Meet Jo, Technical Vice President, Strategic Compliance

Jo, a Chinese American woman, at the campaign photo shoot. She's wearing a stylish purple jacket and straight long dark hair with fringes. Her picture is being viewed on a screen by a person we see from the back.

At the heart of Parexel is the world’s most remarkable insight-generation engine: our people.

Jo shares insights on navigating FDA inspections and accelerating drug approvals. Learn how her FDA background, strategic approach, and dedication to patients shape her work at Parexel, and discover the surprising link between her regulatory expertise and creative hobby.

Can you tell us your name and your role at Parexel?

My name is Jo Wang, and I'm Vice President, Technical, in Strategic Compliance. I lead a cross-functional team dedicated to guiding pharmaceutical companies through the complex process of FDA inspections. It's all about getting quality medicine to patients faster.

Passing an FDA inspection is significant because the FDA is one of the most demanding regulatory agencies in the world. It takes multiple years of planning and training. Interacting with a regulatory agency is not trivial and should be accounted for early on in the project.

How do insights fuel the work that you do for sponsors?

My background as a former FDA employee provides unique insights that significantly enhance my ability to support our clients. I can interpret guidelines and read between the lines, bridging the gap between regulatory expectations and our clients' needs. Having worked as a Consultant at Parexel for years, I bring high-level technical expertise and experience from both sides of the industry. This comprehensive insight, combined with our experienced team at Parexel, helps our clients efficiently navigate the regulatory process to reach the finish line.

The image features my esteemed colleagues and co-leaders of Parexel's FDA BLA Pre-Licensing Inspection readiness team: Kurt Brorson and Ileana Pettite, both Vice Presidents, Technical. We all came from the relevant offices responsible for conducting BLA Pre-Licensing Inspections. Together, we've successfully guided numerous biologics manufacturing sites through remediation processes, working tirelessly across time zones and continents. It’s wildly fun working with these world-renowned experts!

The Parexel Technical VPs, Jo Wand, Kurt Brorson, and Ileana Pettite at a Regulatory Conference

What is the benefit of seeing the entire picture when it comes to compliance?

Our expertise helps clients navigate complex decisions among countless possibilities. It's not just about efficiency, but about making strategic choices that consider intricate, interacting systems. We encourage stepping back from daily details to take a broader view, ensuring all systems work together for quality compliance.

How does your work contribute to bringing life-changing medicines to patients?

Now, working on the industry side, I realize how complex it is to adequately implement the “c” in “CGMP”. We work with manufacturers, interpret what the FDA is expecting, and bridge that gap of understanding. This helps bring medicines to patients faster, especially in areas like biosimilars for cancer patients, increasing accessibility to more affordable medicines.

If you had to describe the culture of Parexel in one word, what would it be and why?

If I had to describe Parexel's culture in one word, I would say it's dedication. All the subject matter experts on our team are the most dedicated people I've ever met. Together with our sponsors, we're dedicated to bringing quality medicines to our patients.

Personal insights

What do you like to do when you're not at work?

I like to spend time with my family. We enjoy hiking together.

What's something that most people don't know about you?

I like to design sweater patterns and knit them myself. I make a lot of sweaters.

How does your creative side help with your analytical side?

I think all creative processes can be very structured. When you knit a sweater, you're making something from one string, and it's all about how you put it together to come up with the final product. What we do in our work is very similar. We're creating something out of a string of knowledge, putting it together in a very sensible and strategic way to get to the final product.

Jo and her family traveling and Jo's son with a sweater knitted by Jo.

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