The E-Arena etrials Worldwide Inc. With the extensive e-clinical options available to trial sponsors, as well as the continued advancement of technology, there is no question that careful consideration must be given to what tools to employ in clinical-trial research. But choosing a solution does not stop at the tool itself. What is often overlooked in the process is the selection of a vendor that not only has the necessary technologies, but also is easy to work with. A common mistake is buying a technology when what a company really needs is a technology partner. Employing the support of technical, regulatory, and clinical experts to help guide the implementation, training, and data management is vitally important to the success of a clinical trial. Preferred Provider Relationships To this end, more and more companies have realized the value of preferred provider partnerships. With this type of relationship, sponsors have the opportunity to realize the value of partnering over a series of trials. This enables them to evaluate how reuse can drive down development costs and how the frequency of trials impacts the traditional hardware-related start-up costs. This approach can help reduce study costs, while giving researchers an opportunity to monitor their results across several trials, thus tracking important, potentially cost-saving, trends. As the industry begins to evolve from technology partnerships to full enterprisewide adoption and technology transfer, the in-licensing of e-clinical technologies by pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and CROs enables these organizations to have the greatest control over their research as well as the ability to further cut costs. Sponsors can realize the highest level of return on their e-clinical investment, but vendors must be prepared to take on the role of consultant and provide full support in implementation and execution, while enabling their clients to learn the tools. With the help of an experienced vendor partner and the resources to help in integration, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies benefit immensely by taking advantage of the expertise their outsourcing partners can provide. Guiding the Process E-clinical vendors must be prepared to serve as guides to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and CROs implementing enterprisewide adoption of technology. Successful technology transfer is an iterative process and should happen over a series of trials; it is not just a one-time event. By fully integrating the technology transfer process into e-clinical implementations, and acting as a teacher first and as consultant second, vendors can further extend value to the industry and prove to be invaluable allies in clinical research. Tools, tools, tools Vendors need to focus on providing a wide array of tools that meet the diverse needs of the industry. Data are precious assets for life-sciences companies conducting clinical trials for drugs and devices that may represent significant medical breakthroughs. These companies need a technology partner that can provide all the services they need to realize efficiencies, minimize trial delays, and speed time-to-market. The end result of any successful e-clinical implementation is significant cost reductions and process improvements. To achieve these goals, pharmaceutical companies need an experienced technology partner that understands how to best meld technology and process to make clinical research more effective. This is always a more practical solution than software alone. Employing the support of technical, regulatory, and clinical experts to help guide implementation, training, and data management is important to the success of a clinical trial. John Cline CEO E-Clinical Services: The Evolving Role of the Technology Vendor

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