We Exist to Help You Change Lives for a Better World

MEET THE TEAM
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Meet The Velentium Team

Our People Make the Difference

Albert Rodriguez

Director, Human Factors Engineering

"Push hard, do the job right - and then relax and recharge, be with family, before the next hard push."
 

Albert Rodriguez is Velentium’s Director of Human Factors Engineering (HFE). Albert’s career began when he switched his major from mechanical engineering to software engineering at the University of Houston Clearlake. One of his early projects out of school was in robotics, designing a system that trained astronauts to operate a robot arm in space. The training took place in gravity, but the software and mechanics of the training system had to mimic zero-G behavior. Albert became fascinated with interface design and interface engineering, especially when the opportunity came to work alongside an MIT PhD candidate studying HFE. Together, they were able to redesign a two-astronaut robotic arm control system with a much simpler one-man system. From then on, Albert was hooked.

“I surrounded myself with books and learned everything I could about HFE,” he recalls. “I love everything in this space, from how early word processing programs dropped the ball by requiring manual saves, to how Pampered Chef’s garlic press has a cleaning tool that attaches to the press so they don’t become separated during storage.” Even his hobbies are related. Albert loves anything outdoors - the wilder the better. Kayaking, fishing, hunting, competitive sailing, cycling, nature photography… anything that takes you “out”. Success in these activities, Albert says, requires careful observation of non-human cues - again, the study of interfaces.

Asked what drew him to Velentium, Albert mentioned that he has known co-founder Tim Carroll for a long time, having met through a mutual colleague and finding they both enjoy hunting and fishing. From a technical and human-impact perspective, however, Albert says that Velentium “just made sense.” Software is everywhere, helping run everything, but he never wanted to use his skill set in the service of anything that could potentially cause harm. Velentium’s passion to change lives for a better world, especially through medical devices, is a natural fit.

Albert also points to Velentium’s ethos on the natural the ebb and flow of work and life. “Push hard, do the job right - and then relax and recharge, be with family, before the next hard push. And when we’re working, we do the job right because it’s the right thing to do. Not because a cop or a regulator or an auditor could be looking over our shoulders.”

“I want everyone to be able to take advantage of my experiences and grow from them,” Albert says. “I’m a big believer in professional mentoring. I’m not ‘Velentium’s Human Factors Engineer.’ My job is ensuring that everybody does HFE. My role is ensuring our focus stays on usability from proposal to final milestone, and that we design the best, simplest interfaces possible to serve our clients and their users.”

Albert is married and has two children in college - Gabriella, a senior exploring options in graduate studies, and Matt, a sophomore working to pin down his major. Both are musically inclined and working at the professional level: Gabriella is pursuing a position with film soundtrack symphonies, while Matt manufactures and sells beats to recording artists and studios.

Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • BS in Software Engineering from University of Houston
  • Has a passion for professional mentoring, especially in Human Factors Engineeering
  • Been with Velentium since 2020

Ben Trombold

VP, Sales & Marketing

"We are driven to grow our business, but we have to do it the right way for positive change."
Ben Trombold is Velentium’s VP of Sales & Marketing and is the reigning record-holder of the “most organized inbox in the company.” Ben’s 10+ years of sales and marketing experience began simultaneously with his undergraduate studies at the University of Kansas, where he earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. While there, he worked as a student lecturer of college algebra for seven semesters, and then picked up an internship with PepsiCo between his junior and senior years. The internship turned into a full-time offer upon graduation, and after a year as a sales rep, Ben then spent the next two and a half years managing up to 50 people who sold product to grocery stores in his 65-store territory. Ben then moved away from PepsiCo to become a national account manager for a financial transaction company for two years, and then was a senior sales director for a healthcare payments company, developing new business for brokerage clients. When that company was bought out a few years later, Ben knew it was time to switch gears. He obtained his MBA with concentrations in Finance and International Business from the University of Nebraska, and in 2018, Ben joined Velentium. 
 
Ben has been married to his wife, Kristen, for almost five years. They have a Wheaton terrier, Ollie, who still occasionally likes to “put in a good word” during their Zoom meetings. In his spare time, Ben enjoys golfing, snowboarding, skiing, camping in the mountains, and most everything related to physical fitness (at one time, he ranked in the top 10% in the world in CrossFit)… yet he balances those pursuits by binge-watching Netflix to relax.
 
Ben was attracted to Velentium for both professional and personal reasons. Professionally, he was excited about the opportunity to build the sales and marketing department from scratch with full autonomy. Personally, he was attracted to the values, the culture, and the leadership, and since signing on, has been grateful to learn that the people who work here are also great. His dream is to see “Velentium as one of the prominent industry market forces when it comes to medical device development. I want us to help guide and direct the industry because we have a different way of approaching it than the way things have historically been done.”
 
