Tensor Surgical Appoints Justin C. Anderson as President and CEO

Tensor Surgical Inc., a global medical device company focused on value-based healthcare solutions for orthopedic sports medicine, biologics, and soft tissue repair, and the technology leader in “anchorless” arthroscopic transosseous rotator cuff repair, has appointed Justin C. Anderson as CEO and president, and a member of the Board of Directors. 

“Recruiting Justin Anderson as Tensor’s CEO is like having Elon Musk decide to run your electric car company. He literally commercialized the first mover in the space,” stated Brett Sanders, M.D., Tensor Surgical’s co-founder and chief medical officer who has served as interim CEO since 2019. “As a proven passionate leader with vast experience commercializing paradigm shifting technology, Mr. Anderson brings the insight and high-level industry expertise in niche domains that will bring Tensor to the forefront of the outpatient shoulder market worldwide.”
 
Anderson brings to Tensor 25 years’ experience in the medical device industry as a founder, board member and/or executive of public and private companies and is recognized as a key contributor in two IPOs and six exits valued at over $4 billion, including Tornier (acquired by Wright Medical, now part of Stryker Corporation), Axya Medical (acquired by Tornier), Opus Medical (acquired by ArthroCare, now part of Smith+Nephew), and Oratec Interventions (acquired by Smith+Nephew). Anderson is the co-founder and board chairman of G9MD Inc., a privately held developer of social enterprise ecosystems and live streaming platforms for healthcare, and serves on the Board of Directors of three entities.

Board Chairman Ken Woody, managing partner of Innova Capital, said: “On behalf of the Board, I am thrilled to welcome Justin to the Tensor team and Board of Directors. He has an amazing pedigree, and we are delighted to have attracted someone of his caliber and proven track record of success to lead the company. His wealth of experience at some of the most disruptive medical device companies on record is invaluable to Tensor and we will benefit from his strategic insights.”

Sanders will continue in his role as Chief Medical Officer.
 
“The anchor era of rotator cuff repair created by the move to arthroscopy in the 1990s is reaching the asymptotic point on its S-curve life cycle. No matter how successful the large orthopedic companies have been in the past, their suture anchor business has reached a period of stagnation and is at a second inflection or ‘stall point’ caused by a variety of internal and external factors. Dr. Sanders and I identified this critical inflection point years ago and developed strategies to commercialize innovative products that are more beneficial for patients than suture anchors, and significantly more profitable for providers to use especially in cost-constrained outpatient settings,” said Anderson. “Tensor is uniquely positioned to grow the total addressable market by making rotator cuff repair affordable for all patients worldwide, something our competitors are not able to pivot to quickly. Examples of companies that unknowingly reached inflection points because of technology include Blackberry, Nokia, Xerox, and Kodak, and medical device companies are no different. In many countries outside the United States, surgical candidates with torn rotator cuffs either pay for their implants and procedures in advance, which most cannot afford to do, or they don’t have surgery. Not being able to lift your arm over your head is debilitating and decreases patients’ ability to support themselves and their family.”
 
“I had my Rotator Cuff repaired 18 months ago with an ‘anchorless’ arthroscopic transosseous technique that requires only sutures to cerclage torn tissue to bone,” he continued. “Without multiple suture anchors or implants in my shoulder, I experienced no pain, took no pain meds or opioids, and returned to full activity and sports like racquetball and jiu jitsu faster than my therapists and I could believe. The Board of Directors and I are aligned in our vision to make surgical treatment and outcomes like mine possible and affordable for everyone. I am grateful to the Board for the opportunity to lead Tensor into the post-suture anchor Era of value-based care and become the global market leader in this emerging space.”