Our ultimate goal is to partner with our clients across all stages of the company life cycle to create durable shareholder value for stakeholders including management teams, corporate boards and shareholders:Lynn Lewis of Gilmartin Group

“With deep knowledge of the industry and capital markets, our team ensures senior-level attention and strategic value.”

Gilmartin offers a comprehensive suite of investor relations and advisory services to clients across the healthcare space with the goal of helping to create durable value for all stakeholders including management teams, corporate boards and shareholders. The firm partners with a broad range of companies – both private and public, and across multiple market caps, at all stages of the company life cycle to drive success, mainly servicing clients in the United States and Europe.

The team at Gilmartin is composed of Wall Street and investor relations veterans who have extensive relationships with analysts, investment bankers, institutional investors, and the venture community. With deep knowledge of the industry and capital markets, their team focuses on a select group of clients to ensure senior-level attention and strategic value. The professionals at Gilmartin Group have earned reputations as leaders in strategic advisory roles.

Gilmartin prides itself on acting as a strategic partner. They build and execute customized investor relations programs focused on active shareholder engagement and value creation and provide capital markets strategies to enable successful private company financings as well as IPO advisory programs to effectively navigate Wall Street. The firm was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in San Francisco Bay Area, CA.

The Silicon Review reached out to Lynn Lewis, Founder and CEO of Gilmartin Group, for an interview, and here’s what she had to say.

Interview Highlights

Q. What was the motivation behind starting Gilmartin Group?

The core of what we do at Gilmartin is predicated on relationships. The motivation behind starting Gilmartin was based on a desire to form stronger, deeper, lasting relationships – both with our clients and also internally. We built Gilmartin with an intentional focus on creating a culture that embraces both individual contribution and collaboration. Our focus with our clients is on partnership. We strive to form long-term partnerships in which we can be impactful in helping our clients create durable value.

Q. Gilmartin Group emphasizes being a strategic partner to its clients. Could you elaborate on how your team approaches strategic advisory roles and what sets your approach apart in the industry?

Gilmartin prides itself on acting as an extension of our client’s internal teams. We build and execute customized investor relations programs focused on active shareholder engagement and value creation through deep analysis and understanding of the sector, the science and the capital markets needs of our clients. Our expertise and thoughtfully structured teams across the MedTech, Biotech, Life Science Tools and Diagnostics, and Digital Health and Services sector set us apart in the advisory industry. With deep knowledge of the industry and capital markets, we ensure senior-level attention and strategic value with the added advantage of a team that facilitates broad support at multiple levels. We have a structured approach that is grounded in proactivity, innovative thinking, and objective measures of success.

Q. Investor relations are a critical aspect of corporate success. How does Gilmartin Group tailor its investor relations programs to ensure consistent, proactive outreach while maximizing management’s time and resources?

Key elements of our culture and values at Gilmartin Group are integrity, entrepreneurialism, self-improvement, collaboration, and accountability. We bring these to our client relationships in spades. With each corporate relationship, we proactively set long- and short-term strategic objectives which drive our approach and activities in creating and executing an investor relations program. While many components may be similar, these goals as well as the corporate culture at different companies vary widely and ultimately inform our working relationship. Each client engagement is different in terms of how we fill the IR calendar, create messaging and determine investor activity. Maximizing management’s time is of utmost importance – this comes from trust – trust that we will provide thoughtful and strategic advice, impactful content in materials, targeted outreach to investors, and that we will represent the company in the best way possible.

Q. The concept of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) is gaining prominence in corporate strategy. How does Gilmartin Group assist companies in establishing and enhancing their ESG programs to meet investor and stakeholder expectations?

Gilmartin helps our clients determine objectives in formalizing and publicizing their ESG programs. The fact is, most of our client companies are already engaging in many activities that fall under ESG. We have helped companies by performing ESG audits as well as creating larger sustainability reports based on ongoing activities. Gilmartin has formed strategic partnerships with experts in sustainability and governance to supplement our efforts.

Q. Presentation creation is often underestimated in its importance. How does Gilmartin Group combine its expertise in investor communications with its clients’ stories to craft compelling presentations that effectively communicate their value proposition?

The professionals at Gilmartin Group have decades of combined experience working in healthcare and life sciences, ranging from communications, corporate management, and biology to equity research, investment banking and portfolio management. Through our breadth of experience across all facets of the industry, Gilmartin professionals bring a unique and holistic approach to helping translate the complex science and technology of companies into clear and concise messages crafted for effective communication to the investment community. We become experts on the science, technology and needs of our clients, enabling our team to act as storytellers on the company and its unique set of competitive advantages and value proposition. Our ultimate goal is for each company presentation to be effective on a standalone basis (or with a talk-track) such that investors can walk away with an investible thesis. We supplement the collective work on messaging, content and flow with in-house graphics expertise.

Q. Strategy and business development consulting are essential for maximizing corporate resources. How does Gilmartin Group partner with clients to evaluate and refine key elements of successful corporate strategies, especially in the context of the healthcare industry and capital markets?

For many companies, our relationship starts with message development and then evolves into corporate strategy. This happens as we ask ourselves if the message is defensible and why or why not. It also comes back to our goal of helping companies to create durable value. We have worked with companies to determine their segment reporting structure, prioritize internal operating spend, and identify key areas for potential acquisition. With our capital markets and sector experience, we have a unique perspective on value creation and investor methodologies to value different businesses.

Q. Do you have any new services ready to be launched?

As of now, we are focused on our core service offerings, although we are always interested in learning how we can improve our partnerships with clients and leverage our extensive knowledge and network across the ecosystem.

Q. What does the future hold for your company and its customers? Are exciting things on the way?

After a long period of negligible capital markets activity in healthcare, we are encouraged to see capital raising activities in biotech pick up meaningfully this year. Within the Medical Technology sector there are a large number of successful and scaled businesses that are still privately held along with a mounting investor appetite to put funds to work. We are expecting capital markets activity to pick up meaningfully which should provide exciting opportunities for many companies and their respective teams. The Tools & Diagnostics sector along with Services & HCIT are also poised for opportunities to finance, which will, in turn, drive further innovation and growth as well as value.

Lynn Lewis | Founder & CEO

Lynn Lewis has immersed herself within the intersection of healthcare and finance for the entirety of her career. She is committed to maintaining a strong culture at Gilmartin, especially as the firm grows, and to delivering impact and value to Gilmartin’s clients. She leads with empathy, perseverance and integrity.

Outside of work, Lynn is passionate about responsible stewardship of our environment. She is on the Executive Board of Slide Ranch, a non-profit focused on connecting children with nature. When not working, Lynn can be found somewhere outdoors with her husband, two children and dog. 

“We become experts on the science, technology and needs of our clients, enabling our team to act as storytellers on the company and its unique set of competitive advantages and value proposition.”