“I’ve always had a drive to do the best that I can in whatever position I’m in. I’m a big proponent of self-development. I want to be successful so that I can make others alongside me successful too. The more successful we are as a company, the more influence and positive change we can bring to the world.” 
 
In the next 5-10 years, he believes that the medical device industry will change by “bringing more personal accountability for healthcare. Medical care will become more remote and there will be a lot of different ways to receive care.” What sets Velentium apart to Ben? “It’s our unwavering accountability to our values. We are driven to grow our business, but we have to do it the right way for positive change.”
Primary Location
Denver, CO
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Kansas
  • MBA with Finance & International Business concentrations from the University of Nebraska
  • Been with Velentium since 2018

Chris Jensen

VP, Corporate Development

"We share our clients’ passion to change lives for a better world."
 

Chris Jensen is the VP of Corporate Development at Velentium. He holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Houston and an MBA from Rice University, and has four decades of experience in engineering and small business entrepreneurship. After cutting his teeth in engineering with companies like Sperry-Sun and Halliburton, Chris earned his MBA in finance and spent a few years working in the financial sector before returning to engineering to found his own consultancy. His solo projects reflected his wide-ranging interests, from quantum-based random number generation, to near-earth orbital monitoring systems capable of surviving rocket disasters, to residential construction energy efficiency and regulatory compliance, to custom commercial IT infrastructure installation solutions.

Chris joined Velentium in 2016, and credits the three values (Honorable, Results++, and Humble Charisma) for drawing him in. “When I was interviewed,” he recalls, “Dan and Tim led with the values. They clearly try to live them out personally as well as make a better society through medical device innovation. I turned down a higher-salaried competing offer because Velentium held the promise of a better work environment and better work goals. I’ve been pleased to see that promise being pursued and fulfilled in the years since.”

As for the work itself, Chris says “I love it. Engineering is engineering, but the fundamental reason for our work is to make peoples’ lives better. My first project here was an implant that senses the onset of epileptic fits, delivers a therapeutic signal to counter them, and alerts caregivers. That project let me see our clients’ passion for their devices, and their mission to improve patients’ lives, which matches our own.” Since then, Chris recalls, “There have been so many more projects that do similar, magical, sci-fi level tech treating people’s medical conditions. We’re fortunate to be directly involved in projects that were unimaginable a few years ago. We’re reading brainwaves to improve memory, restoring paralytic nerve function to let people walk again, and providing treatments for chronic pain, to name just a few.”

Another big attractor Chris points to is Velentium’s hiring practices. “Top minds work here,” he observed, adding that Velentium has capabilities matched by few other companies in the world. “We’ve grown not merely by doing more of the same - design and development - but by continuing to go deeper and explore other types of services, including testing and production of medical implantables, as well as adjacent services like regulatory advising, clinical trials, and venture capital networking to enable more medical devices manufacturers to succeed.”

“We win deals because our values are real, and have a material impact on how we do business. So much of our work is ongoing, repeat, and referral business because we don’t squeeze our clients. We treat them right and go above and beyond, doing what the project needs, not necessarily only what we contracted for. We find ways of making it work because we share our clients’ passion to change lives for a better world.”

Chris and his wife have a son in 5th grade who has special needs. “We’ve learned so much from him,” Chris says. “He’s a unique and caring individual who has taught me so much about what’s important in a human life - for example, the value of persistence and self-advocacy. You can get almost anything if you ask for it enough, and he’s the most persistent person I’ve ever met. He’s also opened our horizons on communication. Translating thoughts and inner experiences into words is a challenge for him, but that doesn’t prevent him from communicating - it’s broader than just speech.”

Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Houston
  • MBA in Finance from Rice University
  • Been with Velentium since 2016

Christopher Gates

Director, Product Security

"In a world where most companies are only motivated by financial interest, Velentium routinely has moral discussions about the best approach for its clients, world, and employees."
 

Christopher Gates is the Director of Product Security at Velentium. He has over 30 years of experience developing and securing medical devices for numerous industry-leading device manufacturers, and frequently collaborates with regulatory and standard bodies including the NTIA, MITRE, Bluetooth SIG, IEEE, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and the FDA to present, define, and codify tools, techniques, and processes that enable the creation of secure medical devices.

Christopher has a wife, two sons, one daughter, four grandchildren, and a Siberian Husky. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, biking, and craft beer, preferably in the company of his wife and their loyal companion.

