How To Optimize The Contracting And Budgeting Process

By Jae Chung, Vice President, Product Management/Strategy

A key to optimizing clinical trials is generating precise metrics that are actionable and predict where bottlenecks may occur. Sophisticated metrics are particularly helpful in addressing an enduring study startup challenge—protracted budget and contract cycle times.

The period from pre-site visit to contract and budget execution typically takes many months and represents the majority of study startup cycle time. Research from Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development (CSDD) identifies the contracting and budgeting process as a primary cause of site activation failure.

So what is an effective strategy to shorten long contract cycle times?