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Founder@ Interview
Interview with Jay Goss
“Recruit a great team…this is not individual support. And, become a GREAT storyteller.” – Jay Goss
Today we feature Jay Goss, the founder at Wavemaker Thirty-Sixty Health. We hear their story in their own words, their successes, their challenges and their insights.
Let’s start by getting to know you. Can you please tell us a little bit about you and what you do?
It all started in 1991, graduating from the place where the Internet was invented (UCLA) at the time the Internet was just “becoming a thing.” That was enough of a magnetic force to get me involved with lots of start-ups (think back to when “Internet companies” were all the rage).
I started and worked with/for more than 30 start-ups, many of which were healthcare related. And then in 2016, I reconnected with a former partner (who just happened to have previously run EYs Global Health Practice and was CEO of UnitedHealth Group’s Ingenix, now Optum) to conceive of LA’s first dedicated early stage healthcare venture fund.
Today, I run and am General Partner of Wavemaker Three-Sixty Health, the leading seed-stage healthcare venture fund in the US, with nearly 50 portfolio companies and 300 Limited Partners. Fund I started deploying capital in 2018, and Fund II came online in Q4 of 2020.
A great introduction and start to this interview. Can you please tell us, how did you start, from what age, and what made you decide to change direction and start?
So many VCs get into the business after a singular success/exit. For me, it was much different. Across 30+ start-ups over 25 years, I’ve gotten the chance to really appreciate the good, the bad and the ugly of the start-up world. That’s invaluable experience when it comes to evaluating early stage investment opportunities and supporting the companies we invest into.
Thank you for that insight. So can you tell us…What does your business do and where is your company based?
Seeding Healthcare’s Tomorrow – Based in Los Angeles and New York, Wavemaker Three-Sixty Health (Wavemaker 360) is the leading US early-stage healthcare focused venture capital fund.
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Founded by former Ingenix (now Optum) CEO John Nackel and veteran startup operator Jay Goss, the fund invests in seed-stage healthcare technology companies on a mission to reshape the industry. John and Jay are joined by a cross-functional team of 6 investment partners, current and former leaders at some of the world’s pre-eminent healthcare and investment organizations.
Thesis + investment areas – Wavemaker 360’s founding thesis is that the healthcare industry is in the first innings of the adoption of technologies that can help accelerate the achievement of healthcare’s ‘quintuple aim’ of improved patient experience, better outcomes, lower costs, clinician well-being and health equity. The fund invests in entrepreneurs across software, tech-enabled service and medical devices with the single mindedness to bring these technologies to market and ‘make a dent’ in the healthcare universe.
The fund’s superpower lies in its nearly 300 Limited Partners, the majority of whom are from within the healthcare industry and positioned across the care continuum. These institutions, clinicians, and executives are the ultimate bench. They help the fund in 3 ways: 1) sourcing investable early-stage companies; 2) evaluating investment opportunities; and 3) accelerating portfolio company commercialization post-investment.
What’s the story behind your success? What led to your aha moment? how did you get to where you are now?
I think it’s 90% about the superpower above!
Thank you for sharing that. What’s been your life’s biggest lesson so far?
It’s been a great experience figuring out how to evolve from a venture fund of 30 investors and 1 portfolio company to one with 300 investors and almost 50 companies that we support, all in 4 years time.
Each time we discover a great company to invest into (which takes a lot of energy), it’s a great achievement!
If you were to go back in time, what piece of advice would you give to your younger self?
Failure is okay…you learn WAY more from failure than you do from success.
We’re nearly halfway through our interview so it’s a great time to ask how does your business run. What three tools make your business run better?
We obsess around 3 things:
Finding the most compelling healthcare companies in the US, Canada, Asia and Europe to invest into.
Doing the best diligence on these companies.
Providing world-class commercial support to our companies…afterall, the healthcare industry is a tough nut to crack!
What do you know now that you wished you had known before?
Having an 8 partner team is way better than having 2 (when we started).
What has been your greatest or proudest achievement or moment?
Each time we discover a great company to invest into (which takes a lot of energy), it’s a great achievement!
What future life goals do you want to achieve and why?
Keep funding the most compelling early stage healthcare companies on the planet!
To finish our inspire questions…”We believe that sharing inspiring words can inspire others.” If there was one positive thing you would say to someone to inspire and empower them what would it be and why?
Recruit a great team…this is not individual support. And, become a GREAT storyteller.
“Thank you it has been great learning more about your founder story and Wavemaker Thirty-Sixty Health”
To learn more about Wavemaker Thirty-Sixty Health Visit https://www.wavemaker360.com/
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