Largest global clinical site hires all-female key leaders in Europe

Velocity Clinical Research, the largest integrated research site organisation globally, has made three all-female key leadership hires. This move strengthens its European senior executive team as the firm continues its expansion in the region.

The three new European hires are:

Maria Lehretz, Medical Director, Velocity Leipzig, Germany

Maria has nearly a decade of experience as a clinical research physician, and has worked on approximately 70 clinical trials. She previously worked as Head of Clinical Research at eCovery GmbH, Leipzig.

There, she oversaw clinical trials, including coordination, execution and regulatory processes. Previously, Maria worked as a senior clinical research physician for Parexel, a contract research organisation (CRO) in Phase I trials in Berlin. She was medical lead at SIBAmed GmbH for four years.

Évelyne Newton, Vice President of Business Development

Évelyne joins from Worldwide Clinical Trials (WCT). She will form part of the European executive team and have strong links with the US team. This will help to maximise on cross-selling opportunities, providing a seamless and customer-centric experience to Velocity’s pharma and CRO partners.

She has 20 years’ experience in business development and key account management in the clinical trials arena. Her previously held positions include Fisher Clinical Services and Synexux, one of the largest clinical trial organisations in the world.

Évelyne is co-chair of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Council (DEIB) at WCT, and she champions more diverse clinical trials.

Amgen commits $8m to clinical trial diversity programme

Sandra Stark, Vice President of European Operations

Sandra spent 18 years at Parexel. She will look after Velocity’s two sites in Germany and oversee operations of its two UK sites. She will also support in the identification of new sites to join Velocity’s network.

At Parexel, Sandra held roles in Phase I project management and business development, before being promoted to a senior portfolio director in 2015. Two years later, Sandra took over the leadership of the 140-bed Phase I unit in Berlin. Under her guidance, this unit grew to generate annual revenues in excess of $30m.  

About Velocity Clinical Research

Velocity Clinical Research helps biopharmaceutical and CRO customers find the right patients for their studies. The company supports global drug development in primarily conducting Phase II and Phase III clinical trials.

Velocity acquired four clinical research sites in Europe from July 2022 onwards across the UK and Germany. In December 2022, Velocity acquired Meridian Clinical Research to become the largest clinical sites business globally.

Dominic Clavell, European General Manager at Velocity commented on the new key leadership roles: “I am confident that the expertise and experience Évelyne, Sandra and Maria bring will greatly help us [to integrate] a network of highly performing sites in, what until now is, a fragmented clinical trials landscape in Europe.”