Susan Kennish
Warrensburg
Summary
Accomplished Director of Clinical Operations at ICON Clinical Research with focus on optimizing processes and driving results. Proven ability to lead cross- functional teams, adapt to evolving landscapes. Spearheaded initiatives improving staff retention and project efficiency, creating MASH therapeutic training and making this available for over 40,000 employees. Demonstrated excellence in quality improvement and clinical leadership, significantly enhancing operational excellence and stakeholder satisfaction. With nearly 25 years of clinical research experience, my strong background consisting of monitoring, clinical trial management and oversight brings a wealth of knowledge and dedication to contributing to organizational growth goals.
Overview
12
12
years of professional experience
Work History
Director of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
07.2019 - Current
- Improved staff retention by creating a supportive work environment and providing ongoing training opportunities.
- Planned and managed adherence to project budget and contracts and assisted in identification and development of scope change guidance documents.
- Established strong relationships with key stakeholders, fostering collaboration and mutual support among team members.
- Mentored junior staff members, contributing to the development of a high-performing, cohesive team focused on achieving departmental goals.
- Developed systems and procedures for effective project management and clinical operations.
- Responsible for training oversight for the global clinical delivery department so that training assignments are purposeful and harmonized. This consisted of over 5000 employees across 5 roles.
- Ensures appropriate clinical resources are available to meet client and corporate objectives for new and ongoing projects.
- Reviews current assignments and productivity of 100 staff to ensure staff are resourced effectively.
- Portfolio oversight of biotech clients
Associate Director of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
03.2018 - 07.2019
- Led teams of up to 8 Line Managers, 30 Clinical Team Managers and 70 Clinical Research Associates supervising performance and metric productivity as well as training and improvement plans.
- Fostered a culture of continuous improvement by encouraging staff to share innovative ideas and providing resources for professional development.
- Prioritized tasks and allocated resources appropriately to keep teams focused and productive.
- Assisted senior leadership in managing all aspects of operations.
- Reviewed status of clinical deliverables for all line reports with focus on risk, quality, and financial management.
- Assisted in organizing and overseeing assignments to drive operational excellence.
Senior Manager of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
03.2016 - 03.2018
- Provided strong leadership to enhance team productivity and morale.
- Led cross-functional teams to achieve project milestones and deliver high-quality results.
- Established strong relationships with clients and stakeholders, ensuring long-term partnerships and repeat business.
- Improved team performance by providing comprehensive training and fostering a collaborative work environment.
- Ensured staff fulfilled their responsibilities in accordance with corporate policies, procedures, ICH-GCPs, and country specific regulatory requirements.
- Participated in ICON ( formerly PRA) quality efforts for continuous improvements such as providing input to improve quality, metrics are in line with targets, client and clinical operations interfaces with clinical staff across business units.
- Determines the level and type of employee resources required to meet and fulfill client and project deliverables.
Manager of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
02.2013 - 04.2016
- Assessed clinical operations employees resources and projections to ensure that project teams meet client expectations and contractual obligations.
- Ensured that staff adhered to their responsibilities in accordance with ICON ( formerly PRA) policies and procedures, SOPs, ICH-GCPs, and country specific regulatory requirements.
- Implemented clinical operations performance and productivity improvements to optimize utilization of billable staff.
- Participated in ICON ( formerly PRA) quality efforts for continuous improvement by assuring quality metrics are in line with company, client and clinical operations objectives.
- Implemented process improvements to optimize employee performance.
- Provided input to central proposals for project bids dp that projects are can be conducted realistically per schedules and budgets.
- Provided guidance and and insight on all aspects of clinical operations as well as contingency planning, to accommodate project or therapeutic-specific nuances while identifying potential impacts of the same to budget.
- Assisted in the development of employees to ensure optimal performance and retention of highly skilled and valued employees.
- Identified and ensured compliance with CTM functional training requirements.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Dietetics
University of Rhode Island
Kingston, RI05-1997
Skills
- Clinical trial management
- Stakeholder communication
- Clinical research
- Monitoring oversight
- Clinical leadership
- Effective communication
- Quality improvement
- Employee performance evaluations
- Staff development
- Therapeutic area expertise
- Patient recruitment
- Audit preparation
Accomplishments
- Earned several accolades from Senior Leadership due to my accomplishment with creating new standardized training curriculums for over 5,000 clinical global staff ranging from interns to Vice Presidents.
- Supervised team of 100 consisting of Managers of Clinical Operations, Clinical Team Managers and Clinical Research Associates
- Part of the MASH Center of Excellence Committee within ICON where I collaborate cross functionally with other leaders within this TE to build out programs, systems and goals.
- Developed MASH Therapeutic Training in order to provide our employees with the training that they need or enhance their skillset in order to monitor and manage MASH trials.
Languages
Spanish
Limited Working
Timeline
Director of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
07.2019 - Current
Associate Director of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
03.2018 - 07.2019
Senior Manager of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
03.2016 - 03.2018
Manager of Clinical Operations
ICON Clinical Research
02.2013 - 04.2016
Bachelor of Science - Dietetics
University of Rhode Island
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