Craig Lipset: Parexel Alumni

What were your roles while you were at Parexel?

Parexel was the start of my transition from academic clinical research into industry. I joined in 1998 as the first project manager for the Medical Imaging division when it launched. Ultimately, our group became known as Perceptive Informatics, offering a diverse portfolio of innovative technology and services that complemented the core CRO business. I remain grateful that this experience created incredible growth opportunities for me in operations, business development and strategy.

What did you like the most about working at Parexel?

At Parexel I learned how to identify, own and address opportunities and gaps. The colleagues at Parexel have always been great operators but they are also receptive to peers willing to step forward. This allowed me to be curious and grow professionally while identifying and creating new business opportunities. That skill served me very well in my career from biotech to pharma and beyond.

Can you share one of your most memorable moments or an accomplishment you’re most proud of from your time at Parexel?

I will always fondly recall how the team would come together to deliver a major milestone. Especially when that milestone culminated in a regulatory submission. Parexel did not own the molecules or medical devices, but there was still a tremendous sense of ownership and joy in knowing that the work met our highest bar for quality and would result in patients and caregivers having new treatment options.

What are you doing today?

After leaving Parexel, I chose to further my experience by taking a clinical/regulatory leadership position in biotech at Adnexus Therapeutics, followed by 12 years in large pharma at Pfizer. Many of the "intrapreneur" skills I developed at Parexel helped me to create a Clinical Innovation team that I had the privilege to lead for many years. During that time, I helped design and launch the industry's first fully decentralized trial under an FDA Investigational New Drug (IND) application. I was pleased to do so with my peers from Parexel as partners.

Today I am an independent board member and advisor for organizations seeking to identify, implement and scale innovative solutions for clinical trials. I work with pharma/biotech, tech companies, health systems and non-profits.

I also co-founded and co-chair the Decentralized Trials & Research Alliance (DTRA), which is a global non-profit collaboration with 100 organizations working together to make research more accessible. In addition, I teach a graduate course in clinical trial innovation at Rutgers University and serve on the Boards of non-profit organizations such as the Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research.