Everywhere he goes, Christopher promotes the secure development lifecycle, an approach that eases the burden on developers and ensures high-quality products that work as intended to save and improve lives without putting users at risk. In 2020, he co-authored the definitive book on the subject, Medical Device Cybersecurity for Engineers and Manufacturers (Artech House, Aug. 31, 2020. ISBN: 9781630818159).

Christopher graduated from California State University Northridge with a B.S. in Computer Science and worked in various roles as a software engineer, project manager, and cybersecurity architect. His projects ranged from control systems for an early all-electric motorcycle, to consulting for Disneyland, to engineering and securing medical devices targeting respiratory, cardiovascular, and endocrine indications.

Christopher joined Velentium in 2017 because he had previously collaborated with the company as a contractor and seen firsthand that its values are exemplified by its founders. “In a world where most companies are only motivated by financial interest, Velentium routinely has moral discussions about the best approach for its clients, its staff, and the world. Every employee engages each project with the mindset that the equipment we’re designing might one day be used to save our own loved ones.”

For Christopher, this motivation is not a mere thought exercise. When his first grandchild was born prematurely, before his lungs could fully close, Christopher visited him in the NICU. There, he noticed that a handful of the machines allowing his grandson to breathe were among the devices he himself had helped design.

Primary Location
Las Vegas, NV
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Computer Science from California State University Northridge
  • Owned his own consultancy for 20 years
  • Been with Velentium since 2017

Dan Purvis

CEO

"Velentium employees are not 'workers for hire,' they are 'workers for cause.'"

A serial entrepreneur and the founder of six companies, Dan Purvis has deep experience with small business. The theme throughout his professional and nonprofit endeavors has been an intense love for people, which led Dan to become a student of culture. He has 25 years of practical know-how in creating corporate environments that people want to work in and clients want to engage.
 
Dan and his wife Julie have three sons and one daughter. In his spare time, Dan enjoys skiing, soccer, reading, and any contest where there is a winner and a loser. Dan graduated with University Honors in Electrical Engineering and an Undergraduate Fellowship from Texas A&M, which he followed up by becoming a Jones Scholar at Rice University’s Jones School of Business. His career began at National Instruments in the upper Midwest, but after returning to his hometown of Houston, he began building a division for his new employer. As that became successful over the next 15 years, Dan realized a knack for starting up new companies, which he would run in his spare time. After his 3rd successful sale, he promised himself that the next one would take over his career, full-time. That 4th company was Velentium.
 
Dan joined forces with Tim Carroll to cofound Velentium in 2012, bringing to bear insight gleaned throughout his career. Those insights crafted a culture designed to change lives for a better world by doing Right for Right’s sake (Honorable), doing the job and then some (Results++), and being the kind of person that others want to be around (Humble Charisma). “Velentium is more than a B2B services company providing engineering solutions,” Dan explains. “We aren’t workers for hire: we’re workers for cause.” Dan’s ultimate goal is not to hit financial targets, but to build an organization that directly improves the lives of 1,000 families and, by helping clients bring transformative medical devices and technologies to market, helps to build a better world.
 
Dan has always been passionate about people, realizing over the years that if you seek profit first, hard-code company culture into bloodless HR policies and poster-style slogans, and then try to shoehorn in customer care, you’ll reap dysfunction. “But if you care enough to take on risk in order to be Honorable, which means be where you’ll say you’ll be, do what you say you’ll do – if you’re stubborn enough to ensure that the client succeeds, stubborn about protecting your people, and strategic about profit – then loyalty, spontaneous referrals, growth, and business success will follow.” 
 
What began as a two-person operation grew to a multimillion-dollar-firm within three years. From 2014 on, Velentium has averaged 50% annual growth year over year. “Leading an intensely culture-forward organization in the corporate world affords these moments of human connection that are my favorite aspect of the job,” Dan says. “We get to build these longstanding relationships that meld the professional with the personal. It allows all of us – staff, partners, clients, and executives – to be fully human in our work, to let loose and productively channel our whole passion to change lives for a better world. It’s not trite or calculated, it’s just who we are!”
Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University
  • MBA from Rice University
  • Co-founded Velentium

John McKnight

Director of Firmware

 
"Velentium chooses to define success by adhering to its core values, which govern who it hires and how it operates."
 

John McKnight serves as Velentium’s Director of Firmware. He has over 30 years of development experience in multiple industries, the latest and most fulfilling being in the medical device industry. He has expertise in firmware, software, and hardware development, writing code, machine learning, natural language processing, artificial intelligence, and blockchain development. John has also worked in structural engineering analysis for both residential and commercial buildings (he built a 3D renderer to view the buildings he was designing), and risk analysis for the financial sector (generating programs to determine loan eligibility). He even built a voice assistant that predates Siri and Alexa. His name is on a few patents, too.

