Rho

Contract Research Servicesrhoworld.com

Rho is a privately held full-service Contract Research Organization providing Phase I-IV clinical trial execution, biometrics, regulatory strategy, and quality assurance to pharmaceutical, biotech, and government clients across the US and Europe.

Company typePrivate
Founded1986
HeadquartersDurham, United States
Headcount501–1,000
GTM typeB2B
OfferingServices

What Rho does

Rho is a privately held full-service Contract Research Organization (CRO) founded in 1986 and headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, with European headquarters in Riga, Latvia. The company provides Phase I-IV clinical trial execution, biometrics, regulatory strategy and submissions, and quality assurance services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology sponsors as well as US government agencies (NIH, CDC, BARDA) and patient foundations including the Michael J. Fox Foundation, Parkinson's Foundation, and Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

The company's core technical capabilities center on integrated clinical operations and biometrics, including protocol design (exemplified by the End-in-Mind Trial Design framework), Risk-Based Quality Management, and regulatory submission expertise across 50+ jurisdictions. Its operational footprint spans 12+ countries through wholly-owned subsidiaries such as Dokumeds SIA and multiple RhoWorld entities, enabling transatlantic trial conduct. Rho has contributed to landmark studies including OUtMATCH, which supported the FDA's 2024 approval of Xolair for food allergies.

Rho's business model is professional services-based, with revenue generated through per-project clinical trial engagements typically procured via RFP/RFI processes. Pricing is anchored on study scope, duration, and therapeutic complexity. Customer segments are diversified across enterprise pharma/biotech, US government public-health programs, and foundation-funded academic-style studies, with therapeutic focus areas including neurology (notably Parkinson's disease, supported by 30+ specialists and 90+ studies), respiratory, immunology, and pain. With 501-1,000 employees, Rho positions as a mid-sized full-service alternative between mega-CROs and boutique specialists.

Rho firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Rho
Legal name: Rho, Inc.
Website: https://rhoworld.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1986
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 501–1,000 employees
Short description: Rho is a privately held full-service Contract Research Organization providing Phase I-IV clinical trial execution, biometrics, regulatory strategy, and quality assurance to pharmaceutical, biotech, and government clients across the US and Europe.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Rho industry classification

Industry

Product category: Contract Research Services
NAICS: Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)
SIC: Services-Medical Laboratories (8071)
akta.pro primary industry: Clinical CROs (Phase I–IV) (HLAGAAAA)
akta.pro secondary industries: Specialty Therapeutic-Area CROs (e.g., oncology/rare disease) (HLAGAAAL), Medical Writing & Regulatory Submission Support CROs (HLAGAAAG)

Keywords

Clinical trial services
Contract research organization
Regulatory submissions
Clinical biometrics
Pharmacovigilance services

Where Rho is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Durham
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

Rho business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

Clinical Research Services: Rho generates revenue through providing full-service clinical trial execution and regulatory support to pharmaceutical, biotech, and government clients. Services include clinical delivery, biometrics, regulatory strategy, and quality assurance. The engagement model is project-based with long-term partnerships typical.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Other	Multi-year contract	Custom project-based pricing for clinical trial services

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Rho product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Rho is a full-service Contract Research Organization (CRO) providing clinical drug development services to pharmaceutical, biotech, and government clients. Core offerings encompass clinical trial execution (project management, monitoring, pharmacovigilance), biometrics (biostatistics, statistical programming, CDISC-compliant data management), regulatory strategy and submissions (IND, NDA, BLA, MAA), and quality assurance across all clinical phases from Phase I through marketing applications.

Product overview

Rho is a full-service Contract Research Organization (CRO) offering a comprehensive suite of clinical development services organized around four core pillars: Clinical Delivery (project management, monitoring, pharmacovigilance, and risk-based quality management), Biometrics (biostatistics, statistical programming, and data management), Regulatory Strategy and Submissions, and Quality Assurance. The company operates with an 'End-in-Mind Trial Design' philosophy that aligns trial execution with regulatory approval goals from Phase I through marketing applications (NDA, BLA, MAA). Rho also provides specialized therapeutic expertise across five key areas: Neurology and Psychiatry, Respiratory, Pain Research, Immunology, and Government Partnerships (NIH, CDC, BARDA). The company was founded 40 years ago as a biometrics-focused organization and maintains dual headquarters in Durham, NC and Riga, Latvia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Clinical Delivery

Quantifiable outcome

Supported over 90 neurology and psychiatry studies across 840+ sites, enrolling over 6,500 participants
+4 more outcomes

Companies that use Rho

Customer profile

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Rho technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Rho partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

