Premier Research

What Premier Research does

Premier Research is a global full-service Contract Research Organization (CRO) that supports biopharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device companies across the clinical development lifecycle. Founded in 2002 with headquarters in Wokingham, United Kingdom, and incorporated in the United States as Premier Research International LLC, the company employs 5,001-10,000 people and delivers services across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, with delivery presence in the US, UK, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, India, Canada, and Australia. The company has operated for over 30 years and supports complex clinical trials across therapeutic areas including oncology, rare disease, cell & gene therapy, neuroscience, immunology, dermatology, women's health, analgesia, pediatrics, 505(b)(2) pathway, and MedTech.

The company's service portfolio is organized into three pillars: Clinical Research & Development (Full Service Clinical Research, Functional Service Provider/FSP, Observational/Registry/Post-Marketing Studies), Consulting (Program & Regulatory Strategy, Translational Research & Model-Informed Drug Development, Program Management), and Technology. The proprietary Remarque platform underpins operations, integrating study management, risk-based quality management (RBQM), CTMS, clinical analytics, and eClinical solutions including IRT and ePRO, with AI/ML-enabled anomaly detection, predictive KRIs, and centralized monitoring that achieves 20% faster issue detection. Additional technology assets include the Virtual Research Group for decentralized clinical trials and system-agnostic eTMF management across Trial Interactive, Veeva Vault, Wingspan, and Innov platforms.

Premier Research generates revenue through project-based, multi-year clinical trial contracts and managed services engagements. The full-service model bundles study design, execution, monitoring, regulatory submission support, and consulting for end-to-end programs, while the FSP model provides dedicated functional teams (biostatistics, data management, pharmacovigilance, monitoring) as an extension of sponsor teams. The company uses an enterprise field sales motion led by a Chief Commercial Officer, with consultative engagement starting early in drug development through regulatory advisory relationships. Premier has expanded through five acquisitions since 2018, most recently Health Decisions in 2021 for women's health and diagnostics, Camargo Pharmaceutical Services for 505(b)(2) regulatory strategy, and Cytespace for clinical pharmacology.

Name

Premier Research

Legal name

Premier Research International LLC

Website

https://premier-research.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Premier Research is a global full-service CRO supporting biopharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device companies across clinical development, leveraging its proprietary Remarque platform, therapeutic expertise across 11+ areas, and delivery presence in eight countries to serve enterprise sponsors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contract Research Organization (CRO)

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Clinical CROs (Phase I–IV) (HLAGAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Specialty Therapeutic-Area CROs (e.g., oncology/rare disease) (HLAGAAAL), Clinical Operations & Monitoring FSP (CRA/CTM/Start-up) (HLAGAOAA), Clinical Data Management, Biostatistics & Statistical Programming CROs (HLAGAAAF), Medical Writing & Regulatory Submission Support CROs (HLAGAAAG)

Keywords

• Contract research services
• Clinical trial management
• Regulatory consulting
• Biopharmaceutical development
• Medical device research

Headquarters

HQ city

Wokingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Full-Service Clinical Research Contracts: Comprehensive clinical development services delivered as full-service contracts covering study design, execution, monitoring, and regulatory submission support. Revenue is project-based, typically multi-year contracts for clinical trials across phases I-IV.
2. Functional Service Provider (FSP): Dedicated functional service teams providing targeted support for specific functional areas such as biostatistics, data management, pharmacovigilance, and clinical monitoring. Staffed with dedicated experts working as extension of sponsor teams.
3. Consulting Services: Strategic consulting engagements covering regulatory strategy, market access, drug/device development planning, translational research, and program management. Provided as standalone or integrated with full-service engagements.
4. Regulatory Submissions & Publishing: eCTD preparation, formatting, and submission services along with regulatory document management. Services span from early development through post-approval commitments.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Premier Research is a global full-service Contract Research Organization (CRO) delivering clinical research and product development services to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device companies. It offers end-to-end clinical trial execution (study design, startup, monitoring, biostatistics, data management, pharmacovigilance, regulatory submissions), functional service provider (FSP) staffing, and strategic consulting across therapeutic areas such as oncology, rare disease, cell and gene therapy, neuroscience, and women's health, supported by its proprietary Remarque technology platform.