John has been fascinated with computers since he was 10 years old and knew he wanted to work with them for his future career. As a high schooler, John was always writing code even though “there was no particular reason to do so.” One of his high school teachers knew a company looking for a developer and recommended John to them, which is where he landed his first job. He is entirely self-taught, knows that his mind can “go any direction he wants it to go,” and says he stays motivated because it’s his goal to “learn one new thing every day.”

In the 80s, John was a "maker" long before the term became common. He designed single board computers, wrote the firmware for them, designed and coded a graphical OS, and made audio and video capture devices as well as network cards. In 1983, he was recording music to computers and storing them in a data format he'd devised while also writing noise-canceling algorithms so they would play well using extremely limited hardware.

Looking back at his career, he’s glad for the opportunities he’s had to work on such a wide variety of projects, but he realized those things weren’t making a true difference in people’s lives. While feeling dissatisfied where he was, he met Mike Honaker, who suggested John apply for the open developer job at Velentium. After talking with Mark Kraft, Kenny Long, and Albert Rodriguez, John knew there was something special about Velentium’s people and company culture. He was impressed by everyone’s high caliber, their humble charisma and respect for each other, and their passion for what they do. When John learned about the various devices that Velentium worked on, he was sold. This was definitely the next right step.

John’s goal for Velentium is to continue changing lives for a better world. He desires to help establish the groundwork for continued growth through mentoring and teambuilding, and through building systems and processes that will ensure future success. “The values that we strive to live by separate Velentium from its competitors. Sometimes success is measured in the wrong ways, but Velentium chooses to define success by adhering to its core values, which govern who it hires and how it operates.” In the future, John would love to see higher adoption of machine learning and integrate that into implantable devices. The technology is getting close to being able to do that, and the use cases could be extraordinary.

John lives on a farm east of Nashville, Tennessee, where he grows and cans organic vegetables, raises chickens for their eggs, makes his own cheeses and soaps, tends to a vineyard, and will be raising cattle soon too. He is completely off the grid apart from internet access; everything else runs on solar energy. In John’s spare time, he enjoys music (he plays guitar and has a rapidly-expanding collection of guitars), motocross (he used to race and plans to resume), playing disc golf, and riding his tractor to relax.

Primary Location
Nashville, TN
Experience & Recognition
  • Over 30 years of development experience in multiple industries
  • Focus is on helping to establish the groundwork for continued growth through mentoring and teambuilding, and through building systems and processes that will ensure future success
  • Been with Velentium since 2021

Mario Garcia

Vice President, Manufacturing

“Everyone at Velentium knows our Core Values, and every single action from top to bottom is driven by adhering to those values.”
 
Mario Garcia serves as Velentium’s VP of Manufacturing, bringing more than 22 years of experience in the medical device industry. For more than 12 of those years, he has led international and multi-site manufacturing operations of class I, II, and III medical devices and products, working with companies such as CR Bard, Integer, Avanos, and B. Braun. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electronic & Industrial Engineering from the Technological Institute of Chihuahua. 
 
He has always been interested in engineering, developing a passion for it at a young age. He saw a lot of potential in manufacturing, noting that it offered multiple opportunities to grow as a professional. In 2000, during the economic recession, he saw a rapid and dramatic impact in all manufacturing industries except the medical industry, which prompted him to investigate it. People can often delay the purchase of most items, but they’ll always need to prioritize taking care of their health. 
 
Mario was attracted to the opportunity at Velentium after a conversation with Dan Purvis, who championed Mario’s chance to turn the company into something bigger, something that is going to impact and touch a lot of lives even more so than it already has. “Velentium’s manufacturing is currently on the smaller side, so I want to contribute my knowledge and experience to make this a strong and notable manufacturing company within the industry.” 
 
Mario thinks that what separates Velentium from its competitors are the really good people, the strong technical knowledge, and the good leadership team. “I want to provide opportunities for more people to work with us in order to support more families. It’s not just about the employees and making them happy, but to me, it’s about helping keep families secure. I’m confident that our manufacturing will grow quickly because we have the right people to get us there.” 
 
Additionally, during his interview with Dan, Mario was able to express his personal values of accountability, integrity, and honesty, which aligned with the company’s values of Honorable, Results++, and Humble Charisma. “Everyone at Velentium knows our Core Values, and every single action from top to bottom is driven by adhering to those values.”
 
