WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The Association of Clinical Research Organizations (ACRO) is pleased to announce that its Board of Directors has elected Jackie Kent, Chief Customer Officer at Medidata, as Chair effective January 1, 2022. Paul Kirchgraber, M.D., Chief Executive Officer at Labcorp Drug Development, was elected Vice Chair. The Board of Directors elected Cassandra Kennedy, VP Global Head for Regulatory Compliance and Quality Assurance of Labcorp Drug Development as Secretary of the association, and re-elected Ari Feldman, Vice President, Global Compliance and Strategy at Medidata Solutions, as Treasurer.
Ms. Kent leads the Customer Solutions and Success organization in Medidata, a Dassault Systèmes company. With more than 30 years of experience, she has held a number of leadership positions across the clinical development spectrum. In her prior role at Eli Lily, she had responsibilities for information technology, clinical trial design and execution, as well as clinical trial supply planning. Ms. Kent was a key participant in the Shared Investigator Platform initiative of TransCelerate Biopharma, and serves on the Leadership Council of the Society for Clinical Research Sites, and on the Board of Circuit Clinical.
“We live in a time of genuine challenge and astonishing progress for drug development,” said Ms. Kent. “As then-NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins told the ACRO Board during its meeting in June of 2021, developing vaccines and treatments for COVID at a record pace, while continuing to advance life-improving and life-saving biopharmaceutical products for the patients who need them requires not only world-class academic science, but also the expertise, innovation, and executional excellence of CROs and technology companies.”
“I am especially proud of ACRO’s collaborative and industry-leading work on decentralized clinical trials and risk-based quality management,” Kent added, “and I look forward to similar progress on our commitment to improving diversity, inclusion, and access in clinical trials.”
ACRO is pleased to also announce its newest member company, effective January 15, 2022, Medrio, which joins as an Associate member of the organization.
“We are part of a vibrant and dynamic industry, and the growing membership of ACRO reflects the importance of clinical research and technology companies working together to spearhead clinical innovation. I am pleased to welcome Medrio to our membership,” said Dr. Kirchgraber.
About ACRO
The Association of Clinical Research Organizations (ACRO) represents clinical research and technology companies that provide a variety of specialized services that support the development of new pharmaceuticals, biologics, and medical devices. Organized in late 2001, ACRO will celebrate its 20th anniversary in March of 2022.
