Clinical Development & Support Services Ltd (CDSS)

Background

Having worked in the pharmaceutical sector for over 30 years, the founder and Managing Director of CDSS, John Illingworth, decided that what he really wanted was to run his own business rather than continue to work for major corporations.  He therefore firstly set himself up as a freelance Clinical Research Manager in 1996 and then formed CDSS as a limited company in 1999. CDSS quickly developed into a leading clinical research organisation providing a range of clinical development services to the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and healthcare industries.  CDSS provides individual solutions for its clients – everything from clinical trial administration right through to full project management.  In particular CDSS operates a contract nursing service such that clients can be provided with a complete team of specialist research nurses to ensure the highest quality of care during a research project.  In its early years;

• John successfully built up the business by undertaking a variety of projects for many different pharmaceutical and healthcare companies right across the globe - all managed from CDSS’s Head Office in Cheshire
• The company grew steadily in its first eight years reaching the point where it employed some 20 staff, was profitable and had reached an annual turnover of around £750k

   
2008 was however a very difficult year for CDSS. Not only did one major contract fall through but also several others all finished within a short period of time of each other. Worse still their biggest client had became a very poor payer to the extent that CDSS decided to stop working for them. As a result CDSS incurred a large write off and therefore made a loss of just over £120k in 2008.

Support        

CDSS joined the High Growth programme in February 2009. John wanted some outside help to assess the business and help him and his Director Of Clinical Operations, Melanie Haisley, develop a clearer and more focused direction for CDSS while returning the company to profitability and to sustainable growth. CDSS received ten days of high growth coaching from coach John Hansford with experience of their sectors. Working with John, they

• Developed a vision of the company in 2012. This clarified the future direction of the business and how the company needed to change in order to return to profitable, sustainable growth
• Conducted a review of their positioning in the market and obtained feedback from clients on how they were perceived in the industry. This enabled them to develop a more focused strategy and to drop some services
• Tightened up on certain aspects of their contractual arrangements
• Introduced a communications strategy for the business. This included some sponsorship of major conferences – one of which resulted in a contract from a new client
• Put in place some significantly improved disciplines and management processes. These included monthly management accounts, cash flow forecasts and regular potential client and resource planning meetings
• Reviewed the roles and responsibilities of the Directors. This resulted in a reallocation of responsibilities allowing John to spend more time on business development
• Changed their approach to business development such that they began to build relationships with potential clients much earlier in the clinical trials cycle and to target other influential groups directly such as clinicians

Outcomes    

• The company has bounced back strongly achieving its best ever financial results in 2009. Turnover increased from £700k to £800k and the business achieved a six figure profit as opposed to a £120k loss in 2008
• CDSS is less dependent on a handful of key clients; typically CDSS now bills some 14 clients every month
• The company now has a strong pipeline of contract opportunities and continues to grow profitably