John Miller

Chief Executive Officer

As President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Miller is responsible for the strategic vision and mission of TranS1.  He is passionate about TranS1’s mission of Building Better Pathways to the spine that benefit both the patients and the surgeons.  Mr. Miller has over 20 years of industry experience leading both private and public companies, as well as involvement in multiple early stage start ups.  Mr. Miller also held several leadership positions with the original TranS1 during the early stages of commercialization.  This has positioned him well for leading today’s TranS1 under new ownership.

Mr. Miller earned a Bachelor’s of Science Degree from Indiana University at Bloomington, IN. Mr. Miller also sits on the Board of directors for the Farnsworth medical research group.

Walker Wells

As EVP/CLO/CRO, Walker manages TranS1’s legal affairs, handles contracting, and leads reimbursement efforts for TranS1’s product portfolio, engaging with both domestic and international payors.  In 2018, Walker and CEO John Miller successfully lead TranS1’s effort for a “standard” designation on TranS1’s AxiaLIF from the United Kingdom’s National Institute for Patient Care and Excellence (NICE), indicating that AxiaLIF is deemed safe and effective in the UK, and winning coverage for an additional 90+ million NHS patients.  Serving for nearly a decade as outside counsel in a broad array of complex commercial litigations before joining TranS1, Walker brings an experienced approach to managing TranS1’s legal strategy and contract/partnership negotiations. In 2017, Walker brokered an exclusive partnership with the University of Colorado, providing TranS1 with unique access to review and advise upon new spinal health concepts originating from the University.  Walker also administers the company’s interactions with outside counsel regarding legal strategy, claims, and patent infringement analysis on TranS1’s more than 100 issued patents. 

Walker graduated in an honors major in 2002 from Northwestern University (B.A.), and in 2007 from the University of Chicago School of Law (J.D.), where he served on the Chicago Journal of International Law and authored an independent study thesis under the tutelage of 7th Circuit Judge Richard Posner.  Walker is an advocate for persons with disabilities, founding the Junior Board for the Lakeshore Foundation and serving as the President of that body for two years.

Michael Ferrario

Chief Operating Officer

As the Chief Operating Officer of Trans1, Mr. Ferrario is responsible for the global operations of the company and the accurate reporting of business financials. He brings more than 15 years of experience and leadership growing new businesses, optimizing supply chain, and maximizing margin returns on investment in multiple industries. His passion for business excellence is rooted in data-driven analysis and dedication to customer satisfaction. As a leader, he brings the dynamics necessary to drive positive results out of growing teams and is diligently focused on the achievement of corporate goals.

Before joining Trans1, Mr. Ferrario spent over a decade in corporate retail where he was recognized as an expert in Planning and Allocation and drove substantial profit margin increases at each of the companies where he worked. He drove a five-fold increase in operating income as the Director of Inventory Management at Bebe and engineered a six-year streak of best ever results for the company’s key holiday sales periods.

Michael received his bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University.

Brandon B. Arthurs, PE

Vice President of Research & Development

Mr. Arthurs is responsible for all engineering and development activities. He works closely with surgeons to improve existing devices and bring new innovations to market.

Mr. Arthurs has been involved with TranS1 and the AxiaLIF technology since 2002. Prior to joining TranS1, Mr. Arthurs was in private practice as a consulting engineer. He has over 15 years of experience in machine design, manufacturing and project management prior to joining the medical device industry.

Mr. Arthurs holds a Batchelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from North Carolina State University and he is a licensed Professional Engineer.

Leighton LaPierre

Vice President of Marketing & Strategic Development

Mr. LaPierre is responsible for upstream and downstream marketing as well as strategic product development activities.

Mr. LaPierre has a long history with the AxiaLIF technology and other novel MIS technologies – previously, responsible for leading the product development and commercial launch of the current generation of AxiaLIF+ System. Prior to joining the new TranS1, he was a marketing manager at Zimmer Biomet Spine.

Mr. LaPierre earned his bachelors and masters degrees in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Kansas. His research focused on product development and spine biomechanics.

Kristen Allen

Director of Compliance and Regulatory Affairs

As Director of Compliance and Regulatory Affairs, Kristen is responsible for management of global regulatory affairs, healthcare compliance, and quality assurance programs.   

Kristen has over 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry, including management positions in the medical device and pharmaceutical sectors.  Prior to joining TranS1, Kristen was Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist at Amendia, where she was responsible for leading global regulatory efforts, managing domestic regulatory affairs and assisting legal counsel with management of healthcare compliance programs.  Previously, Kristen worked with Baxano Surgical (formerly TranS1, Inc.), where she held Regulatory and Quality Systems project management positions.  Before entering the medical device industry, Kristen held regulatory/quality management positions in the pharmaceutical sector, the most recent being QA/RA Director at Quality Chemical Laboratories.

Kristen earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology with a Minor in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

Laura Howard

Director of Customer Service

As the Director of Customer Service for TranS1, Laura Howard works directly with the TranS1 Sales Team to insure they have the tools needed to confidently stand by their surgeon. Mrs. Howard not only provides superb customer service, she also manages inventory and oversees the TranS1 vendors to insure product levels are maintained.

Mrs. Howard has more than 10 years of experience in the spine industry working with TranS1. During these years Mrs. Howard has accomplished Outstanding Customer Support and continues to strive to build strong long-term relationships with TranS1 each sales rep and customer.

Laura Howard graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Graphic Design from Meredith College, Raleigh NC.

Ryan Arce

Senior Research and Development Engineer

As Senior Research & Development Engineer, Mr. Arce is responsible for managing and assisting product design and development.

Prior to joining TranS1, Mr. Arce completed his Master’s in Biomedical Engineering where his research focused on spine biomechanics, and spinal devices and their effects.

Mr. Arce earned a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Iowa, and a master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Colorado – Denver.