Mario married his college sweetheart (they met at the campus library!) and they have three children, all of whom are teenagers and play soccer. In Mario’s spare time, he enjoys coaching soccer and attending games, playing with his kids, and being outdoors to enjoy the fresh air while clearing his mind. Mario is driven to succeed because of his family and his passion for the work. “I love what I’m doing. I love and enjoy working on medical devices. Every single thing I’m doing is going to help a patient, who could be my friend, a family member, or a neighbor—and that is really meaningful to me. A device I help manufacture could save lives so that those people can get back to what matters most—their families.”
Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Electronic & Industrial Engineering from the Technological Institute of Chihuahua
  • Has led multiple international and multi-site manufacturing operations of class I, II, and III medical devices and products
  • Been working with Velentium since 2023

Mark Harris

Senior VP, Research & Development

"The senior leadership team’s unwavering vision for growth, their drive for building out capabilities, and the wealth of talent found within the company will drive it successfully forward."
 
Mark Harris is Velentium’s Senior VP of Research & Development, responsible for program management, manufacturing, IT, and strategic initiatives. He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Houston. Mark has over 30 years of experience in the medical device industry, having held prior leadership positions in R&D, program management, product development, and operations. He gained experience collaborating with and managing international teams during his tenure at both Medtronic and Stryker.

He and his wife have a daughter and son-in-law currently living in the Czech Republic. He enjoys hiking, biking, camping, barbecuing, and international travel. He has also created a couple of unique barbecue sauce recipes that will knock your socks off!

His career started as a test systems engineer at Intermedics, where he developed solutions for implantable pacemakers, defibrillators, device leads, and programmers. He transitioned into product development at Intermedics and carried that experience forward to Medtronic, focusing primarily on implantable pacemakers. Following this, he took on various leadership roles in IPG operations, neuromodulation program management, test systems engineering, and software development at Medtronic before moving on to Stryker. Mark joined Stryker as Senior Manager of R&D before joining the Senior Leadership Team as the head of a divisional R&D organization. A few years into his tenure at Stryker, the division was recognized for Best New Product Offering at the Annual Global R&D Summit Awards.

Mark is an analytical learner with a passion for developing organizational capability. He has a proven track record of attracting, developing, and integrating high-performing talent; identifying and improving key business metrics; developing and integrating innovative technology; and executing business development strategies. He also has a passion for service and has held board member roles on the Medtronic Foundation and Community Health Charities of Arizona.

Velentium’s values spoke to Mark, as they resembled those he set for himself throughout his professional life. The company’s passion of wanting to change lives for a better world, with an emphasis on helping families, resonated strongly. Mark believes the senior leadership team’s unwavering vision for growth, their drive for building out capabilities, and the wealth of talent found within the company will carry it successfully forward.

In the next 5-10 years, Mark sees the medical device industry focusing more on remotely managing patient care. An integration of treating pain or cardiac disease through connected care where patient safety and cybersecurity will be a key focus. Increased connectivity will in turn generate metadata which can assist doctors and medical administrators in remote management, especially in developing and third-world countries. “Critical decisions will need to be made about how we can assist other countries to build the infrastructure needed to expand their health care systems.”
Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Houston 
  • Won "Best New Product Offering" at the Annual Global R&D Summit Awards Ceremony for his division while working at Stryker
  • Been with Velentium since 2020

Mark Kraft

Director, HR & Culture

"[I] was extremely motivated by the idea that [my] efforts could change people's lives around the world."

Mark Kraft is Velentium’s Director of Culture, overseeing recruiting and human resources, as well as the senior manager of Velentium’s Denver, Colorado office. Mark and his wife have three children. He likes playing the guitar, enjoying the craft brewery scene with his wife, and working on home projects, such as auto repair and restoration and home remodeling. 
 
Mark received his degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Utah. During his 25-year career he has worked in a myriad of related fields, including software for test and automation, application development, systems engineering, management, and consulting in the aerospace, consumer electronics, and medical device industries. He started his career at National Instruments as an application engineer, where he met Velentium’s soon-to-be CEO and Co-Founder, Dan Purvis. Mark later moved into a District Sales Manager role, and then made the leap to be a test engineering specialist and lab manager before joining Velentium in 2014. At multiple companies, Mark developed test architectures and platforms which standardized test processes and enabled test system versatility and reuse to reduce overall costs.
 
Throughout his life, Mark has always enjoyed serving others. He is most satisfied when he is building relationships with people and is providing them with a service or product they need. He also enjoys the technical challenges and satisfaction that comes from solving hard problems for clients. Mark was attracted to Velentium not only because of his prior experience working with Dan, but also because he believed in Dan and Tim’s vision and values for the company. He was extremely motivated by the idea that his efforts could change people’s lives across the world, which would allow him to have an ever-increasing platform to continue his passion of serving others. Mark has always believed that work satisfaction and output quality depends on enjoying the people engaged in the task. This includes co-workers, direct reports, and customers, as well as the people who end up using the product personally or professionally.
 
