How do you take a healthcare innovation from lab to market—without losing your shot at impact?

Sasha Schrode, CEO of FEMSelect, joins Felicia Shakiba to share her founder journey—from licensing IP out of the University of Pennsylvania to raising venture capital, securing FDA approval, and successfully exiting her first healthcare company. Now leading FEMSelect, Sasha breaks down what it really takes to move innovation through regulation, reimbursement, and clinical validation without losing momentum—or purpose.

This episode explores how leadership discipline, investor-level decision making, and clear C-suite strategy drive value creation in one of the most complex industries. Sasha explains why great CEOs fall in love with the problem—not the solution—and how business process automation, enterprise technology, and digital transformation support scalable execution in healthcare. Her personal cancer diagnosis adds a powerful lens on resilience, learning, and purpose-driven leadership.

Chapters

00:00 The Journey from Diagnosis to Innovation

13:18 Understanding Market Viability and Clinical Need

22:43 The Iteration Process in Med Tech

24:20 Insights on Raising Capital and Exiting

27:24 Common Mistakes in Commercialization

32:00 First Steps for Aspiring Innovators

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