Stephen Boyd is the CEO of Boyd Technologies and the Co-founder and Board Chair of the Berkshire Innovation Center (BIC). He is frequent speaker on innovation and entrepreneurship and an advisor to start-ups, commercial businesses, and municipalities seeking to create economic vibrancy and sustainable, diverse growth. Steve is a member of the Economic Development Planning Council and the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative for the Baker | Polito Administration and serves on the Commonwealth’s Manufacturing Emergency Response Team as well as the Steering Committee for the Department of Higher Education. He is a mentor, volunteer youth sports coach and enjoys anything outdoors with his wife and kids.

Brian Johnson was named president of the Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council (MassMEDIC) in July 2018. An accomplished author, media entrepreneur, Brian serves as the association’s second chief executive officer in its history, managing its day-to-day operations and working with medical device industry executives in developing its policy agenda. Since its establishment in 1996, MassMEDIC has grown to 300 member companies – manufacturers and developers of medical products, suppliers, research institutions and academic health centers – and has advanced the public policy interests of the New England medical device sector on Capitol Hill, Beacon Hill, and before various federal agencies. In 2007, Brian conceived and later launched MassDevice.com, where he been responsible for the strategic vision of the company, from inception through the summer of 2018, including leading the company through an acquisition in 2015 by WTWH Media. As publisher, Brian spearheaded the growth of MassDevice from 0 to 100,000+ readers each month and led the company to profitability in just 3 years and more than $2.8M in annual sales. In 2011, Brian conceived and launched DeviceTalks, a live-interview series featuring leaders in medicine. The event, which is held three times annually in Boston, Minnesota and Orange County, California, has attracted thousands of medical device executives to date and featured leaders from some of the world’s largest medical technology companies. Since 2015, Brian also founded and launched two additional magazines, Medical Design & Outsourcing and Drug Delivery Business News, bringing total readership under his supervision to over 1.5 million. Under Brian’s direction, MassDevice and its associated properties were widely recognized for its commitment to quality journalism. The editorial boards of the New York Times, NPR, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post have cited MassDevice’s coverage of issues pertaining to the medical device industry.

Kendalle Burlin O’Connell is a seasoned and effective executive who has received wide acclaim for her leadership of MassBio, the world’s largest biopharma membership organization, where she drives the strategy to grow the industry and support member companies as CEO and president. To better serve the entire life cycle of biopharma companies, Kendalle has expanded MassBio’s innovation offerings to include partnering and investor events, an entrepreneurial accelerator, and a network for founders and chief executives. As part of MassBio’s commitment to realizing a more diverse and equitable life sciences industry, Kendalle was the driving force behind the organization’s launch of the non-profit Bioversity and the opening of its first workforce training center in Dorchester where graduates are prepared for rewarding entry-level careers at local life sciences companies. Kendalle has been an outspoken advocate for the industry in policy debates about state government support for the expansion of the life sciences in Massachusetts, the federal government’s intervention into biopharma innovation, and efforts to improve the affordability and accessibility of life-changing medicines, just to name a few. Kendalle has earned numerous accolades for her leadership, including top recognitions from Boston Magazine and the Boston Business Journal, and serves on the Boards of The Boston Foundation and the American Cancer Society, where she is Chair for the Eastern New England region, among others.

Francie transitioned from State Government Affairs to Federal Government Affairs at AstraZeneca in 2020. She has been involved in the US government contract negotiations for the company’s COVID-19 portfolio and supports the Federal Government Affairs & Policy and Corporate Affairs teams on COVID-19 issues. Prior to AstraZeneca, Francie was the Director of Legislative Affairs for the Florida Medical Association and was a regulatory lawyer and criminal prosecutor. Francie holds a Juris Doctor degree from Florida State University.