“There are companies in the medical device industry who have great talent and who leverage it to maximize their profits,” Mark observes. “On the other hand, there are companies whose core values dictate their internal and external operating procedures. What makes Velentium stand out is not only its ability to attract and retain highly talented individuals, but to ensure that those individuals reflect the core values of the company. Many companies struggle to keep talent and values from being overtaken by financial motives, but at Velentium, talent and values are the #1 business proposition to our customers.”
 
In the future, Mark wants to see all employees create and enjoy professionally-effective and personally-satisfying careers. He wants them to not only find fulfilment in their daily work, but to know they are making a difference in the world around them. “If I do my job well, then people won’t think of their time at Velentium as ‘just a job,’ but as a means of meeting their life goals. They won’t be soullessly trading their hours for dollars – instead they’ll be investing their talents into a cause bigger than themselves.”
Primary Location
Denver, CO
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Utah
  • Over 25 years experience in software development, systems engineering, management, and consulting
  • Been with Velentium since 2014

Randy Armstrong

CTO

"I was impressed not simply by the three values themselves, but by how Velentium applied them to everyone: customers, employees, partners, etc." 
 
Randy Armstrong is Velentium’s Chief Technology Officer and the author of our QMS, which we believe is one of the leanest and most effective in the industry. Randy has worked for over three decades in medical device development, and been issued 54 patents during his career. He is passionate about the elegant solution – simpler, consumes less energy, has fewer components, is smaller, requires less maintenance, and costs less – producing designs throughout his career which become flagship and platform technologies that return value far beyond original goals.
 
Randy graduated from Duke University with a B.S. in Biomedical and Electrical Engineering, and started out designing wearable diagnostics for NASA astronauts. Within five years, he transitioned to developing active implantables, focusing specifically on pacemakers. Over time, he began developing cardiac rhythm management devices, and was immediately struck by the impact and responsibility that the job contained. He’s written embedded firmware that is currently residing in over half a million people today. Randy has also worked on the ISO Standards committees, where he helped create standards for neurostimulators, and has co-chaired the AAMI Neurosurgery and TENS committees. 
 
Randy and his wife have four children and seven grandchildren. In his spare time, Randy is a U.S. stamp collector, specializing in grilled stamps created during a four-year period in the 1860s. His collection is over 100,000 strong.
 
Having known Dan and Tim throughout their careers, Randy was highly attracted to the core values they selected to guide Velentium. “Working the medical device industry, you’re always aware of the ever-present push and pull of financial incentives vs. the good of the patients. At Velentium, it’s not the three values in themselves that are impressive, but the way Velentium applies them to everyone: customers, employees, partners – everyone. An employee cannot, for example, mistreat a customer and claim it’s for the patient’s good: they are required to treat everyone with respect and integrity. I believe that’s empowering.”
 
Over his career, Randy has seen that the most common culprit for flaws in design and development is arrogance. “Being Honorable requires honesty about the strengths and weaknesses of a design and its designer, as well as being able to put aside your ego when analyzing the best fits for a job.”
 
A day that Randy says changed the course of his career occurred during a tense code review where employees were taking criticisms personally and no progress was being made. The company employing him at the time would regularly bring in patients to see what their facilities were like. Randy’s director was giving a tour to a young boy, about 8 or 9 years old, who had recently received a pacemaker that contained a new model of firmware which Randy had helped write. The director interrupted the code review and brought the boy in to meet the people who designed it, including Randy. The boy said in so many words, “I want to thank you for what you have done for me.” Ever since that moment, Randy says, “I have never been the same.”
 
Randy’s vision for Velentium is all about its customers. He’s always looking for lean processes and technologies that address their needs faster, shorten the development runway, and provide cost savings. “Velentium sets itself apart from its competitors by wanting to solve the problem, not prolong it. For us, the end result is not about the bottom line, as we don’t measure success by financial incentives. Rather, we desire to solve the client’s problems, thus addressing the patients’ problems sooner and more affordably. The financials will take care of themselves.”
Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Biomedical & Electrical Engineering from Duke University
  • Has been issued 54 patents for medical devices
  • Been with Velentium since 2014

Satyajit “Sat” Ketkar

Director, Systems Engineering

"We do right not because it’s a ‘rule’ written on a piece of paper - we do it because that’s who we are."
 

Satyajit “Sat” Ketkar is the Director of Systems Engineering at Velentium. His 20-year career includes electrical, firmware, software, and systems engineering experience, including seven in medical device design and two with a European Union notified body conducting medical device reviews and audits for safety, quality, performance, and security.

