Joe Mandato

Joe Mandato is a Senior Advisor to Mainsail and its portfolio companies. In his role, Joe leverages more than 25 years of experience as a successful CEO and company builder to provide strategic guidance and mentorship in the areas of value creation, leadership and execution for Mainsail’s CEOs and management teams.

Joe has served as CEO of several successful operating companies, including two leveraged buyouts. The first, an ophthalmic implant company, was sold to a UK-based public company, and the second, a leveraged purchase from Johnson & Johnson, was subsequently acquired by a NYSE company. Both transactions resulted in significant value creation for shareholders. He also advised the founders, was an active investor and was appointed to the Board of Directors of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALGN), developer of the Invisalign clear orthodontic appliance.

Earlier in his career, he served as President and CEO of Origin Medsystems, a developer of minimally invasive surgical devices, where he also co-founded and served as CEO of Gynecare, a women’s health spin-out from Origin, which was later acquired by Johnson & Johnson. Origin was acquired by Guidant Corporation (later acquired by Boston Scientific), where Joe served as a Vice President and member of the founding management committee and CEO of two of its five operating units. He has served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Mayfield Fund, a venture capital firm.

Prior to his distinguished career, Joe served as a captain in the U.S. Army. He currently serves on the boards of Embrace Global and Save the Children. He holds a doctorate in management from Case Western Reserve University, and serves on its Board of Trustees. His research focused on the evolving role of boards in ensuring effective governance. He serves on the adjunct faculty of The University of San Francisco’s Graduate School of Management and is a Lecturer at Stanford University. Additionally, Joe is currently a Fellow in the Harvard University Advanced Leadership Initiative.

Joe rejoined the Save the Children US board in 2017 having served previously, and is a member of the Program Impact and Nominations & Governance Committees as well as member of the Board of Head Start.