The GAITS Platform
A structured environment for healthcare innovation teams and the programs that support them, combining rigorous project planning and tracking with evidence-based frameworks for navigating the full journey from unmet need to standard of care.
John Collins · jcollins11@mgh.harvard.edu
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Why GAITS
Most healthcare innovations fail not because the science is weak, but because the team doesn't have a structured path from innovation to market.
Healthcare innovation is one of the most complex endeavours a team can undertake. The clinical, regulatory, commercial, and technical dimensions must advance in parallel, each with its own evidence requirements, stakeholder expectations, and decision gates. Teams that succeed are not always the ones with the best ideas — they are the ones that navigate this complexity with rigour and structure.
GAITS was built to give teams that structure. It starts with a common framework for understanding where every healthcare innovation sits in its journey — the Healthcare Innovation Cycle — and then provides the tools to make progress on the most critical questions at each stage: who are the right stakeholders to engage, what does the business model need to look like, and what will funders require when the time comes to raise capital.
The Four Frameworks
A structured journey from idea to funding — and beyond.
The four GAITS frameworks are designed to be used in sequence. The Healthcare Innovation Cycle tells you where you are. VERITAS, the H-BMC, and the Funding Readiness Framework each address a specific challenge that every team faces as they advance.
A 10-stage framework developed from CIMIT's 20+ years of experience with healthcare innovators. It defines the clinical, regulatory, commercial, and technical milestones that every innovation must reach — across all solution types, from MedTech to Digital Health to Therapeutics.
Explore the Cycle →Before anything else, teams need valid data from the right stakeholders. VERITAS is a 12-rule methodology for conducting exploratory interviews that generate unbiased discovery insights — the foundation for a credible need statement, a realistic value proposition, and a defensible business model.
Explore VERITAS →Healthcare markets are complex and multi-sided. The Healthcare Business Model Canvas structures the 15 dimensions a team must address — from the value promise to cost structure to investor economics — across the clinical, stakeholder, economic, operational, and financial layers of the business model.
Explore the H-BMC →When the team is ready to raise external capital, the Funding Readiness Framework defines exactly what funders will evaluate at each of five stages — from translational grants to Series A. It separates Must-Have from Should-Have criteria so teams can plan their work with the right standard in mind.
Explore Funding Readiness →The Platform
The frameworks are implemented in a structured project management environment.
The GAITS Platform is a secure, web-based system for tracking project progress across the Healthcare Innovation Cycle. Teams use it to manage their deliverables, document their maturity, record pivots, and share progress with mentors and portfolio managers. Portfolio managers use it to oversee multiple projects and manage their innovation portfolio.
Progress through the 10 stages of the Healthcare Innovation Cycle is tracked via structured Deliverables — organised into Work Packages — with visual maturity display across all four dimensions.
The Portfolio Manager assigns the solution type when creating a Solution Site. The team then works with the Deliverable set for that type — many of which are shared across types. Programme admins can also add custom Deliverables.
Portfolio managers see across all their Solution Sites — with sortable progress tables, private SWOT notes, and drill-down access to any aspect of any project. Sub-portfolios allow hierarchical access control.
Each Solution Site supports three role types with appropriate access levels. Mentors have a private workspace to share observations with portfolio managers. Advisors can be given view-only access.
Solution Types
One framework. Six solution-specific implementations.
The Healthcare Innovation Cycle applies to all types of healthcare innovation — the 10 stages and four dimensions are universal. What differs between solution types is the set of Deliverables required at each stage. GAITS provides both a fillable PDF and a full platform implementation for each of the following solution types.
Who It's For
Three roles. One shared platform.
GAITS is designed around three distinct roles, each with access to the interfaces they need. All roles share the core innovation tracking environment — but Mentors and Portfolio Managers have additional private spaces for oversight, support, and portfolio management.
Members of a healthcare innovation team working through the cycle on a private Solution Site. Three access levels are available:
- Site Admin — invites team members, creates custom Deliverables, manages site settings
- Full access — read/write access to all project content and deliverables
- View only — read-only access, suitable for advisors and external reviewers
Assigned by a Portfolio Manager to support one or more teams. Mentors have access to the team's Solution Site and a private workspace shared with other mentors and the Portfolio Manager — for notes, observations, and feedback that is not visible to the team.
Mentor guide →Responsible for the portfolio of Solution Sites within a Programme. Portfolio Managers decide which teams receive a Solution Site, assign mentors, and use portfolio-level tools to oversee progress across all projects. Sub-portfolios allow hierarchical management structures.
Portfolio manager guide →Access to GAITS is provided through your programme. If you have not received credentials, contact your programme lead.
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