You Spoke, They Listened: Expect A New Partnerships Experience In 2014
By Ed Miseta, Chief Editor, Clinical Leader
It’s rare that I get overly excited about big events. I was pretty calm throughout my wedding (both of them, in fact). I haven’t watched the Super Bowl in about five years, basically due to lack of interest. Ditto for the World Series. I walked out of both The Hangover and Anchorman. When the Royal Wedding was on, I think I shrugged and took a nap.
Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit. But that being said, I am excited about this year's Partnerships In Clinical Trials show. It could be due to the show being at the beautiful Mirage hotel in Las Vegas. Or perhaps it’s because I will have the opportunity to meet two of my favorite sports idols – Lisa Leslie and Joe Torre. Or maybe it’s due to the prospect of leaving Erie, PA for a warmer climate in late March, which in Erie is still cold, snow, and winter, regardless of what the groundhog or the calendar says. All of those things are probably part of it, but I feel my excitement comes from much more than that.
Some have voiced concerns that attendance at Partnerships has slipped a bit in recent years. Of course, I haven’t attended a show in the past year when I haven’t heard that same comment. I have to think the scheduling of Bio International, Interphex, and Partnerships during the same week last year hurt attendance at all three venues. Companies trimming travel budgets in a cost cutting effort is undoubtedly proving to be a significant challenge for all shows and conferences. Throughout all of this, what is not in dispute is that for years Partnerships has been the must-attend event in the clinical space.
In planning for Partnerships 2014, the entire show team set out with a goal of soliciting feedback from its advisory board members and attendees, and making significant and in some cases dramatic changes to the show. All this was done in an effort to essentially re-launch the show and maintain its premier industry event status. Thus far, all indications are that they have put together an event that is sure to excite anyone involved in clinical trials.
The educational sessions are one of the first things I (as well as pharma personnel) will look at when evaluating a show. The partnerships planning team, headed up by Marina Adamsky and Megan Knapp, worked closely with the members of its advisory board to identify those trends that are having the most significant impact on the clinical space. That board, made up of top-notch pharma industry professionals including Mitch Katz of Purdue Pharma, Deirdre BeVard of Endo Pharmaceuticals, Mary Rose Keller of Sangart, and Joe Kim of Shire Pharmaceuticals, provided ample feedback to the planners on where to focus the sessions. Through numerous meetings and emails, the schedule was molded into several daily tracts that encompass finance, strategy, the Asia/Pacific region, best practices, partnerships, risk-based management, and more. Something for everyone is an oft used cliché, but looking at this year’s agenda, it’s hard to believe that anyone could come away not being impressed by it.
After perusing the sessions, the second thing I typically look at are the names and titles of the presenters. Once again, Partnerships seems to have gone all out to line up an impressive speaker list for attendees. In addition to the aforementioned celebrity speakers, attendees can hear from industry visionaries such as Kenneth Getz from the Tufts University School of Medicine, Jeff Kasher and Christina Bodurow of Eli Lilly & Co., Coleen Glessner of Pfizer, Johann Proeve of Bayer Vital GmbH, Kathryn King of Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Dalvir Gill of TransCelerate BioPharma and the always engaging John LaMattina of PureTech Ventures, to name just a few. Some of the CRO partners presenting include PRA, PAREXEL, ICON, INC Research and inVentiv Health Clinical
“What we are introducing is an all-new Partnerships in Clinical Trials,” says Marina Adamsky, Event Director of event organizer IIR. “We took feedback we received from all of our stakeholders and made the changes that we were told were most important to them. Our advisory board, which is made up of members of the pharma and CRO community, has given their stamp of approval to every piece of content that will be presented. We believe everyone who’s anyone will be at this show, and that every attendee will take home with them at least three take-aways or action items from every session they attend. That makes the ROI from this event not only tangible but also one of the highest in the industry.”
Attendees can also look forward to the 1st Annual App Innovation Challenge which will be focused on patient engagement in clinical trials, as well as data that will be revealed for the first time, including TransCelerate’s plans for 2014 and AVOCA’s results on the impact of outsourcing partnerships on clinical trial optimization. Attendees can also maximize their networking while at the show via partneringONE®, EBD Group’s partnering system which will facilitate face-to-face meetings with the attendees you most want to meet scheduled around your personalized agenda.
Other new features for 2014 include a revamped Marketplace featuring a speaker VIP room, partnering rooms, a tech pavilion, CRO Valley, and an Innovation Theatre.
If you weren’t excited about Partnerships 2014 when you started reading this, I hope you are now. The show seems to encompass suggestions I have been hearing from event attendees for years. If nothing else, this year’s show may be an advance look into how industry events will be done in the future. I hope to meet you there.
For more information: http://www.iirusa.com/cropartners/welcome-to-CROs.xml