Michael J. Fox FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, working together on Parkinson's disease clinical trials. The foundation leads the Parkinson's community in funding breakthrough research, and Rho provides execution expertise.
Parkinson's FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Parkinson's Foundation to advance Parkinson's disease research through clinical trial collaboration, ensuring research is scientifically rigorous and centered on the Parkinson's community.
Davis Phinney FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with the Davis Phinney Foundation on Parkinson's disease research initiatives, working to ensure studies reflect real patient and site needs.
NIH (National Institutes of Health)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with NIH on federally funded research programs, including the landmark OUtMATCH study evaluating Xolair for multiple food allergies that led to FDA approval.
CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with CDC to advance public health research initiatives and clinical programs supporting national health priorities.
BARDA (Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with BARDA to advance public health research and medical countermeasure development.
Cystic Fibrosis FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Cystic Fibrosis Foundation supporting pivotal clinical trials advancing CF therapies worldwide, contributing to groundbreaking research across all phases of development.
Immune Tolerance NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on landmark studies including the LEAP (Learning Early About Peanut Allergy) study, which influenced global pediatric guidelines for peanut introduction.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Rho competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Broad incumbents

IQVIA: IQVIA is the largest global CRO and life sciences technology provider, offering full-service clinical development, real-world evidence, and commercial services. Rho competes with IQVIA for full-service Phase I-IV trials but lacks IQVIA's scale, R&D tech platform, and commercial services breadth.
ICON plc: ICON is a top-tier global CRO providing clinical research, biometrics, and laboratory services across all therapeutic areas. Post-PRA Health Sciences acquisition, ICON is one of the largest full-service competitors to Rho in Phase I-IV trial execution and regulatory submissions.
Labcorp Drug Development (formerly Covance): Labcorp Drug Development is a top-five global CRO providing clinical development, central laboratory, and diagnostics services. It competes with Rho across Phase I-IV clinical trials and central lab-enabled biometrics but operates at substantially larger scale.
Syneos Health: Syneos Health is a large CRO offering Phase I-IV clinical development, biopharmaceutical solutions, and contract sales. Now taken private by Elliott/Veritas, Syneos is a direct competitor in clinical operations and biometrics with greater scale than Rho.
Charles River Laboratories: Charles River is a large CRO offering preclinical, discovery, and clinical development services. While smaller than Rho in clinical operations, Charles River overlaps on biometrics, biostatistics, and laboratory-enabled clinical services.
Thermo Fisher Scientific (PPD): PPD, acquired by Thermo Fisher in 2021, is a top-five global CRO offering Phase I-IV clinical development, laboratory, and lifecycle management services. PPD competes directly with Rho in full-service trial execution at meaningfully larger scale.

Direct peers

Medpace: Medpace is a mid-to-large CRO with a therapeutically focused, full-service model centered on Phase I-IV trials, biometrics, and regulatory submissions. Medpace's size, profitability, and therapeutic-area focus make it the closest publicly traded comparable to Rho.
Parexel International: Parexel is a mid-tier, PE-owned (EQT/Goldman Sachs) global CRO with therapeutic expertise and full-service clinical development capabilities. Parexel's size, therapeutic focus, and PE-backed structure closely mirror Rho's competitive position.
Worldwide Clinical Trials: Worldwide Clinical Trials is a mid-tier, therapeutically focused CRO emphasizing CNS, rare disease, cardiometabolic, and oncology trials. Its mid-tier size, therapeutic specialization, and full-service Phase I-IV model closely parallel Rho's profile.

Emerging players

Catalyst Clinical Research: Catalyst is a privately held, therapeutically focused CRO emphasizing oncology and rare disease trials. As a smaller, specialty peer, Catalyst competes with Rho for therapeutic-area-led, mid-sized biotech sponsors rather than large pharma mega-programs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Rho financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Rho leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Rho subsidiaries and ownership

Company hierarchy

Subsidiaries12 records

Rho funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

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

Rho M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Rho

What does Rho do?

Is Rho a public or private company?

Rho is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.

When was Rho founded?

Rho was founded in 1986. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.

Where is Rho based?

Rho is headquartered in Durham, United States, in the North America region.

How does Rho make money?

One revenue line is on record: clinical Research Services.

Who are Rho's main competitors?

Broad incumbents on record are IQVIA, ICON plc, Labcorp Drug Development (formerly Covance), Syneos Health, Charles River Laboratories and Thermo Fisher Scientific (PPD). Direct peers are Medpace, Parexel International and Worldwide Clinical Trials. Catalyst Clinical Research is listed as an emerging player.

Does Rho have an API?

No public API is recorded for Rho.

What industry is Rho in?

Rho's product category is Contract Research Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAGAAAA, Clinical CROs (Phase I–IV), with a secondary code of HLAGAAAL, Specialty Therapeutic-Area CROs (e.g., oncology/rare disease). Its NAICS code is 5417 and its SIC code is 8071.