From the Edge: Insights on the Innovation Economy

Join Mintz Corporate and Securities Associate, Jason Miller, in a conversation with Margaret Yu, founder and CEO of Reliacare, and Andrew Gladue, founder and CEO of Plethys. Both are recent winners of Mintz Awards, an annual entrepreneurship award that Mintz sponsors through San Diego State University’s Lavin Entrepreneurship Center and Zahn Innovation Platform (or ZIP) Launchpad. Reliacare is developing a mobile app to help patients and healthcare providers manage pre- and post-operative care, while Plethys is developing a technology to improve smartwatch sensors for a variety of users. Learn about their entrepreneurial journeys, including their motivations, challenges, and strategies for success.

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn, Melanie Levy, and Tom Burton on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve, Melanie, and Tom have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! In this special edition of the podcast, the team discusses lessons learned for board members from the failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). What does risk management in the boardroom mean? Who is principally responsible for risk management? What kinds of risks should be reviewed? These are a few of the questions that Steve, Melanie, and Tom will delve into. We hope you enjoy listening.

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn and Melanie Levy on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve and Melanie have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! In our seventh session, the team is joined by Jeremy Glaser, Co-chair of our Venture Capital & Emerging Companies Practice, to discuss what you need to know about down round financings – overview; perceptions, implications, and risks; and how a board can best prepare for a down round. We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session.

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn and Melanie Levy on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve and Melanie have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! In our sixth session, the team is joined by Jason Vigna, a Member in our Securities Litigation Practice, to discuss best practices for handling crises in the boardroom — including identifying, documenting, discussing, managing, and disclosing material risks. We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session.

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn, Melanie Levy, and Tom Burton on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve, Melanie, and Tom have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! With the conviction and 11-year sentence for former CEO Elizabeth Holmes, the team looks at the lessons to be learned from Theranos, The team discusses (1) the importance of open communication between board members and executives, (2) fostering a culture of compliance, and (3) tips for picking up on the early-warning signs. We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session.

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn and Melanie Levy on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve and Melanie have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! In our fifth session, which focuses on employment law, the team is joined by Jen Rubin, a bicoastal Member in our Employment, Labor & Benefits Practice and Chair of our ESG Practice, to discuss best practices related to hiring an executive (hint: consensus is key), managing the executive at the board level, and how to (amicably) negotiate to terminate an executive. We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session.

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn, Melanie Levy, and Tom Burton on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve, Melanie, and Tom have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! In our fourth session, “ESG in the Boardroom,” the team is joined by Kristyn Noeth, Of Counsel at Mintz, to discuss best practices related to and practical implementation of ESG concepts, as well as the impending Climate Disclosure Rule. As noted in the introduction, fewer topics are generating more interest in boardrooms across the country (and at Mintz!) than environmental, social, and corporate governance. We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session.

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn, Melanie Levy, and Tom Burton on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve, Melanie, and Tom have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! In our third session, “Board Committees,” the team discusses the various types of committees, the role or purpose of committees, committee composition, ESG as it relates to committees, and board committee trends. We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session, which will focus on ESG!

Our In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance podcast series features insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn, Melanie Levy, and Tom Burton on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. For decades, Steve, Melanie, and Tom have guided companies from inception to exit, and have encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! In our second session, “Running an Effective Board Meeting,” the team discusses key considerations for public and private companies in this critical area of governance, including: • Best practices in formulating the agenda • Preparation of the presentation deck • Framing of issues and goals • Shareholder relations • Major news, including negative news • Executive sessions and closed sessions • The value of transparency We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session, which will cover the basics of board committees!

Welcome to our new podcast series In the Boardroom: Practical Advice and Guidance, featuring insights from Mintz Members Steve Osborn, Melanie Levy, and Tom Burton on a wide variety of topics specific to boards. They’ll answer all of your questions related to the “who, what, when, where, and how” of boards. For decades, Steve, Melanie, and Tom have guided companies from inception to exit and encountered, navigated, and mitigated innumerable board-related issues. From their experiences, you can learn a great deal. Let’s take a listen! Session 1: Board Basics Our first session covers the following topics: • What is a board of directors, when is it formed, and what’s the ‘best’ composition? (Hint: odd numbers are key!) • Who sits on a board of directors (i.e., founders, investors, and independents), how are they selected, and how does the composition of a board change over time? • What is NOT a board (e.g., scientific advisors and observers)? • What are the duties of the board? • How should boards handle confidential information? • Client question - How often should boards meet, and what should occur in these meetings? (Second hint: surprises should never occur!) We hope you enjoy listening. And stay tuned for our next session, which will cover running an effective board meeting!