What RPM does

RPM Co., Ltd. (株式会社アールピーエム) is a Japan-based Contract Research Organization (CRO) founded in May 2008 and headquartered in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company provides clinical development services to pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers, with a disclosed portfolio of more than 100 active projects and 1,107 employees as of April 2024. Its service mix comprises Clinical Research Associate (CRA) monitoring, in-house CRA (内勤CRA) support, Clinical Research Coordinator (CRC) services, Post-Marketing Surveillance (PMS) monitoring, and remote Source Data Verification (remote SDV). Customer mix is approximately 60% foreign manufacturers and 40% domestic Japanese manufacturers, with project categories spanning global clinical trials, oncology, regenerative medicine, and medical device development.

RPM operates a direct, sales-led go-to-market through project-based contracting with enterprise pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers. Service delivery is performed at client sites across Kanto (Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba) and Kansai (Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto) or remotely from any Japanese prefecture via its remote SDV infrastructure, which functions as the company's core technical platform. The firm also holds a Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare general worker dispatch license (派13-303945), enabling staffing/dispatch services in clinical development and post-marketing operations.

The company monetizes through professional-services fees on CRO engagements and labor-dispatch billings, with client-service pricing not publicly available. Compensation for CRA roles is disclosed at ¥4.8–9.5M annual depending on experience, with examples of ¥5.58M (4.5 years), ¥6.6M (6 years), and ¥8M (9 years plus leadership). Revenue model is effectively human-capital-intensive: the primary asset is its employed workforce of 1,107 clinical development professionals, supported by a Tokyo Training Center and Osaka office, with workforce-sustainability metrics (100% parental leave return rate, 126 annual leave days, 15 hours average monthly overtime, 62.2% paid leave utilization) positioned as a recruiting and retention lever. No funding rounds, M&A, or parent company relationships are disclosed; the firm appears privately held and founder/management-led under Representative Director Kitamura Hiroki (北村 浩樹).

Name

RPM

Legal name

株式会社アールピーエム (RPM Co., Ltd.)

Website

https://rpm.tokyo

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

RPM (株式会社アールピーエム) is a Tokyo-based CRO providing clinical development services — CRA monitoring, in-house CRA, CRC, PMS, and remote SDV — to roughly 60% foreign and 40% domestic pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers across 100+ projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Clinical Data Management, Biostatistics & Statistical Programming CROs (HLAGAAAF)

Keywords

• Clinical research services
• CRO services
• Pharmaceutical monitoring
• Clinical trial management
• Post-marketing surveillance

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. CRO Services - Clinical Development Monitoring: Provides Clinical Research Associate (CRA) services including site selection, contract procedures, drug delivery/recovery, CRF integrity checks, SDV, and monitoring report creation for pharmaceutical and medical device clinical trials.
2. PMS (Post-Marketing Surveillance) Services: Post-marketing surveillance monitoring services for drugs and medical devices already on the market.
3. Staffing/Dispatch Services: General labor dispatch services (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare permit: 派13-303945) placing clinical development professionals in client projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

RPM is a Contract Research Organization (CRO) providing clinical development monitoring services to pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers. The company recruits experienced Clinical Research Associates (CRA), Clinical Research Coordinators (CRC), and Post-Marketing Surveillance (PMS) monitors and matches them with client projects. Services include site selection, contract procedures, drug delivery/recovery, CRF integrity checks, Source Data Verification (SDV), and monitoring report creation for clinical trials and post-marketing surveillance.

Product overview

RPM (株式会社アールピーエム) is a CRO (Contract Research Organization) providing clinical development services to pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers. The company's core offering consists of CRA (Clinical Research Associate) monitoring services, CRC (Clinical Research Coordinator) coordination, and PMS (Post-Marketing Surveillance) monitoring. Additional services include in-house CRA support and remote SDV capabilities. The company operates a general worker dispatch service for clinical development operations (Licensed: 派13-303945). RPM serves both domestic and foreign pharmaceutical/medical device companies with over 100 projects, including global clinical trials, oncology, regenerative medicine, and medical device development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CRA (Clinical Research Associate) Services (臨床開発モニターサービス) Clinical Research Associate services providing monitoring of clinical trials including site selection, contract procedures, drug delivery/recovery, CRF integrity checks, SDV (Source Data Verification), and monitoring report creation for pharmaceutical and medical device clinical trials.
• CRC (Clinical Research Coordinator) Services (治験コーディネーターサービス) Clinical Research Coordinator services supporting coordination of clinical trials at investigator sites.
• PMS (Post-Marketing Surveillance) Services (製造販売後調査サービス) Post-Marketing Surveillance monitoring services for pharmaceutical and medical device products already on the market.
• In-house CRA Services (内勤CRA) In-house CRA services providing remote data verification and administrative clinical development support for pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers.
• General Worker Dispatch Services for Clinical Development (臨床開発一般労働者派遣事業) General worker dispatch services for clinical development operations, operating under Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare license 派13-303945. Places clinical development professionals in client projects at pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% parental leave return rate
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CMIC Holdings: Japan's largest domestic CRO offering clinical development, PMS, site management, and CRO services to both Japanese and foreign pharma sponsors — directly competing with RPM for the same sponsor projects and CRA talent in Japan.
• EPS Holdings: Japanese CRO with comparable clinical development monitoring, PMS, and staffing services — a domestic head-to-head competitor for RPM's CRA and PMS project work.
• Linical: Japan-headquartered CRO providing clinical monitoring, oncology, and global trial services to pharma sponsors — a closely comparable peer to RPM in scale, geography, and therapeutic mix.

Broad incumbents

• Parexel International: Large global CRO serving Big Pharma with clinical monitoring and full development services; competes with RPM for the same foreign pharma clinical trial monitoring assignments in Japan.
• IQVIA: Global CRO and clinical services leader with a sizable Japan presence. Competes for the same foreign pharma monitoring work RPM serves and operates at much larger scale across the full clinical development value chain.
• ICON plc: Global CRO providing clinical monitoring, biometrics, and lab services with active Japan operations, directly overlapping RPM's CRA and global trial offerings to multinational pharma sponsors.
• Charles River Laboratories: Global CRO/preclinical services provider with clinical development capabilities that overlap with RPM's sponsor services, particularly for pharma clients outsourcing clinical monitoring.

Emerging players

• Novotech: Asia-Pacific focused CRO with strengths in oncology and emerging biotech sponsors — directly comparable to RPM on therapeutic area mix and on serving foreign pharma clients running cross-border trials.
• Wuxi AppTec: Asia-based CRO/CDMO with growing clinical development services; competes for foreign pharma and biotech sponsor work in Asia and offers an alternative delivery location to Japan-based CROs like RPM.

Regional players

• Medipal Holdings: Japan-based pharma distribution and clinical trial services group whose CRO/clinical services arm overlaps with RPM's domestic pharma monitoring business, primarily serving the Japanese market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about RPM