Leading Houston healthcare executive named one of America's top CEOs

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Dr. Peter Pisters, president of MD Anderson, ranks high on the list of top CEOs. Photo courtesy of MD Anderson

Houston-based MD Anderson regularly garners praise for its breakthrough cancer treatments. Now, its leader is garnering attention as one of the country's top CEOs.

Dr. Peter Pisters, who's been president of MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston since 2017, is among the honorees in Glassdoor's annual Employees' Choice Awards, recognizing the top 100 CEOs of 2019. Pisters ranks 47th on the list, with an impressive 94 percent approval rating from his employees. He appears in the category for large employers.

In a letter sent to faculty and staff after he was named to the position, Pisters wrote that he looked forward to collaborating with his new MD Anderson colleagues on the hospital's "profound purpose" of wiping out cancer.

"My promise to you is we will do so with a strong moral compass and principles of values-based servant leadership," Pisters wrote. "The honor of serving as your president is one that I both respect and am humbled by, and I will spare no effort in working with you to build upon and extend MD Anderson's unparalleled history of success."

Sitting atop the Glassdoor list of CEOs at large employers is Pat Gelsinger, CEO of VMWare. Charles Butt, chairman and CEO of San Antonio-based H-E-B, is in second place, followed by In-N-Out Burger's Lynsi Snyder, T-Mobile's John Legere, and Adobe's Shantanu Narayen.

"Under [Butt's] leadership, the desire to constantly innovate has led to new store concepts, the creation of one of the most successful private label programs in the country, and the commitment to build out state-of-the-art digital products and services to complement H-E-B's world-class stores," the company says in a release about the Glassdoor recognition.

The remaining Texans on the Glassdoor list are all from the Dallas area: Gary Kelly, chairman and CEO of Dallas-based Southwest Airlines; Peter Strebel, president of Dallas-based Omni Hotels & Resorts; and Steve Barick, chief operating officer of Irving-based Highgate Hotels, all in the category for large employers.

Kelly, who has worked at Southwest for more than 30 years, is the highest ranked CEO in Dallas, landing at No. 35 with an approval rating of 95 percent.

At No. 58 is Strebel, who garnered an approval rating of 94 percent. He's a longtime employee of Omni; in 2018, he was promoted to president.

Barick, the longtime chief operating officer of Irving-based Highgate Hotels, claims the 97th spot with an approval rating of 90 percent.

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.

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Houston startup acquired, plans to expand global medical device software solutions

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Houston-based Galen Data, a provider of cloud-based connectivity software for medical devices, has been acquired by health care-focused asset manager Lauxera Capital Partners. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

Lauxera, based in France, says the Galen Data acquisition complements its 2022 purchase of Germany-based Matrix Requirements, a provider of software for medical device R&D and quality control teams.

“The Galen team has built an exceptional product providing medical device companies a cost-effective, compliant, and secure solution for medical device cloud connectivity,” Samuel Levy, founding partner of Lauxera, says in a news release.

Chris DuPont, co-founder and CEO of Galen Data, says the Lauxera deal “empowers us to take our business to the next level and better serve our clients while pushing forward the innovation that’s at the core of everything we do.”

Chris DuPont is the co-founder and CEO of Galen Data. Photo via LinkedIn

Galen Data had raised $7.21 million in venture capital since its founding in 2016, according to PitchBook. Investors included the Texas HALO Fund, the Houston Angel Network, Tamiami Angel Fund IV, and Zeeland Ventures. As of November 2023, Galen Data was valued at $18 million, according to Dealroom.co.

Customers of Galen Data include Austin-based Cardi/o, Houston-based Delphi Diagnostics, Houston-based Future Caridia, Austin-based Harmonic Bionics, Houston-based Tienovix, and Houston-based Zibrio.

4 fast-growing Houston tech companies secure spots on Deloitte list

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Deloitte’s annual North America Technology Fast 500 list includes four Houston companies this year — all boasting of significant growth.

For Houston, Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. took the highest-ranking spot at No. 101 (up from 108 previous year) with 1,184 percent growth. NatGas Hub LLC (No. 286, 407 percent growth), Liongard (No. 437, 246 percent growth), and Stratus Medical LLC (No. 483, 212 percent growth) also made the list, which is an annual ranking of the fastest-growing North American companies in technology, energy tech sectors, telecommunications, life sciences, media, and fintech.

"Houston continues to demonstrate its prowess in fostering growth and technological advancement and I’m incredibly proud to see some of our local companies making significant strides and earning their well-deserved spots on the 2024 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 list,” Houston managing partner at Deloitte Melinda Yee says in a news release.

Award winners were selected based on fiscal year revenue growth from 2019 to 2022.

The companies achieved revenue growth ranging from 201 percent to 153,625 percent over the three-year time frame with an average growth rate of 1,981 percent and a median growth rate of 460 percent, according to a news release. Texas accounts for 6 percent of the winning companies with 73 percent of the companies from Texas are in the software sector.

“These companies exemplify the entrepreneurial spirit and innovative mindset that define Houston's dynamic business ecosystem,” Yee adds.

In 2023, the Houston representation looked similar. Direct Digital Holdings again topped the Houston rankings at No. 108, with Liongard, NatGasHub.com, and P97 Networks also showing substantial growth. As a state, Texas had 30 companies that made the list of the 541 ranked. In 2022, just one Houston company was recognized, as at No. 372 Onit reported revenue increase of 369 percent.

Biopharmaceutical company TG Therapeutics, Inc. was the No.1 spot in 2024 with a growth rate of 153,625 percent from 2020 to 2023. See the full list here.

Play it back: How this Houston innovator is championing women in health tech

HOUSTON INNOVATORS PODCAST EPISODE 264

With her long-standing career in health care, Ayse McCracken knows women are integral in leading health care. That's why she started Ignite Healthcare Network — to help find, support, and champion female health tech founders.

Originally founded in 2017 as a pitch competition, Ignite has evolved to become an active and integral program for female health tech entrepreneurs. Last month, the organization hosted its annual Fire Pitch Competition, and six finalists walked away with awards. At the event, the founders pitched their health tech solutions across lung health, renal therapy, breastfeeding tech, and more.

Last year, McCracken joined the Houston Innovators Podcast to share her story of starting Ignite and how its evolved since, accelerating around 100 female founders and advancing life-saving health care technology.

"Success to me isn't just getting people an early stage investment," she says on the show. "Success to me is getting companies that actually commercialize, get their products in the market, and that they are actually making an impact on health wellbeing, patients, and so forth."

"Having an impact in the health care industry and finding solutions is important to me," McCracken adds. "The second aspect of that is there are so many women in health care, and yet you don't see them in leadership roles."

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