SAVANNA
KDES INVESTMENT COMPANY
Investment Team
Dan. Lin
Chief Executive Officer and Managing Partner
Dan has been an active founder and chief executive officer of private and public medical technology companies. Experienced in providing worldwide tactical and strategic sales/marketing initiatives, leadership and direction to grow a business globally. Strong and experience in operating and managing domestic; overseas start-up to mid-size spinal implant device firms. Excellent communication skill with well- connected private, and VC funding resources that specialized in Spinal implant devices. 20+ years plus of overseas sales experiences to European, Asian countries especially in China, and specialized in developing sales distribution pipelines and overseas regulatory process, official filing of Asian medical device / instrument market. (China, Japan, Korea, and India) Experienced in material science R&D, drug delivery technology, product research, intellectual properties strategic planning, and medical instrument prototype design for 20+ years with vast knowledge of product marketing in Europe, China, Japan, and south East Asian countries, develop prototypes, OR follow up, and cadavers studies, and technical assistant on negotiation.
Earlier in his career, Dan was an investment banker with Alex. Brown & Sons and a strategy consultant with Bain & Company in the technology and healthcare areas.
Dan holds a B.S. from the University of Southern California
Jeffrey M. Durate
Partner and Chief Financial Officer
Jeff has more than 35 years experience in financial management working with early-stage medical technology and services companies. Jeff has been involved with a number of companies co-founded by Savanna including Biomerix Corporation, Eminent Research Systems, Inc., Clinsights, Inc., and Med-E-Systems/AHT Corporation. A part of Savanna since inception, Jeff has responsibility for the fund's accounting and financial functions as well as providing financial oversight of portfolio activities. Prior to joining Savanna and its predecessor companies, Jeff was Chief Financial Officer of Erisco, Inc., a subsidiary of the Dun & Bradstreet Corporation.Jeff holds a BS in Accounting from the C. W. Post Campus of Long Island University.
Jon Kometz, MD
Venture Partner
Jon has been an active founder and chief executive officer of private and public medical technology companies since 1989. Jon was co-founder and chief executive officer for Aureon Laboratories (private company founded in 2001); Med-E-Systems/AHT Corporation (initial public offering 1996); Physicians' Online, Inc. (acquired by Mediconsult in 1999): and Medical Decision Resources, Inc. (acquired by Value Health in 1990). Jon has been a co-inventor of diverse molecular and information technologies and is a patent-holder.
Previously, Jon was an internist and conducted clinical research at Harvard's Brigham & Women's Hospital. Jon's research has been published in several of the world's leading medical journals.
Jon holds a B.A. (summa cum laude) from Yale University and a M.D. (with honors) from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.
Avi Edelson, M.D.
Venture Partner
Avi has more than 18 years experience in the healthcare industry, several of which have been focused in private and public investing. Prior to joining Savanna, Avi was the head of corporate development at a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on pediatrics. In this role Avi successfully closed several partnerships with large pharmaceutical companies, supported the head of marketing and sales with commercial analyses, and as part of the executive management team developed the business strategy.
Prior to this, Avi spent several years in the Healthcare Practice at McKinsey & Company in New York. Avi worked for several multinational pharmaceutical companies on projects including developing a nutraceutical strategy, assessing technical, clinical and regulatory development risks for pharmaceutical products, augmenting pipeline product valuation methodologies, and organizational change and cost-cutting efforts. Avi began his career as a clinician in South Africa and went on to found and build a group of clinics in South Africa.
Avi received his medical doctorate from the University of the Witwatersrand Medical School, South Africa.