30 Best CEOs of the Year 2020 30 Best CEOs of the Year 2020 | Page 59

increased job satisfaction. Engaging
people to embrace change instead of
fearing it is a big hurdle.
It is challenging to start
a venture. But far more
difficult to maintain it’- How
would you and your team
interpret this saying?
We are still in high growth mode
so that I will answer better in a
few years. However, I know the
cornerstone of our future success
is quality and innovation. We must
have a product that delivers, that
we can proudly stand behind, that
solves real problems and challenges.
And we must be “customer-obsessed”
and entirely focus on customer
satisfaction and product adoption:
better results for pharma companies
and their providers are at the heart
of our company.
What would you say was the
single most influential factor
in your business’ success?
I think the timing is the single most
influential factor. I imagined, refined
and talked about Clinical Maestro
for a few years but couldn’t get
myself to start the business; the
time was never right. Then suddenly,
the stars aligned: my personal and
professional life, the market context,
and the talented people I needed to
support me along this journey, along
with the market and regulatory
pressures that are driving the rate of
change in technology adoption.
There is nothing more
important for a successful
small business than a well-
defined mission and vision
statements. Can you explain
your M&V Statement in brief?
I firmly believe the mission and the
vision must be very closely linked
together. Our mission is to develop
modern tools that profoundly impact
the way pharmaceutical clinical
trials are planned, budgeted, and
outsourced resulting in speed,
efficiency, and cost reductions. Our
vision is to modernize the pharma
business and make it compatible
with what the new generation of
“millennial” demands: information at
their fingertips.
I envision that in less than ten
years, Clinical Maestro will displace
inefficient and laborious manual
processes across the entire industry
while enhancing job satisfaction
and retention. Once you can deliver
clinical study budgets, plans, and
RFPs in minutes while significantly
streamlining the overall outsourcing
process, there is no turning back to
the “paper world”!
What do you think is the
most memorable moment in
your career?
There are so many, but one that
immediately stands in mind: winning
the business plan competition at
University of Wisconsin Madison
when I was just graduating and
getting ready for a new job... that win
led to starting my first venture, early
drug discovery company–eMetagen
Corporation– certainly changed
my life and brought me to my true
calling–entrepreneurship.
SR
An Inspiring Entrepreneur
behind the story of
Strategikon Pharma
Anca Maria Copaescu, CEO
Anca Maria Copaescu is the Founder and also serves as
the Chief Executive Officer of Strategikon Pharma. She is
the dynamo that powers Strategikon. She envisioned and created
Clinical Maestro™ based on more than 15 years’ experience in
the clinical research industry in management positions with both
pharmaceutical companies and service providers. Anca received
her BSc in International Business from the Academy of Economic
Sciences in Bucharest Romania, and she holds a Master’s degree
in Business Application from the University of Pittsburgh Katz
Business School and Czech Management School and received an
MSc in Applied Corporate Finance from the University of Wisconsin
Madison. Anca is a clinical business operations domain expert and
known speaker at leading industry conferences. She loves writing
and traveling the world.
“Our mission is to develop modern tools that
profoundly impact the way pharmaceutical clinical
trials are planned, budgeted, and outsourced through
speed, efficiency, and cost reductions.”
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