FutureMeds acquisition of emovis, promises to create a formidable entity capable of driving DCT adoption in Europe by pooling expertise, experiences and trial and site solutions from both entities. To ensure seamless transition and integration, FutureMeds and emovis started the process with a crucial workshop. It aimed to identify potential challenges, discuss integration strategies, and define the roadmap.
With the acquisition of emovis, the Berlin-based, dedicated study site and award-winning pan-European homecare visits and DCT solution provider, and increasing the DCT readiness across the whole network, FutureMeds became Europe's first DCT site network.
But this is just the beginning. With the aim of making the combined company more efficient, robust and powerful than they were on their own, and able to provide clients with new and improved trial and site solutions, FutureMeds’ and emovis’ leadership teams came together to kick off the integration process with a 2.5-day workshop.
This workshop aimed to
Explore the complexities of integrating two organisations,
Identify positive synergy effects, areas where the merge of the experiences and expertise of both companies can contribute to even higher value creation for clients and patients, and
Define the integration roadmap for the next 3 months.
Rolling their sleeves up and the deep dive also offered an opportunity for the teams to get to know each other, explore and understand the processes and communication flows at both sites, recognise expertise, experiences and capabilities at both sites, and identify areas where the teams support each other.
The Integration Workshop
With the central theme being consolidating study solutions, aligning process workflows, enhancing communication and defining the integration roadmap for the next 3 months, the workshop saw the participation of both companies’ key stakeholders and process owners of areas such as site operations, feasibility, contracts, patient recruitment, finance, IT, and HomeCare Visits come together.
To be able to find chart a common path forward, the leadership teams worked in small groups representing each area and addressed several key topics. These were:
Client communication and relationships
Site and trial solutions
Patient-centric approach
Support tools and tech stack
Process workflows
“Together, we are stronger. By fostering an atmosphere of transparency, collaboration, and mutual respect, the workshop has set our combined business on a path to a more comprehensive therapeutic portfolio, greater patient engagement strategies and tactics, and a streamlined full-service portfolio for clients.”
- Iwona Tongbhoyai, Vice President of Operations at FutureMeds
Challenges
Every transition comes with its share of challenges that, if not addressed, can keep teams from reaching their potential. For this reason, the teams took additional steps to unearth challenges.
The key challenges identified during the workshop included
Employee concerns about the integration,
IT integration and employee learning curve, and
New matrix communication flows.
To tackle these, the team has devised a comprehensive communication plan to keep employees abreast of the developments and to address their concerns.
Opportunities
The merger promises to unlock several opportunities as well. The close collaboration of teams is expected to lead to
Geographical and therapeutic area expansion, resulting in more comprehensive trial solutions,
The creation of a deeper knowledge base that can help teams across the countries to share their unique expertise, dissect best practices, and learn from each other,
More advanced, comprehensive European DCT solutions that can boost DCT adoption and drive R&D across Europe.
The Road Ahead
As with every good workshop, it was a melting pot of ideas, experiences, and expertise. There was unanimous recognition of the synergistic benefits the integration will bring, particularly in terms of shared knowledge across therapeutic areas, and also in terms of what needs to be done next.
The immediate steps following the workshop include
Continued internal communication to keep employees updated and motivated,
Implementation of a standardised global approach for the Feasibility and Proposal Process,
Execution of detailed IT implementation plan and upskilling of team
Integration process audits to increase the efficiencies
Client meetings to communicate the enhanced value proposition, benefits and advantages of the combined company
Conclusion
The integration workshop between FutureMeds and emovis served as a cornerstone for a successful merger, setting a clear roadmap for future growth.
It also offers a model of how, with open dialogue, collaboration, and a shared vision, companies can work together to create a future that benefits all - from their employees to their clients and the wider patient community. As one participant rightly said, "[There is a] great future ahead of us, with all the expertise, experiences, and power of both companies."
About FutureMeds
FutureMeds is the 1st European DCT Site Network, offering high traditional and DCT readiness across the whole network and home nursing solutions in 16 countries.
FutureMeds’ Dedicated Research Site teams strive to accelerate study timelines, streamline processes, lower costs and improve data quality to help speed up drug development and patient access to new treatments.
Through acquisitions and a strategic focus on patient experience, FutureMeds has developed large, qualified patient pools across Europe that enable faster patient enrolment, stronger retention and more accurate results.
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