Emmes, a global, full-service clinical research organization (CRO), appointed Peter Ronco chief executive officer. Ronco succeeds Christine Dingivan, who will serve as a senior advisor to executive chairman Sastry Chilukuri, and Emmes’ board of directors.

Ronco is a global pharmaceutical executive with experience in a number of R&D leadership positions over more than two decades. He most recently served as senior vice president, global development at Johnson & Johnson, responsible for the design and delivery of a drug development portfolio of more than 500 active clinical studies across all therapeutic areas and phases of development. He has also held senior roles with Bristol Myers-Squibb, Accenture, and Pfizer.

“Peter is a seasoned and innovative life sciences leader. He brings deep experience in running global operations with frontline use of technology and data science, which will propel our company forward,” said Sastry Chilukuri, executive chairman, Emmes.

“I am thrilled to be joining a company with an outstanding scientific track record and extensive credibility in clinical research,” said Ronco. “Emmes has a storied history, addressing some of the most complex health issues of our time. We look forward to an exciting future together as we partner with patients, clinical sites, government agencies and biopharmaceutical companies to advance the next phases of scientific innovation and change the trajectory of health care.”

Ronco added that advances in decentralized clinical trials, data science, and generative AI offer huge potential to make clinical research even faster and more patient focused.