The CEO of Covance has warned it will be “very, very difficult” for CROs expanding through M&A to integrate assets, and the process could see clients go elsewhere. A wave of private equity-backed contract research organisation (CRO) consolidation, led by INC Research and inVentiv, has reshaped the industry, but could create problems for the buyers. “Having three different operating systems, three different IT strategies, three different leaderships and cultures, [and] three different facilities in a given region that need to be rationalised [makes it] very, very difficult”, said Joe Herring, CEO of Covance, in a call with investors.
