional strengths and capabilities. "In today's dynamic and fast evolving economy, many SMEs are eager to grow beyond their domestic markets. However, navigating regulatory frameworks, integrating digital solutions across borders, and finding the right advisory support can be challenging," said Alan Chang, CEO of OA Group. "This alliance creates a trusted bridge between Singapore and Malaysia – giving business owners practical support to expand into new markets without the usual guesswork, delays, or compliance headaches." The partnership builds on both firms' strong relationship with Xero, a global leader in cloud accounting. By combining regional expertise with smart digital tools, OA Group and CKP help business owners make quicker decisions, manage costs effectively, and avoid common pitfalls in cross-border expansion. The result: greater clarity, better control, and the confidence to scale sustainably. "Over the years, we've supported clients on their digitalization journey," said Jeremy Chia, Managing Director of CKP. "This collaboration allows us to take that support further – beyond compliance and bookkeeping – into regional strategy and growth execution." Strengthening this collaboration is the newly launched book Why Breakeven, co-authored by Alan and Jeremy. It challenges traditional profit-focused thinking and encourages entrepreneurs to adopt practical, data-driven strategies for long-term success. The publication and the event have received praise from industry leaders: Ang Yuit, President of ASME, commented: "Events like this remind us that SMEs don't grow in isolation, They grow when knowledge is shared, partnerships are forged and support is made accessible." Koren Wines, Managing Director of Xero Asia, calls it "a bold rethinking of outdated financial mindsets." Fann Kor, CEO of ISCA, refers to it as "a timely call to action for businesses navigating the future of AI, sustainability, and innovation." With offices across Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and China, OA Group's regional reach and strategic insights complement CKP's digital expertise and deep domain knowledge in Malaysia. This partnership marks a pivotal step in building an integrated, cross-border ecosystem to help SMEs navigate complexity, seize new market opportunities, and scale with resilience. About OA Group of Companies OA Group is a Singapore-headquartered professional services firm offering integrated assurance, compliance, and advisory solutions. The firm supports SMEs across Asia with technology-driven services designed to enable confident, cross-border growth. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE OA Group Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Melden Sie sich an, um Ihr Portfolio aufzurufen. Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The U.S. Navy is more aggressively telling startups, ‘We want you'
While Silicon Valley executives like those from Palantir, Meta, and OpenAI are grabbing headlines for trading their Brunello Cucinelli vests for Army Reserve uniforms, a quieter transformation has been underway in the U.S. Navy. How? Well, the Navy's Chief Technology Officer Justin Fanelli says he has spent the last two and a half years focused on cutting through the red tape and protracted procurement cycles that once made working with the military a nightmare for startups. The efforts represent a less visible but potentially more meaningful remaking, one where the government is moving faster and being smarter about where it's committing dollars. 'We're more open for business and partnerships than we've ever been before,' Fanelli told TechCrunch in a recent Zoom interview. 'We're humble and listening more than before, and we recognize that if an organization shows us how we can do business differently, we want that to be a partnership.' Right now, many of these partnerships are being facilitated through what Fanelli calls the Navy's innovation adoption kit, a series of frameworks and tools that aim to bridge the so-called Valley of Death, where promising tech dies on its path from prototype to production. 'Your granddaddy's government had a spaghetti chart for how to get in,' he said. 'Now it's a funnel, and we are saying, if you can show that you have outsized outcomes, then we want to designate you as an enterprise service.' In one recent case, the Navy went from a Request for Proposal (RFP) to pilot deployment in under six months with Via, an eight-year-old, Somerville, Mass.-based cybersecurity startup that helps big organizations protect sensitive data and digital identities through, in part, decentralization, meaning the data isn't stored in one central spot that can be hacked. (Another of Via's clients is the U.S. Air Force.) The Navy's new approach operates on what Fanelli calls a 'horizon' model, borrowed and adapted from McKinsey's innovation framework. Companies move through three phases: evaluation, structured piloting, and scaling to enterprise services. The key difference from traditional government contracting, Fanelli says, is that the Navy now leads with problems rather than predetermined solutions. 