Scrip 100
Life after M&A
One year after the merger of CRO f_i rms Averion and Hesperion,
Dr Markus Weissbach, CEO of the combined company, Averion
International, tells Frances Gapper about life as a local and global player
Q.
Most importantly, however, the combined
You have been CEO of Averion for
DR MARKUS WEISSBACH companies under the Averion International
more than a year now. What are some of
banner have now moved onto the global
the key issues that you have been
stage. The company is now well positioned to
dealing with? meet the needs of its clients locally as well as
globally.
The top priority for this year has been to
integrate the staff, culture and operational
Q. What effect has the Hesperion
processes of Averion and Hesperion, while
ensuring that the quality and timelines of our
acquisition had on Averion’s operations?
client deliverables were unaffected. Clearly
Is Hesperion now fully integrated into
the organisation was going through a
the group?
transition period and we recognised the need
to work diligently to assure no interruption in
This speaks to the core reasons that we
service levels. This has been a year of change,
created Averion International. Our larger size
growth and focus on an expanded mission.
provides us with the resources to select
I am pleased to report that we have
appropriately experienced and geographically
expanded our newly established global
located staff to work on a project team. With
footprint by opening new offices and
our expanded geographical reach, we can
operations in central and eastern Europe,
truly run studies in more countries with local
further broadening our reach.
teams. It is critical and more economical to
use local teams who are familiar with local
Q.
languages, cultures and regulations.
You were previously CEO of
As a full-service provider, Averion
Hesperion – would you say a bit about this International offers the full range of clinical
company, its development and the reasons
trials services from Phase I-IV through to
for the merger?
regulatory submissions. We are flexible and
offer our services as a niche provider in
Hesperion was founded in 1997 and over the
support of full-service trials.
10 years pre-merger, the company grew into a
primarily European CRO with significant
Q. In 2008, Averion opened an office in
experience in supporting global cardiology, the Czech Republic and another in Ukraine.
oncology and vaccines trials. Before the merger, Will central and eastern Europe continue
Hesperion had already started to expand into
to be a main focus of growth for Averion?
the US to meet the needs of its European
clients that were looking to run trials in this key
Central and eastern Europe will continue to
market. As this client need increased, Hesperion
be a focus area for growth for Averion
explored a number of strategic alternatives,
International as these regions offer a strong
including looking for a comparable merger/
clinical trial environment with large patient
acquisition partner that was established in the
populations and well qualified investigators in
US, but which needed the European coverage
a broad range of indications. These factors are
that Hesperion offered.
top priority for our clients and are vital to the
Averion, a company of similar size, was a
successful conduct of international trials.
predominantly US player with a relatively
In addition, we continue to explore other
small European presence. Thus, with minimal
regions for expansion based on our clients’
client and geographical overlap, a similar
needs.
corporate culture, and comparable
therapeutic expertise, Averion turned out to
be the perfect merger partner: Averion and
Q. Why has Averion focused on the
Hesperion were an ideal match.
areas of oncology, cardiovascular diseases,
Ultimately, the merger doubled the size of dermatology and medical devices?
the combined company, expanded our
geographical coverage, deepened our Our clients want specific experience and
therapeutic expertise and brought two highly in-depth expertise in the particular therapeutic
professional and experienced teams together. indications for which they develop new drugs or
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