Alacrita Strengthens Cambridge, MA Team to Advise Clients on European Strategy, Planning And Operations

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Jan 20, 2014, 09:00 ET

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts and LONDON, January 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

Appoints Pierre Dodion as an Associate Partner

Alacrita, the transatlantic life sciences consulting firm, today announced that it has appointed Pierre Dodion as an Associate Partner based in its Cambridge, MA office. Pierre was formerly SVP, Corporate Development and Operations at ARIAD Pharmaceuticals and played a major role in ARIAD's expansion into Europe and its European launch of Iclusig^[^TM^].

The move strengthens Alacrita's Cambridge team and in particular consolidates its position as a leading provider of expert advice to life science companies looking to develop, launch or partner their products in the European market. Pierre acted as first General Manager for ARIAD's European operations and was intimately involved in the company's European commercial, financial, legal and operational planning. In this role, Pierre hired a team with expertise in regulatory affairs, medical affairs, sales and marketing, market access, and general administration; he also setup the business infrastructure for ARIAD headquarters and key subsidiaries, paving the way for the successful launch of Iclusig™, ARIAD's first drug to be approved in Europe, in the summer of 2013. Pierre trained as an oncologist in Belgium before working for Aventis, Novartis and Pfizer in the US, where he was responsible for the successful development and launch of a number of oncology drugs.

Pierre joins a growing team of specialists at Alacrita who have distinguished track records of starting and growing life science businesses in Europe. Alacrita's London office is supported by a team of Associates across Europe, all of whom are carefully selected for their deep life science industry experience and expertise. The firm supports clients across the range of functional disciplines, including clinical, regulatory, manufacturing, quality, strategic market access, commercial and M&A.

Pierre Dodion said "I am delighted to be joining the Alacrita team, which has an impressive track record of advising clients on the European life science market. An increasing number of US life science companies are looking to commercialise their products themselves in Europe, but lack the in-house experience and expertise to do so effectively. Europe is a challenging market but represents the 2^nd largest pharmaceutical region and influences drug prices around the world. Companies are able to maximise the value of their products outside the US by planning for European success early in clinical development; I'm looking forward to sharing my experience and insights with Alacrita's clients."

Rob Johnson, Partner at Alacrita, said: "We are delighted to welcome Pierre to Alacrita as we build a best-in-class consulting practice to help US companies access the European market. Pierre is an experienced executive and his expertise is rooted in reality, having first-hand experience of developing and launching drugs in Europe. He has deep and broad knowledge of the pharmaceutical industry and a sound understanding of the challenges faced by senior management. He joins a high calibre team of seasoned consultants and underlines our commitment to providing exceptionally high quality advice to the industry."

Notes to Editors

About Alacrita

Alacrita is a rapidly growing management consulting firm providing expertise-based services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and life science sectors. The firm is supported by an unrivalled team of experts who operate across the spectrum of life sciences. They combine extensive international industry experience (strategic, technical and commercial), broad functional capabilities and a track record of success across the industry.

Alacrita Europe:

London BioScience Innovation Centre
2 Royal College Street
London, NW1 0NH
Tel: +44(0)207-691-4915

Alacrita US:

One Broadway, 14th floor
Kendall Square
Cambridge, MA 02142
Tel: +1-617-758-4119

For further information, please contact:
At Alacrita US:
Rob Johnson, Partner
[email protected]
+1-781-249-3324

At Alacrita Europe:
Anthony Walker, Partner
awalker@ alacritaconsulting.com
+44(0)7713-402771

Simon Turner, Partner
[email protected]
+44(0)7971-627173