Board of Directors

John J. Booth, Chief Executive Officer and Board Member, has been a board member of Spineology since its inception and was named CEO in September 2004. Prior to joining Spineology, Mr. Booth held various executive level positions at Phillips Plastics Corporation, serving as CEO from June of 2001 to December 2002. Mr. Booth was CEO of Microvena Corporation from 1999 to 2001 and CEO of Phillips Origen Group Division from 1998 to 1999.  He has held various positions in both financial and general management in the medical technology industry since 1981. Mr. Booth received a BS degree in accounting from Villanova University and an MBA from Seton Hall University. 

Donald R. Brattain, Board Member, is President of Brattain & Associates, LLC a private investment company located in Minneapolis. In 1991, prior to founding his investment company, Mr. Brattain acquired Barefoot Grass Lawn Service, which he grew from $3.2 million in annual sales to $100 million. He guided Barefoot through an LBO and IPO before the sale of the company in 1998. He currently serves on the board of Tyler Technologies, Inc., a publicly traded software services company, and several private companies in which he has a majority ownership.  

J. Carter McNabb, Board Member, is the Managing Director at River Cities Capital Funds, where he leads the firm’s healthcare investing practice. Mr. McNabb has been instrumental in setting River Cities’ healthcare strategy and establishing the firm’s credibility within the healthcare vertical. He has achieved numerous highly profitable exits in healthcare services and medical technology, and he currently serves on the boards of Nico, OrthAlign, Bolder Surgical, and Catalyst Orthoscience. He is also an independent board member of Ischemia Care. Mr. McNabb obtained his BA in classical studies from Trinity College (Hartford, CT) where he was awarded the James Goodwin Prize, the oldest academic honor at the college, and he received his MBA from Vanderbilt University. 

Richard J. Nigon, Board Member, has over 20 years of experience in the life sciences industry. He has served as a board member for Endocardical Solutions, Vascular Solutions, Inc. and Virtual Radiologic Corporation until they were acquired. Mr. Nigon currently serves as a board member for Celcuity. Mr. Nigon is currently Senior Vice President of Cedar Point Capital, LLC. Mr. Nigon was a Director of Equity Corporate Finance for Miller Johnson Steichen Kinnard, which was acquired by Stifel Nicolaus. After that acquisition, he became a Managing Director of Private Placements at Stifel Nicolaus. Mr. Nigon was employed by Ernst & Young LLP, where he served a partner for 19 years. Mr. Nigon received a B.A. degree in Economics and Accounting from Saint Johns University.

Bob Paulson, Board Member, has a long history of leadership in the medical device arena, having most recently served as President and CEO of NxThera, Inc., a company focused on treating prostate conditions, leading and evolving the company from concept to commercialization, culminating with the acquisition of NxThera by Boston Scientific earlier this year for up to $406 million. Prior to NxThera, Mr. Paulson was President and CEO of Restore Medical, an innovator in the treatment of snoring and sleep apnea, leading the company through a successful Initial Public Offering (IPO) and subsequent sale to Medtronic Inc. He currently serves as a board member for Veran Medical Technologies and Sun BioPharma.

James T. Rybicki, Chairman, has a strong sales and marketing background. After five years with Johnson & Johnson and Bausch & Lomb, he joined Hydrocurve, which in 1980 was sold to Revlon for $30 million. Mr. Rybicki then joined IOPTEX Inc., where in 1986 he became one of four principals as a result of a leveraged buyout with Merrill Lynch and Johnston & Associates. IOPTEX was sold to Smith & Nephew, Inc. in 1989 for $236 million. In 1992, he became a private investor in microcap medical device companies with a specific emphasis on orthopedics and ophthalmology. 

Phil Soran, Board Member, is a successful serial entrepreneur who has founded several technology companies and was inducted into the Minnesota Business Hall of Fame in 2016. He was co-founder, President, and CEO of XIOtech Corp., which sold to Seagate Technology for $360 million in 2000. Later, he served as President and CEO of Compellent Technologies, which went public in 2007 and was subsequently acquired by Dell Inc. for $960 million. Most recently, he co-founded Flipgrid, an educational technology company, which was purchased by Microsoft in June. He currently serves on the boards of Piper Jaffray, SPS Commerce, and Foodsby. 

Edson W. Spencer, Jr., Board Member, is the Founder and Chairman of Affinity Capital Management. He is the Managing General Partner of the PSF Health Care Fund, L.P., the Managing Member of Affinity Ventures II, LLC and a Managing General Partner of Affinity Ventures III, IV, and V, L.P. Mr. Spencer has an MBA from Columbia University and a BA from Williams College. He serves on the boards of directors of several portfolio companies and non-profit organizations.