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I can't wait to see your amazing progress, and hope you will join us.

I look forward to working with you!

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Chris Danek, PHD, MBA
Creator and Director, Bessel Origin Program

Chris has spent the past 25 years building successful medical device companies. He has refined Bessel Origin through years of partnership with teams at Santa Clara University, Catholic University in Washington, D.C., and The University of Texas at El Paso.

 

Chris is an engineer, entrepreneur, and teacher. He studied design thinking and new product and process development while earning his PhD from Stanford University, has an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and is an award-winning social innovation teacher. He has partnered with leading universities around the country to advise students on making an impact at work.

I can't wait to see your amazing progress, and hope you will join us.

I look forward to working with you!

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Andres Gutierrez, MS
Program Assistant & Team Mentor

Andres has been a program assistant for multiple Bessel Origin cohorts. He designs and develops medical devices as an R&D Engineer with Bessel. He applies digital engineering, advanced manufacturing, and creativity to frame and solve technical challenges.

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Andres has a BS and MS in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso, and a graduate certificate in 3D Engineering and Additive Manufacturing from the UTEP Keck Center. While at UTEP, he was a graduate fellow in the Mike Loya Center for Innovation and Commerce. Andres is from Juarez, Mexico, where he grew up, and enjoys traveling, socializing with friends, and watching soccer.

I can't wait to see your amazing progress, and hope you will join us.

I look forward to working with you!

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Nandini Venkatesh, MBA
Expert-in-Residence, Marketing & Team Mentor

Nandini is a former Director of Product Management with almost 20 years of strategic marketing and product management experience in the medical device industry at companies such as Medtronic, Boston Scientific, and J&J.  For the past decade, Nandini has served as a strategic and commercial marketing consultant to a range of medtech clients, from early-stage start-ups to Fortune 500 companies.  She is a strong global commercial leader with a track record of identifying new markets, partnering with R&D on product innovation, and launching novel medical technologies to healthcare professionals and patients.  Nandini holds a BS in Civil & Environmental Engineering from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford University.

KEY PARTNER
AND EXPERTS-IN-RESIDENCE
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Blackhawke Behavior Science is the world’s leading expert in predicting and enhancing entrepreneur and startup performance.
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