Premier Value: We Get It Done
“I’m not just a number or another employee. I truly feel like Premier cares about me, my family, and my work/life balance.”
I had been a clinical research associate (CRA) for about four years when Premier Research acquired the company I was working for. I wasn’t worried about the move because all my colleagues, mentors, and role models were also going to Premier, so we figured we would learn the new processes together. Amazingly, the acquisition that brought me to Premier happened nearly 15 years ago. I can safely say Premier offered me a tremendous opportunity to learn and grow.
I have been fortunate to work with some very talented people, who have shared their experiences and lessons learned, and helped me to be successful. When I am working with someone who is just starting in a new position, I try to do the same to hopefully help them grow in their career.
If you want to progress, there’s a path at Premier. I really enjoyed the role as a CRA. But in annual reviews, my managers always take the time to ask, “What are your goals?” For me, the next step was moving from CRA to Clinical Lead. My line manager was incredibly supportive. Some of it is just putting in extra hours until you become efficient. But it’s also having someone you can trust when you need to ask seemingly “stupid” questions. I had a lot of help learning to communicate well with the sponsor and understanding finance, absorbing how to work within budget and identify what is within scope.
When I became a Clinical Lead, that opened my eyes to the larger picture and the influence I could have. After a few years, I decided that I would like to be Project Manager and have total oversight of the study and all the functional leads. I worked to gain more exposure and training for that role. Then — having built experience with internal teams and relationships with sponsors — I was encouraged to move up to the Project Director level.
Along the way, I have absolutely been empowered to do my job as best as I can. There are tools — like the Premier Dashboard and PM Compass — that help give me greater oversight of my budgets and timelines. There are also systems that ensure everything is done properly. Honestly, my people skills are good, but my downfall is process, so I am always checking the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) or asking my colleagues.
In the years since I joined Premier through that acquisition, I have had amazing role models, and I know what a difference that has made. So I encourage others to use their role models — to really ask questions. The people who work on my teams know they will be respected, that they will be empowered and that I am going to do everything I can for them. It is tremendously satisfying to see somebody grow and be promoted because we’ve spent time helping them develop. That’s a core value at Premier.