Jeffrey Dachis is the CEO and Founder of OneDrop, a simple, powerful and convenient mobile platform for managing Diabetes, born from his own experience as a newly diagnosed Type 1 LADA (September 2013). In 2015, One Drop won the “Best Design” award at the prestigious Launch Festival. Prior, Dachis co-founded and served as CEO and Chairman of Razorfish, the world’s largest digital marketing solutions firm. He also founded and served as CEO to the Dachis Group, a data social analytics and consulting firm, acquired by Sprinklr in 2014. Jeff has a MA from NYU, and a double Liberal Arts degree from SUNY Purchase.
Dana Donofree is the founder, CEO and head designer of AnaOno, an intimates and lifestyle apparel line for women who have undergone extensive breast surgeries. Donofree started the collection after being diagnosed with Infiltrative Ductal Carcinoma. Donna had a bilateral mastectomy with implant reconstruction. She was underwhelmed by the bra options for women in this category and devoted her recovery and career to creating a line that was functional and fashionable. Ms. Donofree is a graduate of Savannah College of Art and Design, Donofree has over a decade of experience in the fashion industry.
Robert Geho is a Co-Founder and CEO of Diasome Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a company with targeted insulin therapies, novel Type 2 Diabetes technology, and oral therapy for obesity. He is concurrently the Co-Founder and Director of SDG, Inc., a Nanotechnology Therapeutics company an Equity Partner Company of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation located in Cleveland, Ohio. Geho was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes more than twenty years ago. He has been actively involved in the development of strategies for explaining the role of the liver in glucose metabolism and its ability to regulate glucose in people with Diabetes. He received both his undergraduate degree and an MBA from Case Western Reserve University. Robert also serves as a member on the boards of directors to the Diabetes Hands Foundation in Berkeley, CA and the Intermuseum Conservation Association in Cleveland, OH.
Richard Laurits is the President of Diasend, Inc. Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in 1994, Richard has dedicated his life to enhancing the quality of life to all living with Diabetes. Prior to joining Diasend, Inc. Richard founded a startup called eDiabeat in Sweden. Richard’s primary interests are business development, new technology and health. He has a Master of Business Administration from Lund University (Sweden) and Singapore Management University.
Jennifer Ross is the co-founder and co-CEO of Be Mixed, an innovative, natural line of zero-calorie cocktail mixers she co-founded while at Harvard Business School. Prior to receiving her MBA, Jennifer worked for Fanvision, a sports entertainment technology company in Marketing and Operations. She also served as an Analyst at Goldman Sachs in the Merchant Bank’s real estate private equity group. Jennifer was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at the age of six. While in high school she organized Rock the Cure, a concert to benefit JDRF, which raised over $200,000. Ms. Ross also serves as the Secretary of Safefittings, a nonprofit organization serving the parents of children with Diabetes (since 2006). Jennifer holds a B.A. in Government from Dartmouth College and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
John is a Swedish/American passionate about developing companies that create products people love – to live better with chronic conditions. John is currently the CEO of Luna Diabetes – a new and novel automated insulin delivery solution intended to, for the first time, bring automation to the tens of millions of people who use insulin pens.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
• Luna Diabetes: Invented the product for Luna Diabetes
• Bigfoot Unity: Formed and led the team that created the Bigfoot Unity product, which was acquired by Abbott Diabetes Care
• Timesulin: Co-founded and led Timesulin as CEO until its acquisition by Bigfoot Biomedical in 2017. Oversaw operations for products used by hundreds of thousands of people with diabetes across more than 40 countries.
INNOVATION AND RECOGNITION:
• One of the first individuals worldwide to build/hack his own open-source automated insulin delivery system.
• Winner of the UK National Health Service Award for Most Innovative Patient-Developed Digital Technology.
• Lead and/or named inventor on over 30 patents.
• Recognized as Young Person of the Year in Sweden.
Kelly Close founded Close Concerns in 2002, a healthcare information company focused exclusively on Diabetes and Obesity. Kelly has lived with Diabetes for 30 years. The Close Concerns team are tireless in their efforts to change the face of Diabetes and write over five million words per year on Diabetes, Obesity and Health. Ms. Close is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of diaTribe, an educational resource for people living with Diabetes, founded in 2006. She is also Chair to The diaTribe Foundation, a nonprofit established in 2012 whose mission is to advocate for action and to improve the lives of people with pre-Diabetes and Diabetes. Prior Kelly worked as investment banker at Goldman Sachs, in Medical Technology equity research at Merrill Lynch and Piper Jaffray and for McKinsey & Company where she focused on pharmaceutical, managed care, and nonprofit organizations. Kelly has a BA in Economics and English from Amherst College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Scott Smith is the founder, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Socrates Health Solutions, a company committed to applying innovative technology in order to provide affordable healthcare and fitness products. Scott’s father has Type 1 Diabetes and from an early age Scott made a commitment to himself that he would find a way to help those living with Diabetes and to ease compliance and improve the life style in every aspect. Prior to launching Socrates, Scott led Global Sales and Marketing for MDG Medical, a medication management device and software company where he built annual revenues from the ground up – accelerating from zero to $15 million in annual sales – and opened worldwide distribution channels. At VISICU, a leading intensive care software firm, Scott was part of the team that completed a successful Initial Public Offering and eventual sale of the firm. Scott earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Amy is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of DiabetesMine, a leading online information destination for people with Diabetes and one of the top international health blogs. In January 2015, DiabetesMine became part of San Francisco-based Healthline Networks, where Amy now also serves as Editorial Director, Diabetes & Patient Advocacy. Amy is a journalist / blogger and patient advocate who started DiabetesMine.com after her diagnosis with Type 1 Diabetes in 2003. The site has won numerous awards and was recently named the No. 1 Diabetes influencer by ShareCare.com and the American Diabetes Association. Previously, Amy helped conceptualize and launch DiabeticConnect.com, the fastest-growing and most successful social networking site for people with Diabetes, with over 790,000 registered members.
Daniele Hargenrader is the co-founder and President of Diabetes Dominator, a company created to provide comprehensive one on one coaching and online courses that help individuals living with chronic disease to think, eat, and move in ways that allow them to achieve a quality of health and life they previously thought unattainable by getting the much needed emotional support and guidance often overlooked by HCPs. Daniele was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in 1991, she fought and won an eight year eating disorder that has taken her from addiction, obesity, and depression, an athlete thriving with Diabetes. She has a BS in Nutrition Science, is a Certified Personal Trainer, and the bestselling author of Unleash Your Inner Diabetes Dominator.