Affiliates – Click the Link to the Left to Return to our Staff
Janet L. Conway, Ph. D., Wyoming Ophthalmic ConsultingHead of Wyoming Ophthalmic Consulting, which provides R&D guidance to ophthalmic start-up organizations and due-diligence, risk assessment, and strategic planning for more developed companies.

Dr. Conway brings 25 years of experience in the ophthalmic pharmaceutical, drug delivery and device sector, serving in a variety of roles from R&D, to product development to licensing. Dr. Conway provides scientific, pre-clinical and clinical assistance and analysis to The Magnum Group. Previously, Dr. Conway was Director of Licensing and Development at Pfizer, Executive Director of Ophthalmology Licensing at Pharmacia, Director of Global Business Development for Johnson & Johnson’s Vision Care Franchise, Vice President of Product Development and one of four founders of M6 Pharmaceuticals. She held similar positions at VimRx Pharmaceuticals, Olympus Corporation (Medical Device Division), and at Johnson & Johnson’s ophthalmic pharmaceutical and medical device company, IOLAB. Prior to J & J, Dr. Conway was a Senior Scientist in Allergan’s Discovery Research organization;

Dr. Conway received BA and MA degrees from Northeastern University, earned a Ph. D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in visual neurophysiology and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in neurochemistry at The University of California, Irvine. She serves on the Board of Directors of Aerie Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Conway and her husband, ophthalmologist K. Buol Heslin, MD, live on a ranch in Alta, Wyoming raising organic grass-fed lamb.

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Judy F. Gordon, D.V.M., ClinReg Consulting Services, Inc.www.clinregconsulting.comFounder, President and brings over 20 years of experience in pharmaceuticals, biologics, and medical devices to her consulting practice. A clinical and regulatory consultant since 1998, Dr. Gordon was with Chiron Vision, a division of Chiron Corporation, from the company’s founding in 1986 through its successful acquisition by Bausch & Lomb in 1997. At Chiron Vision, Dr. Gordon held several roles including Sr. Vice President of R&D and as V.P. of Scientific Affairs, with responsibility for product development, clinical research, regulatory affairs, and regulatory compliance.

In her consulting practice, Dr. Gordon has been involved in the development, clinical and regulatory activities for a broad range of products including injectable polymers for tissue bulking, refractive surgery devices, CAD systems for tumor detection, coils for aneurysm treatment, intracranial stents for stroke prevention, breast biopsy devices, intraocular drug delivery systems for treatment of macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, coronary atherectomy systems, and multiple other products representing novel technology.

Dr. Gordon has taken multiple PMAs and NDAs through the FDA review process, and has directed large-scale clinical trials of both devices and pharmaceutical products. In total, Dr. Gordon has prepared all or part of 16 successful PMA applications for novel devices. She served as the industry representative to FDA’s Ophthalmic Devices Advisory Panel, chaired an industry-FDA working group on guidance documents for clinical trials of refractive surgery lasers, and as the industry representative to the Mediation Dispute Panel of the Center for Devices and Radiologic Health (CDRH).

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James M. Grootegoed, Optical Technology ConsultantMr. Grootegoed provides market research and analysis on new product and technologies for Magnum’s Optical Technologies Division. Mr. Grootegoed is a 30-year industry veteran in wholesale lab, sales, marketing, administration and corporate management. He retired in 2001 and is a consultant to The Magnum Group, Inc. as well as other ophthalmic companies. From 1982 until December 2001, Mr. Grootegoed served in a variety of positions with Walman Optical Company, most recently as Executive Vice President, and Board Member. Walman is the second largest wholesale laboratory in the USA with 21 branches in 19 states. During his tenure, annual sales grew from $56 million to $138 million. Prior to Walman, Mr. Grootegoed worked for Bausch & Lomb from 1979 to 1982 in product management and then as Director of Marketing for the Optical Laboratory Division. Mr. Grootegoed entered the ophthalmic industry in 1974 as a sales representative with Titmus Optical and was promoted to Manager of Distribution, Customer Service and Product Manager.

Mr. Grootegoed is a founder and former board member of the Polycarbonate Council and the AR (Anti Reflective) Council. He is currently the Technology Editor for a publication that focuses on lens processing, and has written many articles and spoken at numerous industry meetings and conferences. Mr. Grootegoed is a graduate of California State University, Los Angeles, CA.

