VP of Commercial Growth and Market Access

Company Overview

Self-feeding is one of the most basic activities of daily living, and for people with severe upper extremity disabilities, it usually depends entirely on a caregiver. DESĪN LLC develops and manufactures Obi, a robotic self-feeding device that lets people living with conditions such as ALS, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injury, muscular dystrophy, and multiple sclerosis eat independently, controlled by any body part that can press a switch. Designed and built in DESĪN's own Jacksonville, Florida facility, Obi is an FDA-registered Class I medical device made under an ISO-compliant quality system, is listed on the VA Federal Supply Schedule, and is available in more than 20 countries. DESĪN has delivered approximately 4,000 devices and built a profitable, growing, founder-led business that is creating a new category of assistive technology. Patients reach Obi through state Medicaid, the VA, private pay, facilities, and international distributors, supported by an in-house sales and advocacy team that guides each patient from clinical evaluation through authorization and delivery.

Job Overview

Reporting to the Founder and CEO, the Vice President of Commercial Growth and Market Access will own profitable commercial growth, payer and state access, and the commercial readiness of a direct DME supplier operation. The role calls for a hands-on builder who can improve and extend DESĪN's established sales and advocacy system, create new growth opportunities, and connect commercial execution with reimbursement and direct billing.

The first mission is to stand DESĪN up as a direct DME supplier. The second mission is to integrate the direct DME process with the existing sales and advocacy process, then own and scale the whole commercial engine.

This is not an administrative or managerial layer. The VP will be the strategic architect over a commercial team that runs well today, and a true business partner to the CEO.

Products

• Obi 3: The latest-generation robotic self-feeding device. The user selects among four food compartments with a momentary switch press, and Obi captures the food and delivers it to the mouth.

• Switch access and caregiver set-up: Operated through a standard 3.5mm switch jack with pressure, pad, light-touch, pillow, or sip-and-puff switches. Teach Mode lets a caregiver set a custom delivery position that Obi remembers; Reward Mode reinforces independent eating. Lightweight and portable, with spoon wiping and multiple utensils.

• Clinical evidence: A 2026 mixed-methods study of Obi3 in JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies (one-week home trial; 15 users, 14 caregivers, 13 providers) found mean self-feeding impairment fell from 3.80 to 0.60 on a 0–4 scale (P<.001), System Usability Scale scores of 83–85 across groups against a benchmark of 68, and no adverse events.

• Regulatory and access: FDA-registered Class I device, ISO-compliant quality system, EU MDR 2017/745 compliance, and SGS safety testing and certification. On the VA Federal Supply Schedule, so qualifying Veterans can receive Obi at no cost.

Qualifications

Education & Experience

• 10+ years of progressive commercial, general management, market access, or reimbursement experience, including meaningful responsibility for managers or multidisciplinary teams

• Experience in a clinician-influenced, payer-funded, documentation-dependent product or service pathway

• Understands the full path from referral and clinical evaluation through medical necessity, authorization, delivery, service, billing, denials, and payment

• Demonstrated growth personally created, and success working in an entrepreneurial or founder-led environment

Preferred

• Direct DME/CRT experience strongly preferred, ideally having built, or been a key part of building, a direct DME supplier go-to-market or commercial engine

• Especially relevant backgrounds: complex rehabilitation technology, AAC and speech-generating devices, eye-gaze systems, assistive technology, home medical equipment, orthotics and prosthetics, and adjacent home-based medtech

• Hands-on experience with DMEPOS accreditation, Medicaid enrollment, third-party billing, or claims management

• Experience at an early-stage company of similar size, moving a commercial engine from one stage of scale to the next

Competencies

• A builder, not a caretaker: hands-on, comfortable with ambiguity, and energized by a plan that can change

• Sound financial and quantitative judgment: forecasting, contribution margin, and investment decisions

• Genuine, transparent, and collaborative; sees how the role blends into other functions and works cross-functionally by default

• Earns the respect of an established team and develops incumbent leaders rather than replacing them

• A business-partner mindset with the CEO

• Genuine passion for serving people with disabilities and alignment with DESĪN's core values: true advocacy, health and wellness through human-centered design, and evidence-based innovation

Job Responsibilities

Direct DME Supplier Build

• Lead DMEPOS accreditation and Medicaid enrollment in top states, working with the accreditation partner and external specialists

• Select and onboard a third-party biller; specify and implement claims management software

• Write the direct DME operating procedure and integrate it with the existing sales and advocacy process

• Define the first billing hire: qualifications, timing, claim capacity, and when to add further coders or billers

• Lead commercial coordination for direct billing, claims, and appeals, using qualified internal owners and external specialists

Commercial Leadership & Team Development

• Lead Sales and Advocacy, International Business, and the emerging reimbursement and direct billing function; develop incumbent leaders and build on their existing capabilities

• Coach the strategic thinking of commercial leaders and drive continuous improvement of the sales and advocacy process

• Use performance data to improve conversion and execution from lead through clinical evaluation, authorization, delivery, and follow-up

Channel & Growth Strategy

• Build channel plans and measurable performance across state Medicaid, VA, facilities, international distributors, and future payer pathways

• Identify and develop partnerships, complementary product opportunities, referral networks, and distribution relationships with clear revenue and margin economics

• Partner with the CEO and Clinical Affairs on readiness for broader Medicare payer access

Financial Ownership & Operating Cadence

• Own forecasts, funnel and channel metrics, contribution margin, investment decisions, and commercial follow-through so the CEO can spend less time integrating daily commercial work

• Operate within EOS and progressively take on the integrator role

• Partner with Product, Clinical Affairs, Quality, Operations, and Finance, which remain under the leadership of the CEO

Compensation

• Base: Competitive base salary plus performance-based incentives, calibrated to experience and agreed scope

• Benefits: Health and 401(k), unlimited vacation, and potential long-term value participation

Location

• Candidate Location: Remote, anywhere in the U.S