RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Start trials faster. Activate sites with greater predictability

Study start-up success requires alignment across site strategy, regulatory planning, contracting, and operational readiness. IQVIA helps sponsors accelerate activation timelines through an integrated approach that increases speed, improves predictability, and drives enrollment readiness. Combining global start-up experience, local market expertise, and data-driven site intelligence, IQVIA helps sponsors navigate complexity and execute with confidence. Standardized delivery approaches reduce variability, improve predictability, and support consistent study start-up execution across global programs.

Solutions Research & Development Phase IIb/III Trials Study Start-Up

Bring critical start-up activities forward

Study start-up can lose momentum when critical decisions and activities wait for protocol finalization. By bringing forward high-impact tasks such as site identification, regulatory planning, and site contracting, sponsors can make informed decisions earlier and begin execution sooner.

IQVIA connects data, local expertise, and start-up execution to help sponsors identify the right sites, address country requirements, and prepare contracting activities before the final protocol is available. This reduces downtime, limits rework, and helps sites reach enrollment readiness faster.

25%

Faster country ICF development as compared to traditional methods

Source Internal IQVIA Data

37%

Faster site selection as compared to traditional site methods

Source Internal IQVIA Data

18%

Faster site contract negotiation and execution as compared to traditional methods

Source Internal IQVIA Data

Bring readiness forward

Many start-up activities do not need to wait for a final protocol. Site identification and selection, along with site document and core-pack preparation, can begin before protocol finalization, enabling sponsors to make critical decisions earlier. By bringing these high-impact activities forward, sponsors can compress timelines while maintaining appropriate governance and risk controls.

Focus on the right sites

Site performance varies significantly across trials. IQVIA combines operational experience, site relationships, local market knowledge, and predictive analytics to identify sites with the greatest potential to recruit and execute successfully.

Simplify execution at scale

Start-up momentum is often lost through handoffs, rework, and disconnected systems. Standardized processes, AI-enabled workflows, and integrated operational teams help reduce complexity and keep trials moving toward enrollment readiness.

From protocol to enrollment readiness

Successful study start-up depends on four areas that influence enrollment readiness.

Reduce uncertainty before it becomes a delay

Sponsors can move toward enrollment readiness with greater confidence when site strategy, regulatory planning, and activation execution are aligned from the outset. Success depends on selecting the right sites, understanding regulatory pathways, and executing activation activities consistently across countries.

IQVIA combines global start-up experience, local expertise, and data-driven site intelligence to help sponsors reduce uncertainty and move more predictably toward enrollment readiness. More than 2,700 start-up specialists across 78 countries support activation strategies tailored to local requirements while maintaining consistency across global programs.

By connecting site relationships, regulatory intelligence, operational expertise, and continuous innovation, sponsors gain a partner focused not only on activating sites quickly, but on creating the conditions for successful study execution from day one.

Study start-up questions, answered

Learn how earlier decisions, connected execution, and local expertise contribute to faster, more predictable study start-up.

Faster start-up helps sponsors begin enrollment earlier, reduce downstream delays, improve development predictability, and accelerate access to critical study data that informs future decisions.

The most common causes include late decision-making, site capacity constraints, protocol complexity, contracting delays, regulatory variability, and sequential execution models that create downtime between activities.

Site selection determines both activation speed and future enrollment performance. Selecting sites with the right patient populations, operational capabilities, and local fit can significantly reduce activation timelines and improve recruitment outcomes.

IQVIA applies AI to support activities such as protocol digitization, database configuration, regulatory intelligence, document generation, and workflow automation. These capabilities reduce manual effort and help accelerate execution while maintaining oversight.

Regulatory requirements, contracting practices, language considerations, and site operations vary significantly by country. Local knowledge helps sponsors avoid delays, improve execution consistency, and adapt activation strategies to regional realities.

Faster study start-up helps sponsors begin enrollment earlier, reduce downstream delays, improve development predictability, and accelerate access to critical study data that informs future decisions.