While still a student at the University of Houston, Sat helped start the IEEE robotics club and worked with a team developing a real-time robotics operating system for fully autonomous robots that could learn in order to complete challenging tasks. He was part of the original development team behind Wordpress (before it was called Wordpress), and owned and managed two commercial podcasts - one focused on sports, another on culture and current events - which he later sold before plunging into medical development full-time.

Sat is married to a biomedical engineer who works for TUV as a reviewer and auditor. They are avid readers and strategy board game players who agree about supporting the Astros and the U of H. Cougars, but don’t see eye-to-eye on football: He roots for the Packers, she for the Eagles. They have two children who both enjoy art. Their daughter (8) has a talent for math and music, while their son (6) loves all things Star Wars, dinosaurs, and being loud.

Sat explains that corporate culture is both what attracted him to Velentium and what forms the basis of Velentium’s competitive advantage. “Honesty and transparency are part of being Honorable,” he said. “We do right not because it’s a ‘rule’ written on a piece of paper. We do it because that’s who we are. We go above and beyond. Internally, our culture reinforces your desire not to let your team down.”

As a Technical Director, Sat’s personal goals for the company include fostering our existing culture through mentoring so that the Velentium ethos survives its founders. He loves working on medical devices because he knows from past experiences that this field saves and improves people’s lives: “Maybe someone I know. Maybe me. Nowhere else do you get to do work that will keep someone alive and restore their quality of life.”

Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Electrical & Computer Engineering from the University of Houston
  • MEng in Computer Engineering from the University of Houston
  • Been with Velentium since 2019

Terry Daglow

VP, Advanced Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering

"Velentium’s culture makes us readily accessible to customers. We talk to our customers all the time and work collaboratively on projects."

Terry Daglow serves as Velentium’s VP of Advanced Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering. He is well-recognized amongst industry peers as an experienced corporate director and brilliant engineer with thirty plus years invested in the implantable medical device industry. A visionary entrepreneur with diverse inventive and business interests, his passion for R&D fuels him in perpetually seeking broader exposure to multiple disciplines. He is an accomplished inventor with notable expertise in mechanical engineering; his personal design portfolio includes multiple products for current industry leaders as well as several independent inventions. He presently holds fifty-five US patents, with a further fifty-one patents pending.

When Tim Carroll first came to Terry and said, “I need your help,” Terry instead offered to interview someone else on behalf of Tim. But Tim was insistent, and Terry eventually joined full-time because of Tim’s tenacity and his vision for the company. It’s something Terry wants to support and can get behind because “once you see a device you created helping someone in real life, it’s addictive. I have to create.” He joined Velentium to pursue his life-long interests in improving the quality of life for patients by increasing awareness and accessibility to superior technologies at cost-effective price points. He brings his relentless talent for initiating and sustaining a truly collaborative environment that respects individuality while also inspiring creativity and participation. Terry aspires to push past established limitations and collaboratively create the best possible solution to any given challenge.

Terry began his corporate career at Medtronic, followed by Intermedics Inc., Sulzermedica, ANS, and St. Jude Medical before pursuing independent interests and professional consulting. Terry’s expertise and ingenuity have been applied to a broad range of disciplines and product lines including cardiac rhythm management (pacemakers/defibrillators and peripherals), pain and spasticity (drug pumps), neuromodulation (spinal cord stimulation, deep brain stimulation and peripheral nerve stimulation), hearing loss (implantable hearing device), CMF and orthopedics (single-use surgical tools). Terry graduated with a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Terry has been married for almost 30 years and has children and a granddaughter who is the center of his universe. He enjoys teaching his granddaughter how to swim (“she’s doing great!”), traveling (especially hanging out on beaches with a fruity rum drink), going to the rodeo, hunting with his son, and inventing things. Terry believes that “Velentium’s culture makes us readily accessible to customers. We talk to our customers all the time and work collaboratively on projects. Our accessibility is a market differentiator and helps ensure the success of our projects and our ability to retain clients for years.”

“For me, Velentium is a place to do what I do best. I wouldn’t want to do anything else besides medical device invention and engineering—I can’t do anything else. So my personal definition of success is finding a place like Velentium to do it. At the end of the day, success means creating value in the world. It’s who I am.”

Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Western Michigan University
  • Holds fifty-five US patents, with a further fifty-one patents pending
  • Been with Velentium since 2020

Tim Carroll

President

"[My] primary goal for Velentium is to preserve our quality of work and culture while the organization continues to grow."

Tim Carroll is Velentium’s President. His immediate family includes his wife, two sons and daughters-in-law, and two granddaughters. He enjoys all outdoor activities, especially hiking and camping, as well as traveling internationally for both work and pleasure.
 
