Strategic leadership appointment strengthens company’s commercial approach to drive continued growth and deliver long-term value
Newton, Massachusetts, United States, August 2025 – Parexel, a leading global clinical research organization (CRO) providing insightsdriven Clinical and Consulting solutions to the world’s life sciences industry, today announced the appointment of Jim Anthony to the expanded role of Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) and President, Parexel Biotech, further strengthening the company’s customer focus and its ability to drive growth and value. Mr. Anthony has served as the global leader for Parexel Biotech since its inception in 2019, and most recently as President and Global Head, Parexel Biotech.
In conjunction with Mr. Anthony’s appointment and as part of the company’s long-term succession planning, Conal Burgess, President and Global Head, Enterprise Partnerships, will transition from his role at Parexel on Dec. 31, 2025. Mr. Burgess recently completed a 30-year successful career with Parexel, developing and growing sustainable partnerships with the company’s large pharmaceutical customers from early phase through post-approval and providing a strong foundation for future growth.
“Our industry and clinical development are ever-changing. Parexel’s ability to evolve and innovate to deliver for our customers is more important than ever,” said Chief Executive Officer Peyton Howell. “The addition of a Chief Commercial Officer further supports this strategic focus as we work to meet our customers’ needs and accelerate our growth objectives. Jim is the ideal person for this expanded role as demonstrated by his exceptional leadership of Parexel Biotech, growing this business from its start in 2019 to where it stands today, contributing approximately half of Parexel’s global revenue. We look forward to his continued leadership and contributions, building on and scaling this success across our entire commercial organization. We also sincerely thank Conal Burgess for his contributions to Parexel’s success.”
As Chief Commercial Officer and President, Parexel Biotech, Mr. Anthony will oversee both biotech and pharmaceutical customer strategy and relationships globally, leveraging the company’s comprehensive suite of solutions and industry-leading therapeutic expertise across Phase I-IV clinical development to accelerate and advance their life-changing therapies to market. “I’m honored to serve in this expanded leadership role at such a pivotal time for our customers and our company,” said Mr. Anthony.
“By looking more holistically across all of our customers — from large pharma to small, emerging and mid-sized biotechs — we’re strongly positioned to fully leverage our strengths, respond to market challenges with greater agility and strengthen our overall approach to accelerate our growth. I look forward to building on the strong foundation that Conal has established as we continue to support and partner with our customers in maintaining our focus on what matters most — delivering life-saving treatments to patients.”
Mr. Anthony brings more than 25 years of pharmaceutical development and CRO experience to his expanded role. He joined Parexel in 2010 as Vice President, North America Business Development, and since that time has held various leadership roles of increasing responsibility, including Corporate Vice President, Enterprise Account Leader, where he directly managed two of the company’s largest pharma customers, and Executive Vice President and Global Head, Parexel Biotech, before being appointed as President and Global Head, Parexel Biotech in 2023.
Parexel is a leading global clinical research organization (CRO) providing insights-driven Clinical and Consulting solutions to the world’s life sciences industry. Leveraging deep local knowledge and a global breadth of clinical, regulatory and therapeutic expertise, our 24,000+ professionals worldwide work in partnership with biopharmaceutical leaders, emerging innovators and sites to design and deliver clinical trials with patients in mind — broadening access and making clinical research a care option for anyone, anywhere. Our proven track record spans 40+ years and drives us forward, advancing clinical research in healthcare’s most complex areas while harnessing innovation to drive efficiencies across every phase of the clinical development process. Our insights-driven approach, proven delivery and trusted execution are accelerating the delivery of lifechanging treatments to patients — With Heart.™ We continue to earn recognition industrywide, including the 2024 Fierce Biotech CRO Award for “Innovative Approaches to Patient-Centric Research” and the 2024 and 2023 Society for Clinical Research Sites (SCRS) Eagle Award for advancing the clinical research profession through strong site partnerships.
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