05/26/2026
The Jacobs Institute is excited to welcome Western New York native William “Will” Sutton back to the region as Chief Operating Officer starting today, May 26.
Will brings more than 30 years of experience in medical device innovation, engineering, commercialization, and organizational leadership, with executive roles at Minnetronix Medical, Forj Medical, Hansen Medical, and St. Jude Medical.
Over the course of his career, he has helped guide more than 100 medical technologies from concept to commercialization and is named inventor on four patents.
But what stood out most during the search process wasn’t only Will’s technical and operational expertise, it was his deep alignment with the Jacobs Institute’s mission to bring clinicians, researchers, innovators, and industry together to improve patient care through medical device innovation.
“The human body is the ultimate engineering challenge,” Will said. “We know more about designing for outer space or the bottom of the ocean than we do about solving problems inside the human body.”
Raised in Rochester, New York, Will also brings a strong connection to Western New York and a belief in Buffalo’s growing potential as a hub for healthcare innovation.
“There are brilliant ideas everywhere, but ideas alone are not enough,” he said. “You need the systems, collaboration, development process, training, and organizational structure to help innovations actually reach patients.”
Most recently, Will led more than 200 engineers and technical professionals focused on developing complex medical systems and scaling innovation from concept through commercialization.
His addition strengthens the Jacobs Institute’s role as a connector between research, clinical practice, and industry. He supports our mission to help accelerate life-changing technologies to patients.
Please join us in welcoming Will to Buffalo and the Jacobs Institute.
