As Global Head of the Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolic (CVRM) Therapeutic Area with IQVIA Biotech, Scott Oakes, PhD, brings more than two decades of deep operational knowledge in clinical trial planning and execution to his executive role, including 15 years specifically focused on varying CVRM indications. Leading program teams and guiding biotech customer partners across North America and Europe, Scott is responsible for operational strategy and high quality delivery for pivotal CVRM programs, including managing the therapeutically aligned global project management team.With expertise in endocrinology, cardiovascular, nephrology and more, Scott has provided strategic guidance for CVRM studies globally, playing an integral role in strengthening customer partnerships for the organization. Providing executive oversight, Scott maintains regular and direct communication with senior sponsor team members to proactively address study challenges and risks and to oversee project teams’ efforts to rapidly implement mitigation plans, when needed. He has helped build the collective understanding across the CVRM team regarding the importance of engaging sponsors early in the program process and offering continual support, both in strategy and execution, throughout the program lifecycle.
Recognizing the unique needs of biotech customers, Scott takes great interest in being in touch with senior sponsor team members to better understand their individual needs and in return, help strategically guide their programs for success. In many cases, this can involve ensuring biotech customers working to make their assets known in a crowded therapeutic development space are building connections with key opinion leaders and securing interest from sites and investigators. With his strong foundation of expertise in CVRM operations and related therapeutic knowledge, Scott helps sponsors engage with key stakeholders early in their work, progressing trial programs with efficiency and agility.
For Scott, his passion to directly help sponsors fulfill their research goals stems from his formal education onward. After receiving his PhD in Chemistry in 1999 from Leeds University in the U.K., he dove into drug discovery and manufacturing with several pharmaceutical companies, including GlaxoSmithKline where he got a feel for project management. It was through this initial experience that Scott soon realized he belonged working right next to sponsors, building out their program strategies with innovation, and next to various functional teams (e.g., medical, sales, etc.) to help sponsors meet their goals.
His direct, hands-on approach is how he has gained CVRM therapeutic expertise through his roles with IQVIA Biotech and previously with IQVIA. Since taking his current role in 2018, Scott has led the development of the CVRM division from the ground up. Sharing each sponsor’s passion for much-needed therapeutic development, Scott has helped grow the division with therapeutically aligned project managers and strategists across the globe—helping to make sure the team is a critical extension of its sponsor partners with regular counsel and guidance.
Having a proactive and agile team with operational and therapeutic expertise who is aligned in helping you meet your clinical research goals can be critical to successful development. Contact us to learn how our dedicated CVRM team can support your next study.