Michael Crowe Named to Envoy Medical’s Board of Directors

Hearing health firm Envoy Medical Inc. has appointed Michael Crowe to its Board of Directors, filling the vacancy prompted by Dr. Whitney Haring-Smith’s resignation earlier this year.

“Michael is a seasoned medical device executive who specializes in quickly expanding operations and ensuring a business is doing the right things to maintain quality throughout periods of growth and transformation,” Envoy Medical CEO Brent Lucas said. “We look forward to leaning on his experience and guidance as we prepare ourselves for what we believe will be an exciting future.”
 
Crowe has decades of experience helping companies grow operations quickly and efficiently. After starting his career at General Electric, he has served in management at medical device powerhouses Johnson & Johnson, Covidien Surgical Devices (now part of Medtronic), and Abbott Vascular. He is currently the senior vice president of Operations for Bioventus LLC. Crowe qualifiers as an independent director and serve on the Compensation Committee.

Crowe received his bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from the University of Louisville and his MBA from Duke University.

“Envoy Medical appears well-positioned to disrupt and further grow an existing market with a transformational technology,” Crowe stated. “In order to take full advantage of the opportunity, we will need to prepare ourselves for rapid growth with discipline and rigor by making intelligent choices. Brent and his team are moving in the right direction, and I look forward to lending my decades of expertise to help the company achieve its full potential.”
   
Envoy Medical’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, chaired by Janis Smith-Gomez, and Envoy Medical’s management team prioritized various skills and competencies before identifying and vetting potential candidates. Envoy Medical sought an independent director who is a proven, successful business and people leader with a formidable career spanning supply chain, manufacturing and operations with deep engineering expertise and launch excellence who could guide and mentor a management team preparing to bring a disruptive medical device to market.
 
Before resigning from the board, Haring-Smith—a managing partner at Anzu Partners—chaired the Compensation Committee and was a Class I director. Her regular term would otherwise have concluded later this year.
 
“It has been an honor to serve on the board of Envoy Medical, which I believe has the potential to transform hearing health. I have confidence in the board of directors and management team going forward to deliver on the potential of the technology. I am grateful to Michael Crowe for providing his deep industry and operations expertise to help guide the company in these critical areas,” Haring-Smith commented.
 
“Whitney’s contribution to Envoy Medical was instrumental in the business combination that transitioned us to the public markets,” Lucas said. “Whitney making room for a new director to help guide us through our next chapter is an example of his exemplary leadership, inclusive approach, and commitment to helping Envoy Medical succeed.”

Envoy Medical is currently sponsoring an Early Feasibility Study at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., for its investigational fully implanted Acclaim Cochlear Implant. Envoy Medical expects to begin a larger pivotal clinical study for its device later this year.

The fully implanted Acclaim Cochlear Implant (Acclaim CI) is touted as a first-of-its-kind fully implanted cochlear implant that features a sensor designed to leverage the ear’s natural anatomy instead of a microphone to capture sound. The Acclaim CI is designed to address severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss that is not adequately addressed by hearing aids. 
 
The Acclaim Cochlear Implant received the Breakthrough Device Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2019. It is limited by U.S. law to investigational use.
 
The Esteem fully implanted active middle ear implant (FI-AMEI) reportedly is the only FDA-approved, fully implanted* hearing device for adults diagnosed with moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss allowing for 24/7 hearing capability using the ear’s natural anatomy. The Esteem FI-AMEI hearing implant is invisible and requires no externally worn components and nothing is placed in the ear canal for it to function. 
 
*Once activated, the external Esteem FI-AMEI Personal Programmer is not required for daily use.

Anzu Partners, a growing investment firm focusing on industrial and life science technology companies with the potential to transform their industries, has a common and preferred equity position in Envoy Medical.

White Bear Lake, Minn.-based Envoy Medical provides innovative technologies across the hearing loss spectrum. Envoy Medical has pioneered one-of-a-kind, fully implanted devices for hearing loss, including its fully implanted Esteem active middle ear implant, commercially available in the U.S. since 2010, and the fully implanted Acclaim cochlear implant, an investigational device.