France Dixon Helfer
With over thirty years in the Medical Device Industry, twenty as a senior level executive, Ms. Helfer brings
Serial Entrepreneurship, Product Development, R&D, Business Development, Operations Management, and
International Sales and Marketing expertise for Fortune 500 companies and start-up companies. She was
most recently recruited as President & CEO of Halo Healthcare Inc, a medical device and diagnostics turnaround, with first generation biomarker technology for early risk detection of breast cancer, and a
molecular diagnostic assay for early breast cancer detection, in development. Ms. Helfer has worked with
over 20 device company executives to develop business strategy, money raising, strategic alliances and
joint ventures, with a strong focus in all aspects of devices. Her career includes senior executive positions
at Medtronic, Xenotech Labs (founding employee, acquired by Medtronic), Sorin Biomedical, Eclipse
Surgical, and MDDataDirect. As Founder of Pegasus Biologics, she raised $32M, and in less than 3 years,
built the company into an emerging growth revenue company with a solid product pipeline, acquired by
Synovis Life Systems. She has raised over $50mil in angel funding and venture capital. Beside current
affiliations listed, Ms. Helfer was a founding member of Tech Coast Angel’s Medical Device Committee, a
judge for TCA’s Fast Pitch Competition, and a Mentor for TCA’s CEO mentorship program for two years. Her
2009 company won the competition and prize money. She mentored a GIT Graduate “Tigers” in 2010 and
her medical device team won the business plan competition and prize money. She mentored a
neuroscience team at UCLA in spring 2012 and won the business plan competition and prize money. She
has taught as “Professor for a Day” at CSUF. Helfer has over 20 years participation and lecturing experience
at medical meetings, investment conferences, leadership meetings, and graduate school alumni
associations, including Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management, and the
prestigious IIT (India Institute of Technology), known to produce CEO’s for major companies worldwide. She
has served as a strategic advisor to numerous medical start-up’s and participates actively on the board of
several medical device companies. Helfer graduated in biologic sciences from CSUF, and attended graduate
school in business management at University of Redlands. She studied graduate level coursework at UCI
and USC. She authored a book chapter in Medical Device R&D Handbook, CRC, 2013, titled “Female
Leadership in the Medical Device Industry”, and has co-authored several published papers and was named
on numerous medical device patents.
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Current Affiliations:
President & CEO, Halo Healthcare Inc., Chairman of the Board
Founder and Board Member, Epic Medical Inc. (UCLA licensed technology with Dr. Kalyanam Shivkumar,
Director, UCLA Cardiac Arrhythmia Center & EP Programs
OCTANe Biomedical Council Member
Mentor, Chapman University Leatherby School of Entrepreneurship
Advisory Leadership Board, Schmidt College of Science and Technology, Chapman University
Board Member, CSUF Mihaylo School of Business, Center for Entrepreneurship
Board Member, Epic Diagnostics, Scottsdale, AZ
Executive Advisory Board, Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association, SoCal
Eileen Goodis, Pharm. D
Eileen Goodis, Pharm. D. is a co-founding partner of strateJEK associates. Eileen has a deep and broad
background as a healthcare leader and entrepreneur, having built two highly respected companies that
were acquired by publicly traded entities. She brings a wealth of practical experience and proven results in
business development, strategic planning, team building, sales and marketing, company turnaround and
acquisition planning. She is particularly effective in her abilities to network and create synergistic
relationships, resulting in companies maximizing their value.
Previous to founding strateJEK associates, Eileen built an innovative and industry leading regional home
care organization, Home Pharmacy of California (HPC) which provided comprehensive nutritional, infusion
and specialty medication and services to patients in their homes. As President and CEO for HPC, she was
responsible for all aspects of HPC's strategic planning and business development, leading an impressive
restoration and resurgence of the Company's operational and financial performance, ultimately concluding
with a strategic acquisition by Walgreens Health Services. She worked closely with the leadership at
Walgreens Health Services as Vice President of Business Development to open up strategic opportunities
within the California healthcare market. She also started Patient Care Pharmacy, an institutional pharmacy
company, which she sold to Integrated Health Services and successfully developed into a national platform.
Eileen received her undergraduate training at UCLA and her doctorate in pharmacy at USC School of
Pharmacy where she has served as Chair of the Board of Councilors and is an adjunct clinical professor of
pharmacy. She continues to participate in numerous professional and community organizations. She is a
member of Young Presidents Organization (YPO)/World Presidents Organization (WPO) and is on their
Women’s International Network. She serves on the Board of the Downtown Women’s Center, she is Chair
of the Iris Cantor UCLA Women’s Health Executive Advisory Board, serves on the Board of the John Douglas
French Alzheimers Foundation, and is on the Executive Committee of the Women’s Leadership Network of
JVS which mentors women in transition.
She loves to travel, hike, and is studying Spanish.
Sharon Collins Presnell, PhD,
Sharon Collins Presnell, PhD, Chief Technology Officer and Executive Vice President of Research &
Development, has more than 15 years of experience in the leadership of product-focused R&D. As an
assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Dr. Presnell’s research in liver and
prostate biology and carcinogenesis produced cell- and tissue-based technologies that were outlicensed for
industrial applications. She joined Becton Dickinson (BD) in 2001 and played a key role in the early discovery
and development of BD’s Discovery Platform and FACSTM CAP tools for the optimization of in vitro culture
environments and flow cytometry-based characterization of cells. In her role at BD, she grew and led a large
multi-disciplinary team to establish feasibility for the Discovery Platform and FACS CAP in multiple
therapeutic areas, including diabetes, and stewarded both technologies through revenue-generating
commercial partnerships. Sharon joined Tengion, Inc. in 2007 as the Vice President of Regenerative
Medicine Research, and was responsible for the discovery and early development of Tengion’s Neo-Kidney
AugmentTM technology, to which MedTronic secured first rights to purchase in a 2011 deal. As the Chief
Technology Officer at Organovo, Dr. Presnell has led the growth and development of the R&D organization,
including evolution of the company’s technology portfolio, and has played an instrumental role in securing
funds in support of corporate growth initiatives. Sharon holds a PhD in pathology from the Medical College
of Virginia.
Maureen Zehntner
Formerly the CEO/Associate Vice Chancellor of UC Irvine Medical Center, Maureen Zehntner joined UCI in
1996 as the Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining the University, Ms. Zehntner was Chief Operating
Officer at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange and Operations Consultant to Children’s Hospital of Orange County.
As the CEO, Ms. Zehntner provided executive leadership to the operations team in review of critical
operating systems, including productivity, supply chain management, patient related services, and business
development. In addition, Ms Zehntner oversaw facility design and construction activities at the medical
center and worked closely with Campus Design and Construction staff in ensuring the timely completion of
the new University hospital which opened in 2009 three months ahead of schedule and on budget. Ms.
Zehntner was the first nurse in the University of California System to be named CEO of a Medical center.
Ms. Zehntner served on numerous Boards including the American Hospital Regional 9 Policy Board, UHC
Board of Directors, Hospital Association of Southern California-Executive and Planning Committee, and the
Emergency Medicine Management Committee (an Orange County Board of Supervisors Appointment).
Currently Ms. Zehntner serves on the leadership Board for Associates For The Advancement of Nursing
Science and Research (AANSR) for the UCI Nursing program, is a member of the Innovators Leadership
Council for Discovery Science Center and as a volunteer for the UCI Public Policy Research Institute.
OC Business Journal Woman of the Year 2008
OC Metro Top 25 Business Leaders 2008
Leukemia/Lymphoma Society Woman of the Year Candidate 2007
California Hospital Association Lifetime Achievement award 2009