ANGIE ZAVORAL CONLEY

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Founder, President, & CEO, Abilitech Medical

Angie Zavoral Conley has served as Abilitech’s President and Chief Executive Officer since founding the company in late 2016.  Under Angie’s leadership, Abilitech Medical has won numerous awards, including both the Tekne Award for innovation from Minnesota High Tech Association and the Grand Prize and Top Woman-led Business at the Minnesota Cup - the largest state-led business competition. Abilitech has also been recognized as a Top 10 Medical Device Startup by MedTech Outlook; a Top 20 Medical Device Startup You Need to Know by MassDevice magazine; and a Top Promising Life Science Company by Rice University. In her role as President and CEO of Abilitech, Angie has raised over ten million in equity funding and nearly two million dollars in non-dilutive funding.

Angie Conley’s broad work experience in the medical device industry directly translates to her role as CEO of Abilitech Medical. Prior to founding Abilitech, Angie held leadership roles in several different medical device companies, including working with exoskeletons at Magic Arms; peripheral and neurovascular atherectomy devices at ev3/Covidien; heart valves, instruments, telemonitoring equipment, external and implantable pacemakers and defibrillators at Medtronic. She is an alumna of the prestigious Springboard Enterprise and Texas Medical Center accelerator programs. Angie Conley is named as an inventor on two patents.

GABE KALMAR

Chief Commercial Officer, Abilitech Medical 

Gabe Kalmar brings over 30 years of experience to the Abilitech Medical team. He is a Director at Rehabtronics, Bioform Technology, BarrelWise Technologies, Sonus Microsystems and Zenna Technologies, HeadCheck Health, Genome and TrafficDriven, amongst other high growth tech businesses. Additionally, he is an Entrepreneur-In-Residence at University of British Columbia (UBC). Gabe has deep knowledge of commercialization and operations management and will lead our team as we continue to market the Abilitech Assist, as well as our future suite of devices.

ABEL GUEVARA

Director of Reimbursement, Abilitech Medical 

Abel Guevara is a Durable Medical Equipment Prosthetics Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS) subject matter expert with over two decades of progressive healthcare operations, compliance, and revenue cycle management experience.  As Director of Reimbursement and Patient Access for Abilitech Medical, Abel will work with patients, clinicians and payers to provide the necessary documentation and patient outcomes to support and navigate the reimbursement process. Prior to joining the Abilitech Medical team, Abel held leadership roles at both payers and device companies within the DMEPOS industry. He currently serves as the Vice Chairman of the Board of Certification/Accreditation (BOC), a CMS-deemed accreditation and DMEPOS certification company.  Abel is currently pursuing a Doctor of Health Administration degree from the Medical University of South Carolina and holds a Masters of Health Information Management from Texas State University. 

RYAN BAUER

Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer, Abilitech Medical 

Ryan Bauer is a Mechanical Engineer with 20+ years of experience designing and developing Class 2 and 3 medical devices. He is a skilled engineer as well as project manager, having worked on numerous products from early-stage concepts through to market release. Ryan’s expertise and oversight lead our efforts on all design aspects of the Assist and our future suite of products. Before joining the Abilitech Medical team, Ryan held technical leadership roles at Medtronic and several other contract design firms where he led initiatives on devices for cardiac and neurological stimulation, structural heart, neurovascular and left ventricular assist. Ryan received his degree in Mechanical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University.

SHAWNA PERSAUD, Ph.D.

Director of Clinical & Product Management, Abilitech Medical

Shawna Persaud has 15 years of pre-clinical research experience and has published in the fields of stem and cancer cell biology. Her research experiences sparked her passion for developing novel approaches to improve human health. Since joining Abilitech Medical, Shawna’s role has expanded to include creating and managing all current and future clinical trials, product management, and contributions to future products’ development while educating both clinicians and patients on the capabilities of the devices. She received her B.S. in Biochemistry and her Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Minnesota.

ELI KRUMHOLZ, Ph.D.

Director of Software Engineering & Electronics, Abilitech Medical

Eli Krumholz, Ph.D., brings a range of experience in technology-based startups to Abilitech Medical. As founder of two startups prior to joining Abilitech Medical, Eli created cloud-based web applications that used artificial intelligence, data collection, and rich user interfaces to dynamically guide users in video content creation. As part of his Ph.D. in Computational Systems Biology at the University of Minnesota, Eli used network analysis, machine learning, and computational modeling to study cellular metabolism and create predictive models for genetic engineering. With Abilitech Medical, Eli directs projects ranging from robotic motion control systems to wearable sensor technology and cloud applications incorporating state-of-the-art technology to create innovative, technologically advanced products. He has extensive experience in IoT applications, IMU-based motion capture, force sensing, voice control, gesture recognition and haptic feedback. 

LEOTA PEARSON

Chief Financial Officer, Abilitech Medical

Leota Pearson, CPA, brings more than 30 years of experience working with medical device companies that span all stages of growth.  Leota has worked as a CFO in public and private medical device companies including Orthomet, Endocardial Solutions and Celleration.  She is a member of the Minnesota CPA Society having served on their board of directors and Financial Executive International where she served on the national board and as the president of its Twin Cities chapter.  She was named Consulting CFO of the year in 2017 by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.  Leota holds an undergraduate degree from The University of North Dakota and a MBA from the University of Minnesota.  

AARON BERSTLER

Chief Marketing Officer, Abilitech Medical

Aaron Berstler is a 20+ year marketing and communications strategist specializing in B2B industries including life sciences, health care, SaaS, manufacturing and professional services. He received his B.A. in Communications from Bethel University.

PATRICE KLOSS, J.D.

Outside General Counsel, Abilitech Medical

Partner, Fox Rothschild LLP

Patrice Kloss has worked as a partner for both Oppenheimer Wolff & Donnelly and Fox Rothschild LLP. She has more than 20 years of legal experience, specializing as a corporate transactional attorney with an emphasis on representing medical technology companies and other emerging businesses.  Patrice advises Abilitech Medical on corporate matters, including financings. She has a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Minnesota and a J.D. from William Mitchell College.

RACHEL ANDERSON

Design Engineer, Abilitech Medical

Rachel earned a B.S/M.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Minnesota and is passionate about human-centered design. She conducted research under Dr. Will Durfee in the Human/Machine Design Lab, where she gained experience writing and executing IRB protocol and designing wearable devices. For her Master’s thesis, she created a weight-optimized ankle-foot orthosis emulator as part of an ongoing effort with Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare to improve the prescription process for pediatric AFOs. Beyond her technical expertise in joint design, hydraulics, control systems, and optimization, Rachel brings a strong aptitude for leadership and has won multiple awards for her work founding the first women’s group for mechanical engineers at the University of Minnesota. She has additional experience in design for manufacturing and rapid prototyping from her work on Class II medical devices at Minnetronix Medical.

DAN STOCKS, OT

Northwest Business Development Manager, Abilitech Medical

Dan Stocks is a seasoned clinical and medical sales professional with 20+ years of experience working within the therapeutic and rehabilitation device sector. Dan has experience across the business development cycle from his time at Bioness, Myomo, Tyromotion, and most recently, REAL System by Penumbra. Dan studied Occupational Therapy at Western Michigan University.

TINA DONAHUE

Sales Consultant, Abilitech Medical

Tina Donahue has over 20 years in complex rehabilition and neuro-rehab as a sales consultant at the Chattanooga Group, BMR Neurotech, Rehabilicare, Bioness Inc. and most recently Myomo Inc. She has developed new educational programs, built effective processes for sales and marketing, and earned numerous awards for her sales performance and management. Tina studied Kinesiology at the University of Kentucky and enjoys being a part of the technology industry helping patients to improve the quality of their lives

KIM SMITH

Clinical Sales Specialist, Abilitech Medical

Kim Smith brings extensive experience in sales and business development across the medical device industry, most recently at Myomo where she served as Business Development Manager. She has lead the full sales cycle, from new patient acquisition through to product delivery and has worked with a wide rage of clinical partners including OT/PTs, rehabilitation hospitals, VA hospitals and  prosthetist and orthotists. Kim studied Business Administration at Lindenwood University. 

ROB WUDLICK

Engineering Consultant, Abilitech Medical

As an engineer who lives with a spinal cord injury, Rob brings a unique perspective to the Abilitech team. Rob supports Abilitech's engineering team and provides an important patient voice to inform product development. Outside Abilitech, Rob is active in spinal cord injury research, fundraising, and advocacy work. He is the co-founder of GUSU2Cure Paralysis Foundation and received his B.S. in industrial and management engineering from Montana State University - Bozeman.