Real Results from Real Advisory Boards
See how structured advisory boards help health tech founders grow.
Case Study
Quit Kit
From Startup to Graduation
7-Month Advisory Board Journey • June 2025 – January 2026
“The sessions that moved the needle were founder-focused, not just business-focused. Him being the brand became this beautiful thing.”
— Margaret Kocherga, PhD, Advisory5 Advisor
The Challenge
Quit Kit's founder was overwhelmed:
- Multiple outside advisors and formal mentors giving conflicting advice
- 20+ doubts per session from too many voices
- Complex decisions: FDA, patents, scaling
- No consistent team tracking progress
What We Delivered
- Noise Reduction: Filtered advice, grounded decisions
- Founder Development: 50%+ of sessions on founder growth, not just tactics
- Technical Expertise: Patent strategy, FDA compliance, supply chain
- Core Team: Margaret Kocherga, PhD & George Keller, PhD (7 months), Emily Bridge (joined Sept)
The Advisory5 Model
Team of 3-4 dedicated advisors • Monthly structured sessions • Founder-first focus • Technical expertise on demand
Ready to bring this model to your portfolio companies?
Case Study
Pump for Joy
From FDA Fear to Fundraising Confidence
16-Month Advisory Board Journey • October 2024 – February 2026
“It takes so much humility to put yourself out there and expose all your weaknesses. I was having a panic attack the day before my first pitch.”
— Erin Martin, Founder, Pump for Joy (reflecting on October 2024)
The Challenge
Erin was a solo founder building a medical device with no clear path forward:
- Complex product design requiring regulatory clearance
- No fundraising experience or investor connections
- Planning for million-unit scale before proving month-by-month execution
- Operating solo with no co-founder or structured support
What We Delivered
- Founder Reorientation: Shifted from million-unit planning to month-by-month execution and accountability
- Regulatory Strategy: Addressed FDA 12+ months ahead of founder's plan, leading to consultant hire and initial filing
- Product Redesign: Simplified from complex single-piece to four-piece user-assembled design - lower cost, simpler regulatory path
- Fundraising Support: From $0 to $69K+ through Wefunder, anchored by $50K Equilibrium Impact Venture commitment
- Co-Founder Evaluation: Provided structure to evaluate and onboard Vanessa Parker as co-founder
The Advisory5 Model
Team of 3-4 dedicated advisors • Monthly structured sessions • Founder-first focus • Domain expertise on demand
She walked in with a panic attack before her first pitch. She walked out funded, co-founded, and FDA-filed.
The advisory board didn't hand her a roadmap. It gave her the structure to build one herself.