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Dave Harmon, Market Scopewww.mktsc.comFounder, President and manages the leading source of market information on the ophthalmic surgical industry. Market Scope follows companies, technologies, regulatory issues, patents, providers, surgeons, procedure volumes, market share, and pricing. Because the Company focuses its efforts on the ophthalmic market, they are able to bring perspective and context to the latest industry information. The Company’s products include newsletters, reports, surveys, geographic analysis, custom research and analysis. Market Scope’s clients include the leading companies in the industry, investment analysts, surgeons, and optometrists

Mr. Harmon has almost 25 years’ experience in the ophthalmic industry and has been writing and publishing newsletters and reports on the refractive industry since 1996. Through his extensive industry experience and his contacts in the business of refractive surgery, Mr. Harmon has become a leading expert in all business and technical aspects of the refractive industry.

Mr. Harmon’s ophthalmology experience began in 1984 at Alcon Laboratories, where he served in several capacities including three years as Manager of Business Planning and Acquisitions for the Surgical Division and five years as General Manager of the Alcon Systems Division. His education background includes a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration with an Accounting major from Texas Tech University and a Masters of Science in Finance from the University of Texas at Dallas.

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Paul Karpecki, OD, Karpecki Resource GroupFounder, President, and leads a consulting company that provides product awareness and clinical education to optometry for a select group of ophthalmic partners, through various educational media. For over 14 years, Dr. Karpecki has partnered with ophthalmic companies to create key strategic marketing messages and science-based educational initiatives that have allowed numerous companies to achieve great success in the vast optometric market for their products. He also currently works at the Koffler Vision Group in Cornea services and heads the department of Ocular Surface Disease Research.

Dr. Karpecki graduated from Indiana University School of Optometry and completed a fellowship in Cornea and Refractive Surgery at Hunkeler Eye Centers in Kansas City in affiliation with the Pennsylvania College of Optometry in 1994.

Dr. Karpecki is currently the Chair of the Refractive Surgery Advisory Board to the American Optometric Association, Chair of the Topical Interest Group in Refractive Surgery, co-chair of the ASCRS Task Force on the Integrated Eyecare Delivery System and serves on the AOA Congress Education Committee. A noted educator and author, Dr. Karpecki presently serves on seven professional journal editorial boards. He was previously the president of the Optometric Council on Refractive Technology.

Dr. Karpecki has lectured in over 400 symposia, covering four continents, and was one of the first optometrist to be invited to both the Delphi International Society at Wilmer- John’s Hopkins that includes the top 25 dry eye experts in the world, and the National Eye Institute’s dry eye committee. This was a task force established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to better understand and treat dry eye disease in women. Doctor Karpecki’s interest also include education in the area of new advances in ophthalmic technology ranging from optometric education around cataract surgery options for patients to innovative diagnostics, therapeutics and disease management technologies.

One of Dr. Karpecki's hobbies is wine and he has even studied via the Court of Master Sommeliers training program.  His wine knowledge in the area of nutrition and understanding wine has allowed a number of his client companies to add another educational dimension via wine tasting.

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Michael Lachman, Lachman Consulting, LLCwww.lachmanconsulting.comFounder, President and brings 25 years of experience to investment research and analysis, new business development, marketing, and engineering for corporate clients.

Previously Mr. Lachman was a Partner, Managing Director, and equity research analyst with Think Equity Partners, a growth-focused investment bank based in San Francisco. At Think Equity, Mr. Lachman’s research was focused primarily on ophthalmology, orthopedics, and specialty cardiology. Before that, Mr. Lachman was a healthcare analyst on the buy-side with SAC Capital Advisors and Jurika & Voyles. His first experience in equity research was as a medical device analyst with Hambrecht & Quist, where he received a #1 ranking in medical industry stock picking in the Wall Street Journal All-Star Analyst Survey.

Mr. Lachman also brings 12 years of medical device industry experience. He worked for five years in business development for the Ethicon Endo-Surgery division of Johnson & Johnson. Previously, Mr. Lachman spent seven years with Baxter Healthcare Corporation, working in both research & development and product management, with a focus on implantable surgical products.

Mr. Lachman holds an M.B.A. (with concentrations in marketing and finance) from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. He also holds an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University, and a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering with highest honors from the University of Illinois.

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Shareef Mahdavi, SM2 Strategicwww.sm2strategic.comFounder and President, and is based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Mr. Mahdavi has over 20 years of experience in medical devices and has held senior marketing and sales roles with Advanced Medical Optics, Carl Zeiss-Meditec, and Glaxo SmithKline; he led the marketing team at VISX during the launch of the laser used in LASIK, which today is the top elective surgical procedure performed in the US.

Mr. Mahdavi provides expertise in increasing consumer demand for new medical technologies in elective (self-pay) procedures. He works with leading manufacturers, VC/Incubators, and physicians. He is a sought after lecturer for medical conferences and manufacturer user group events. His clients are innovators in refractive surgery, aesthetics, eye disease, sleep/snoring, and cosmetic dentistry. Mr. Mahdavi is also a certified expert on the Experience Economy, one of only ten individuals to earn that designation under the tutelage of authors Pine and Gilmore.

