Ten years ago, CRIO started with an audacious idea: What if we could replace the paper source binders at research sites with an electronic source system?
The concept is obvious now, but in 2015, it was risky and novel. We knew we’d have to overcome decades of entrenched behavior in an industry notorious for slow adoption. But if we succeeded, we knew we could transform clinical research.
As a former site owner and operator, I knew firsthand the pain sites experience trying to collect and manage source data on paper and spreadsheets.
I knew that if we could build an electronic platform that powers research at the point of origin – the research site – we could build in quality from the outset, eliminating the endless downstream scramble to correct errors and reconcile data across systems. I knew that our system could become an indispensable part of the clinical trial ecosystem, an operating platform that could unify and integrate sponsor-driven systems into a coherent system that works natively for sites.
The road was not easy. Industry veterans were skeptical. Investors thought our time horizon was too long or our potential too small. After the pandemic, we operated in the shadow of more glamorous decentralized clinical trial (DCT) vendors who were promising to disintermediate sites altogether.
The DCT fad has come and gone. Sites remain central to the conduct of clinical trials. Today, we have 2500 sites in 30 countries using our system on thousands of trials. As adoption among sites has grown, sponsors and CROs are realizing just how much our system can elevate their trials. With their support, we’re integrating sponsor and site systems, beginning with EDC.
Each year, we stuck doggedly to our mission: “to design and deliver a modern, intuitive, and integrated software platform that reimagines clinical trials for quality, speed, and patient centricity.” We re-invested our revenue into the product. We grew from word-of-mouth. We never wrapped ourselves in the banner of DCT. We never over-promised our investors. Most years, we hit our promised growth and budget targets.
We’ve barely scratched the surface. There is so much inefficiency in clinical research. Every frustrating process represents an opportunity to build something better. The transformation will continue – the best is yet to come.