Product overview

Premier Research is a global full-service Contract Research Organization (CRO) providing integrated clinical research and product development services. The company operates a unified platform architecture combining Full Service Clinical Research, Functional Service (FSP), and Consulting services with the proprietary Remarque technology platform. The core offerings include clinical research and development (Full Service Clinical Research, Observational/Registry Studies, FSP), strategic consulting (Program & Regulatory Strategy, Translational Research & MIDD, Program Management), and technology-enabled solutions (Remarque Platform, Virtual Research Group, Global Records & TMF Management). The therapeutic expertise spans Oncology & Hematology, Neuroscience, Rare Disease, Cell & Gene Therapy, Immunology, Dermatology, Women's Health, Analgesia, Pediatrics, 505(b)(2) Pathway, and MedTech. The Remarque platform serves as the integrated technology backbone supporting study management, RBQM, CTMS, clinical analytics, and eClinical solutions including IRT and ePRO.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Virtual Research Group: A U.S.-based virtual site purpose-built to meet the evolving demands of sponsors for fully integrated, virtual site solutions to accelerate clinical research.

Products and services

• Full Service Clinical Research

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

AI capability7 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Health DecisionscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 July 2021Premier Research acquired Health Decisions, a North Carolina-based CRO specializing in women's health and diagnostics. This acquisition expanded Premier's capabilities in the growing women's health market, which was projected to reach $40 billion. Health Decisions brought expertise in women's health clinical trials and diagnostics development.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Syneos Health: Syneos Health is a fully integrated biopharmaceutical solutions organization combining CRO and commercial services. Its clinical development business competes directly with Premier for biotech and pharma outsourcing contracts across all phases.
• Worldwide Clinical Trials: Worldwide Clinical Trials is a mid-tier, PE-backed global CRO specializing in CNS, cardiometabolic, rare disease, and oncology trials. Its scale, therapeutic focus, and private-equity ownership make it one of the closest pure-play comparables to Premier.
• Medpace: Medpace is a mid-sized, full-service CRO with strong therapeutic specialization in oncology, rare disease, and cardiometabolic indications. Like Premier, it targets small-to-mid biopharma with full-service offerings and a technology-forward operating model.
• Parexel International: Parexel is a mid-to-large global CRO focused on biotech and biopharma, with deep expertise in oncology, rare disease, and complex trials. Its scale, service mix, and therapeutic focus closely mirror Premier Research, making it a near-direct comparable.

Broad incumbents

• ICON plc: ICON is a top-tier global CRO formed via the PRA Health Sciences merger, providing full-service clinical development and FSP across all therapeutic areas. It is the most direct mid-to-large competitor to Premier for biotech and pharma clinical trial outsourcing.
• IQVIA: IQVIA is the largest global CRO and life sciences technology company, offering full-service clinical research alongside real-world evidence and commercial services. Premier Research's new CCO, Paul Spreen, came from IQVIA, signaling direct talent overlap and head-to-head competition for enterprise sponsors.
• Charles River Laboratories: Charles River provides preclinical and clinical CRO services, with discovery, safety assessment, and manufacturing support alongside clinical trial execution. It overlaps Premier on the clinical research side and is comparable on serving biotech and pharma sponsors.
• Labcorp (Covance): Labcorp's Covance Clinical Development segment provides full-service CRO and central laboratory services to biopharma. It competes head-to-head with Premier for biotech-sponsored trials and bundles clinical with diagnostics and lab services.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific (PPD): Thermo Fisher acquired PPD in 2021 to create a major clinical development services franchise within a diversified life sciences platform. PPD competes directly with Premier on full-service trials and leverages parent-company scale advantages.

Emerging players

• Clinipace Worldwide: Clinipace is a smaller, tech-enabled CRO focused on mid-sized biopharma and emerging oncology and rare disease programs. Its size, therapeutic focus, and digital platform approach are analogous to Premier's mid-tier positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/premierresearch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/premier-research

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A5 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Premier Research