'Instead of specifying, 'Hey, we'd like this problem solved in a way that we've always had it,' we just say we have a problem, who wants to solve this, and how will you solve it?' Fanelli said. Fanelli's drive to overhaul Navy tech is personal. Originally a scholarship cadet in the Air Force studying electrical engineering, he was disqualified from military service due to a lung issue. Determined to serve anyway, he chose the Navy over private sector offers more than 20 years ago because he 'wanted to be around people in uniform.' Since then, his career has spanned roles across defense, intelligence, DARPA, and open source initiatives, before returning to the Department of the Navy. The change he's overseeing is opening doors to companies that previously never considered government work and may have thought it a waste of time to try. Fanelli points, for example, to one competition run through the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), wherein the Navy expected a handful of bidders for a niche cybersecurity challenge but received nearly 100 responses – many from companies that had never worked with the DoD before but were already solving similar problems in the private sector. Fanelli says his team has documented dozens of success stories altogether, including one where a venture-backed startup used robotic process automation to zip through a two-year invoice backlog in just a couple of weeks. Another example involved rolling out network improvements to an aircraft carrier that saved 5,000 sailor hours in the first month alone. 'That not just changed their availability, but it changed their morale, esprit de corps, how much time they could spend doing other tasks,' Fanelli noted, explaining that time saved is one of five metrics that the Navy uses to measure the success of a pilot program. The other four are operational resilience, cost per user, adaptability, and user experience. As for what the Navy is looking for right now, Fanelli outlined several high-priority areas, including AI, where the service is actively talking with teams. For starters, the Navy wants to accelerate AI adoption beyond basic generative AI use cases into more agentic applications for everything from onboarding and personnel management to data processing on ships. He also cited 'alternative' GPS, explaining that the Navy is quickly adopting alternative precision navigation and timing software, particularly for integration with unmanned systems. And he mentioned 'legacy system modernization,' saying that some of the aging technology that the Navy is looking to modernize includes air traffic control infrastructure and ship-based systems. So how much money is it looking to put to work each year? Fanelli said he wasn't at liberty to provide specific budget breakdowns, but he said the Navy currently allocates single-digit percentages to emerging and commercial technology versus traditional defense contractors — a balance that he expects to evolve significantly as AI continues to advance. As for the most common reason that promising technologies fail when trialed, he said it isn't necessarily because of technical shortcomings. Instead, he said, the Navy operates on long budget cycles, and if a new solution doesn't replace or 'turn off' an existing system, funding becomes problematic. 'If we're getting benefit and we're measuring that benefit, but there's no money [getting to the startup] in a year and a half — that's a really bad story for their investors and our users,' Fanelli explained. 'Sometimes it's a zero sum game. Sometimes it's not. And if we're going to flip the public-private sector to more private and ride that wave, we do have a lot of technical debt that we need to cut anchor on.' During our call, we also asked Fanelli if the Trump administration's 'America first' policies are impacting these processes in any way. Fanelli answered that the current focus on domestic manufacturing aligns well with the Navy's 'resilience' goals (he pointed to digital twins, additive manufacturing, and on-site production capabilities that can reduce supply chain dependencies). Either way, the Navy's message for entrepreneurs and investors is pretty clearly that it's a genuine alternative to traditional commercial markets, and it's a pitch that appears to be gaining traction in Silicon Valley, where there's growing receptiveness to partnering with the U.S. government. Meta's Andrew Bosworth recently observed at a recent Bloomberg event in San Francisco: 'There's a much stronger patriotic underpinning than I think people give Silicon Valley credit for.' As longtime industry observers can attest, it's a marked change from the more skeptical stance that characterized much of the Valley in previous years. Now, Fanelli hopes to attract more of that interest to the Navy specifically. He told TechCrunch, 'I would invite anyone who wants to serve the greater mission from a solution perspective to lean in and to join us in this journey.' If you're interested in hearing our full conversation with Fanelli, you can check it out right here.
