How Brand Helps Healthtech Startups Fundraise, Sell, & Scale, with Adam Taylor
Release Date: 01/14/2026
A Brave New Podcast
Brianna Miller is a digital marketing leader with over 15 years of experience building data-informed strategies that connect marketing efforts to real business growth. She currently serves as the Director of Demand Generation at Cohere Health where she develops multi-channel demand generation campaigns and account-based marketing strategies. Beyond her professional roles, Brianna is dedicated to advancing the industry and mentoring its next generation of leaders. She serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, teaching Marketing Strategy and inspiring future...
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Adam Taylor is a multidisciplinary designer, illustrator, and educator with more than 15 years of professional experience in Utah, Michigan, and Seattle. Throughout his career, he has worn many hats within the ever-evolving world of design, but his strongest affinities lie in strategic brand development, UI/UX, and illustration. Adam also serves as a remote Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at Michigan State University, where he teaches courses on design tools, theory, and brand identity development. Outside of work, he’s an occasional exhibiting fine artist, a novice dungeon...
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Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold and memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, hospitals and specialty care providers, and healthcare nonprofits. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market. What you’ll learn about in this episode: What’s ahead in 2026 including healthcare branding trends, emerging challenges, and a glimpse into the...
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Hillery Smith Shay, MBA is chief marketing and experience officer, senior vice president of communications at Children’s Minnesota. Hillery Shay joined Children’s Minnesota in 2021, as VP of marketing and communications and is now chief marketing and experience officer, senior vice president of communications. She provides strategic direction for organizational marketing and communications. She is also responsible for defining and building an organization-wide experience strategy. Ms. Shay brings nearly 25 years of leadership experience in health care and mass communication, with a...
info_outlineA Brave New Podcast
Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold and memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, employee health and wellness programs, and hospitals and providers. Josh has 15 years of experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands, and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market. In this episode, Josh is joined by A Brave New’s content director, Brad Steinbacher, to discuss how health tech brands can develop distinctive...
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Tamar Rudnick is a healthcare executive who has spent 10+ years in leadership roles across early-stage, public company, and PE-backed businesses. She is currently an Operating Partner at Define Ventures, one of the largest early-stage digital health VCs with ~$800M under management and $22B in exited value. At Define Ventures, Tamar leads strategic growth initiatives. Based in Silicon Valley, Define invests in early-stage companies from Seed stage to Series B, and has backed and built some of the category-leading companies such as Livongo, HIMS, and Evolent. Define differentiates itself by...
info_outlineA Brave New Podcast
Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold & memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, employee health & wellness programs, and hospitals & providers. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market. What you’ll learn about in this episode: What brand architecture is and is not Why brand architecture is an essential part of your...
info_outlineA Brave New Podcast
Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold & memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, employee health & wellness programs, and hospitals & providers. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market. What you’ll learn about in this episode: The basics about brand drivers We’ll do a deep dive into three specific brand drivers ...
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Product Management and innovation enthusiast, Hank Lander, currently serves as a Group Product Manager at HubSpot, focusing on Customer Data Protections. Hank's expertise lies in launching new products and building product pipelines. Prior to his current role, he was the Director of Product at ZoomInfo and worked at multiple early-stage startups. Hank holds an MBA in Entrepreneurship from MIT Sloan School of Management and a BS in Computer Science from Georgia Institute of Technology. In this episode Josh and Hank have a conversation about HubSpot’s Sensitive Data Management functionality...
info_outlineA Brave New Podcast
Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold & memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, employee health & wellness programs, and hospitals & providers. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market. What you’ll learn about in this episode: In this episode we take a deep dive into the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer. Specifically, Josh...
info_outlineAdam Taylor is a multidisciplinary designer, illustrator, and educator with more than 15 years of professional experience in Utah, Michigan, and Seattle. Throughout his career, he has worn many hats within the ever-evolving world of design, but his strongest affinities lie in strategic brand development, UI/UX, and illustration.
Adam also serves as a remote Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at Michigan State University, where he teaches courses on design tools, theory, and brand identity development. Outside of work, he’s an occasional exhibiting fine artist, a novice dungeon master for a very patient group of friends, and a small-time local musician.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
· How early-stage health tech startups can effectively build and leverage their brand to support fundraising, selling, and scaling efforts.
· The importance of branding for early-stage health tech startups, emphasizing that a strong brand can empower founders to tell a differentiated story about their product.
· How branding can help founders build trust and credibility with investors, particularly in the context of fundraising.
· How strong positioning is crucial for building a memorable brand and creating a cohesive visual identity that communicates competence and direction to potential investors.
· How a defined brand platform, visual identity, and messaging platform can better equip your team to follow up with leads and close deals.
· How a well-defined brand will make scaling easier, more efficient, and less expensive.
Additional resources: