Stephen Ruffels, mentoring NomadVR, has been in medical product development for almost 15 years. Watch his video to find out more about Stephen, and why he wanted to be a Remarkable mentor.
Tell us a bit about you and your background experience.
Hi, my name’s Stephen Ruffels. I’ve been in medical product development for nearly 15 years. This ranges from patient engagement apps on your mobile phone, through to the more serious end of class three, life support ventilators.
What are your core areas of expertise, particularly when it comes to mentoring for Remarkable?
Understanding the regulatory pathways for different markets and understanding how to navigate those complexities and how to balance the need of all the users when you are developing your solutions.
What inspired you to become a mentor for Remarkable?
For me it’s a chance, as I’m sure a lot of mentors would say, to give back to apply the years of medical device development I’ve got, so we can turn these awesome solutions from the startups into a commercial success and start helping people a lot sooner. I’m also a big believer in disability tech. I think there are going to be some sectors where disability tech paves the way ahead of med tech mainstream. I also heard the Remarkable team are kind of amazing to work with…and I was not paid a cent to say that!
What do you like about Remarkable?
I really love the fact that there’s entrepreneurs in residence as part of the program. It’s going to make a real difference to hear from those who have trodden a similar path and going through similar struggles. So I think that’s a really big plus.
What is your top tip for early stage startups?
Test your assumptions as early as possible with real users. It’s going to save you a lot of pain down the track.
Thank you.