TechCrunch
15-06-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
The U.S. Navy is more aggressively telling startups, ‘We want you'
While Silicon Valley executives like those from Palantir, Meta, and OpenAI are grabbing headlines for trading their Brunello Cucinelli vests for Army Reserve uniforms, a quieter transformation has been underway in the U.S. Navy. How? Well, the Navy's Chief Technology Officer Justin Fanelli says he has spent the last two and a half years focused on cutting through the red tape and protracted procurement cycles that once made working with the military a nightmare for startups. The efforts represent a less visible but potentially more meaningful remaking, one where the government is moving faster and being smarter about where it's committing dollars. 'We're more open for business and partnerships than we've ever been before,' Fanelli told TechCrunch in a recent Zoom interview. 'We're humble and listening more than before, and we recognize that if an organization shows us how we can do business differently, we want that to be a partnership.' Right now, many of these partnerships are being facilitated through what Fanelli calls the Navy's innovation adoption kit, a series of frameworks and tools that aim to bridge the so-called Valley of Death, where promising tech dies on its path from prototype to production. 'Your granddaddy's government had a spaghetti chart for how to get in,' he said. 'Now it's a funnel, and we are saying, if you can show that you have outsized outcomes, then we want to designate you as an enterprise service.' In one recent case, the Navy went from a Request for Proposal (RFP) to pilot deployment in under six months with Via, an eight-year-old, Somerville, Mass.-based cybersecurity startup that helps big organizations protect sensitive data and digital identities through, in part, decentralization, meaning the data isn't stored in one central spot that can be hacked. (Another of Via's clients is the U.S. Air Force.) The Navy's new approach operates on what Fanelli calls a 'horizon' model, borrowed and adapted from McKinsey's innovation framework. Companies move through three phases: evaluation, structured piloting, and scaling to enterprise services. The key difference from traditional government contracting, Fanelli says, is that the Navy now leads with problems rather than predetermined solutions. 'Instead of specifying, 'Hey, we'd like this problem solved in a way that we've always had it,' we just say we have a problem, who wants to solve this, and how will you solve it?' Fanelli said. Techcrunch event Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Boston, MA | REGISTER NOW Fanelli's drive to overhaul Navy tech is personal. Originally a scholarship cadet in the Air Force studying electrical engineering, he was disqualified from military service due to a lung issue. Determined to serve anyway, he chose the Navy over private sector offers more than 20 years ago because he 'wanted to be around people in uniform.' Since then, his career has spanned roles across defense, intelligence, DARPA, and open source initiatives, before returning to the Department of the Navy. The change he's overseeing is opening doors to companies that previously never considered government work and may have thought it a waste of time to try. Fanelli points, for example, to one competition run through the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), wherein the Navy expected a handful of bidders for a niche cybersecurity challenge but received nearly 100 responses – many from companies that had never worked with the DoD before but were already solving similar problems in the private sector. Fanelli says his team has documented dozens of success stories altogether, including one where a venture-backed startup used robotic process automation to zip through a two-year invoice backlog in just a couple of weeks. Another example involved rolling out network improvements to an aircraft carrier that saved 5,000 sailor hours in the first month alone. 'That not just changed their availability, but it changed their morale, esprit de corps, how much time they could spend doing other tasks,' Fanelli noted, explaining that time saved is one of five metrics that the Navy uses to measure the success of a pilot program. The other four are operational resilience, cost per user, adaptability, and user experience. As for what the Navy is looking for right now, Fanelli outlined several high-priority areas, including AI, where the service is actively talking with teams. For starters, the Navy wants to accelerate AI adoption beyond basic generative AI use cases into more agentic applications for everything from onboarding and personnel management to data processing on ships. He also cited 'alternative' GPS, explaining that the Navy is quickly adopting alternative precision navigation and timing software, particularly for integration with unmanned systems. And he mentioned 'legacy system modernization,' saying that some of the aging technology that the Navy is looking to modernize includes air traffic control infrastructure and ship-based systems. So how much money is it looking to put to work each year? Fanelli said he wasn't at liberty to provide specific budget breakdowns, but he said the Navy currently allocates single-digit percentages to emerging and commercial technology versus traditional defense contractors — a balance that he expects to evolve significantly as AI continues to advance. As for the most common reason that promising technologies fail when trialed, he said it isn't necessarily because of technical shortcomings. Instead, he said, the Navy operates on long budget cycles, and if a new solution doesn't replace or 'turn off' an existing system, funding becomes problematic. 'If we're getting benefit and we're measuring that benefit, but there's no money [getting to the startup] in a year and a half — that's a really bad story for their investors and our users,' Fanelli explained. 'Sometimes it's a zero sum game. Sometimes it's not. And if we're going to flip the public-private sector to more private and ride that wave, we do have a lot of technical debt that we need to cut anchor on.' During our call, we also asked Fanelli if the Trump administration's 'America first' policies are impacting these processes in any way. Fanelli answered that the current focus on domestic manufacturing aligns well with the Navy's 'resilience' goals (he pointed to digital twins, additive manufacturing, and on-site production capabilities that can reduce supply chain dependencies). Either way, the Navy's message for entrepreneurs and investors is pretty clearly that it's a genuine alternative to traditional commercial markets, and it's a pitch that appears to be gaining traction in Silicon Valley, where there's growing receptiveness to partnering with the U.S. government. Meta's Andrew Bosworth recently observed at a recent Bloomberg event in San Francisco: 'There's a much stronger patriotic underpinning than I think people give Silicon Valley credit for.' As longtime industry observers can attest, it's a marked change from the more skeptical stance that characterized much of the Valley in previous years. Now, Fanelli hopes to attract more of that interest to the Navy specifically. He told TechCrunch, 'I would invite anyone who wants to serve the greater mission from a solution perspective to lean in and to join us in this journey.' If you're interested in hearing our full conversation with Fanelli, you can check it out right here.
