CRO Accovion Opens Subsidiary In Milan, Enlarges European Footprint

Independent European contract research organization (CRO) Accovion announced that it has established a new subsidiary in Milan, Italy as part of its European expansion.

The local subsidiary will operate under the leadership of Country Director Verónica de Lázaro, who previously directed Accovion’s operations in Spain. Accovion is currently active in over 20 countries including Germany, Romania, Poland, Russia, and the UK, among others.

The Frankfurt-based company also says that, in addition to its internationalization strategy, the CRO has accomplished a re-adjustment program of its back-end services in Germany. Accovion said it hopes this will aid its resource utilization and agility in adapting to the market.

Ivana Waller, COO of Accovion, said, “In addition to further strengthening our local presence in Western Europe, we will focus on future growth in Eastern Europe. Therefore, we are proud to announce that Dr. Łukasz Sobiak has been named as the Regional Director of Clinical Operations for Eastern and South-Eastern Europe as well as the Country Director of Accovion Poland… Dr. Sobiak’s responsibilities will include further development of Accovion’s capabilities in Eastern Europe, including Ukraine and the Baltic region.”

Earlier this year, the company announced further personnel changes in the company’s executive team with the appointment of Dr. Andree Beckerling as the new CEO. Dr. Beckerling succeeded Martin Schröder, who has returned to the company as a shareholder. Dr. Beckerling said that the company’s decisions this year aim to move Accovion in the lead among European CROs. “We aim to offer our clients a broad spectrum of country-specific clinical research expertise…,” he said. Accovion announced last spring that it was included in a list of the top ten CROs and was awarded as a ‘Rising Star’ company in last year’s Pharma IQ list of leading CROs and biotech firms.

The company said it plans to open another subsidiary in Lyon, France this fall.