Tim started his career at Intermedics working in test engineering, but was very active in other areas including tachycardia R&D, bradycardia R&D, integrated circuit design, and manufacturing engineering. After Intermedics was purchased by Guidant (now Boston Scientific), Tim joined Dan Purvis at Optimation’s integration division for oil & gas solutions but quickly switched the focus to medical device development. Initially many of their contracts were for medical device testing, but as the division continued to grow, it expanded beyond testing and into development. Then, in 2012, Tim left to launch Velentium with Dan, focused on building out a world-class medical device design and development firm.
 
An influential moment in Tim’s career happened early on while he was at Intermedics. He learned that a close friend of his was not only 100% dependent on a pacemaker, but had recently been outfitted with a model that Tim and his team had helped bring to market. This reinforced the deep satisfaction Tim finds in the medical device industry and renewed his passion for wanting to positively impact as many people as he could throughout his lifetime.
 
In co-founding Velentium, Tim set out to create a company that could be a world-class leader in the design and development of medical devices. Although Velentium would not be organized as a non-profit, its primary mission would be to improve people’s lives all over the world. Tim worked diligently to build a team that excelled at the core disciplines necessary to provide flagship design services. He and Dan were resolved that Velentium would not generate additional risk for its customers or their patients by hiring inexperienced or underqualified workers in order to maximize profit. Instead, the company would bring together industry thought leaders and expertise because the ultimate goal is to bring to market products that will change people’s lives for a better world. 
 
Tim’s primary goal for Velentium is to preserve our quality of work and culture while the organization continues to grow. This will enable the company to bring its current services and positive impact to international customers and partners while expanding its influence in North America. Just as he’s led the company to expanded its business beyond local Texas companies to assist clients in key medical device development hubs across North America as well as western Europe, Australia, and East Asia, Tim wants to see the company become a fully global leader in secure medical device design, development, and manufacturing. 

Looking ahead, Tim foresees growing influence from large tech companies into the medical device space. There is every indication that several large consumer-based technology leaders intend to expand beyond health & wellness and focus resources on true medical devices. Demand for smaller, less invasive implantable devices will be sustained, while demand for wearable devices will rise as they become more and more effective. In addition, there will likely be increased focus on the “connected patient” as part of a holistic program to improve quality of care and response time while driving care delivery costs down. As individuals continue to become more intentional about their own healthcare, the trend towards home-based healthcare devices with better diagnostic capabilities and patient-controlled therapeutic options will continue to climb. Thanks to Tim’s leadership, Velentium is positioned to help established and emerging medical device innovators anticipate technical advances and patient needs.
Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • 30 years of experience working in active implantable design, test, and manufacturing engineering
  • Worked with CEO Dan Purvis at a Contract Design & Manufacturing Organization
  • Co-founded Velentium

Travis Bird

CFO

“Velentium separates itself from its competitors by its culture and speed.”

Travis Bird is Velentium’s Chief Financial Officer. Travis has enjoyed a robust career in finance and public accounting for over 20 years. He began his career as an entrepreneur (he operated his own painting business in college). He has held various financial and operational roles within various emerging growth organizations. When he started working with rapidly-growing small businesses, he found that is where his true passion lay. He has worked with over half a dozen companies similar to Velentium and has an interest in technical subjects. In fact, he started his college education in engineering before ultimately settling on finance.

Travis holds his bachelor’s degree in Corporate Finance from Brigham Young University, his master’s degree in Accounting from the University of Notre Dame, and is a Certified Public Accountant. He has been the operational CFO for various venture capital/private equity-backed growth companies, has built multiple finance and accounting organizations, and has been responsible for the international expansion of a product sales business.

When weighing a new career opportunity, Travis evaluates three things: the people, the organization’s vision and purpose, and if the job will be both engaging and challenging. Velentium easily checked all three boxes. He believes that “Velentium separates itself from its competitors by its culture and speed.” His goals for the company include building out a world-class finance accounting back office that is scalable. In the future, he hopes to see the medical device industry solve more and more health issues that challenge the world.

Travis is married and has six children ranging from ages 3-21 (he says his kids are his “most notable accomplishment”). As a family, they enjoy anything that takes them outside to be active. In his spare time, Travis enjoys swimming, running, and woodworking. He is motivated to succeed by the joy of discovery.
Primary Location
Houston, TX
Experience & Recognition
  • B.S. in Corporate Finance from Brigham Young University
  • M.S. in Accounting from University of Notre Dame
  • Has enjoyed a robust career in finance and public accounting for over 20 years, including as the operational CFO for various venture capital/private equity-backed growth companies
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