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Bob Main, ABOM, Bob Main Consulting Group, LLC—Optical Business ConsultantMr. Main is the President and Founder (www.BobMainConsulting.com)-a consulting services firm specializing in helping Eye Care Professionals (ECPs) grow by improving best practices, teaching staff technical/selling skills and by implementing internet marketing and online social media tools. He has been in the optical industry for over 35 years and is experienced in strategic planning, marketing (both traditional and web), laser vision correction business building, operations, multi-unit retail management, managed care, and business development (including bricks-and -mortar, web and startups).

For the past six years Mr. Main has been involved in growing international eyecare businesses using internet marketing and social media. He has been a Senior VP for 1800CONTACTS, where he built a national network of over 1,000 eyecare professionals, and a Senior VP for GlassesDirect.com, a U.K. company providing eyecare products online, one of the world's largest.

Previously Mr. Main has been a CEO for a chain of optical stores in the southeast region of the U.S. While there he developed two refractive laser centers and his retail chain was the first in the U.S to purchase a dedicated refractive laser. Additionally, he developed a managed care division that included ECPs over the Southeast Region of the country. Prior to that he was a Regional Director for 20/20 Laser Services and a Director of Operations for LensCrafters where he developed a “second brand” of retail optical stores that grew internationally. Early in his career, Mr. Main was a surgical assistant for a prominent Chicago ophthalmologist.

Mr. Main has a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Business Administration from Southern Illinois University. He studied optics at Indiana University and has a Masters in Ophthalmic Optics. He teaches business development courses at the University of Utah and has lectured internationally for many ophthalmic conferences, such as Vision Expo, American Academy of Ophthalmology and Opticians Association of Canada. He also authors an informational blog, www.TomorrowsOptical.info

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Bob Schulz, Anacapa AdvisorsFounder and President, has over 15-years of experience in the ophthalmic industry, both as a consultant and as a corporate executive. Mr. Schulz has been affiliated with The Magnum Group since 2000. His prior consulting experience includes business development, merger & acquisition, strategic & business planning studies, capital-raising and valuation projects for clients ranging from start-ups to publicly-held companies in the ophthalmic, medical device, medical service and biotechnology sectors. Mr. Schulz previously was a co-founder and President/CEO of Quest Vision Technology, Inc., an accommodating IOL company that was sold to AMO in 2005, founder and president of a start-up medical services company and was an executive officer of Santen Holdings US, Inc. responsible for Santen’s (Tokyo Stock Exchange) corporate planning and business development activities outside of Japan.

Mr. Schulz previously held positions as President of AgriTrust, California Beach Restaurants (NASDAQ), Cushman Equities Corporation and Zaca Mesa Winery. From 1978-84, he served as a First Vice President in the investment banking department of Bateman Eichler, Hill Richards Inc. (now Everen Securities) and from 1975-78, he served as the Manager of KPMG Peat Marwick’s Acquisition Advisory Services practice on the West Coast and formerly in its Management Consulting Department. Mr. Schulz holds a BA in Economics from the University of California Santa Barbara and an MBA in Finance from the University of Southern California.

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Terry Thomas, Thomas Resource Group, Inc.www.thomasresource.com—Mr. Thomas has been a retained executive search consultant for over 25 years. He has also been an operating executive with three Fortune 500 companies and a management consultant.

In 1986 Mr. Thomas established the Thomas Resource Group, Inc., a retained executive search firm focused on senior executive positions in the life science area with particular emphasis in medical device and biopharmaceutical companies. Mr. Thomas has successfully conducted searches for early-stage and start-up companies as well as larger corporations.

Mr. Thomas entered the executive search profession with Korn/Ferry International where he was a Vice President and Partner in the San Francisco office. He successfully conducted searches for senior marketing, financial and operations positions. Mr. Thomas has also been a management consultant to several entrepreneurial enterprises.

Prior to entering the executive search profession, Mr. Thomas held operating management positions with several major U.S. corporations. He was Director of Marketing, the senior executive for sales and marketing, for McKesson Corporation’s international pharmaceutical business.

Mr. Thomas was also with Baxter Healthcare Corporation where he held several management positions in the U.S. and Colombia, South America prior to being promoted to General Manager with full P & L responsibility for Baxter’s business in Central America. Mr. Thomas started his career with the Coca-Cola Company as District Manager. He served as a counterintelligence officer in the U.S. Army (Vietnam).

Mr. Thomas is a graduate of Stanford University and earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and speaks fluent Spanish. He also serves on the board of directors of TMMS, which supports the Vision Beckman Center at UCSF.

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