Our team of seasoned industry veterans can anticipate your study challenges and proactively seek solutions.
Claudia Christian has over 30 years’ experience in the execution of global clinical programs. Christian has held multiple positions from fieldwork to executive leadership in biotech, pharma and both large and niche CROs across all phases and multiple indications. She has broad experience managing industry-, government- and grant-funded portfolios.
Christian has successfully participated in executive ownership programs through mergers & acquisitions (M&A) and has a passion for corporate growth targeting challenging international markets with a focus on accessible and sustainable improvements in resource-constrained settings.
Prior to joining Total Trials, she served as Vice President, Global Operations for a niche CRO where she was instrumental in developing the commercial pipeline, tripling the book of business in less than 3 years, and completing due diligence and sale well ahead of planned timelines.
In her capacity as the Chief Commercial Officer, Claudia is responsible for our strategic commercial and business expansion objectives. She leads the effort to strengthen the awareness of the Total Trials value proposition through innovation, data driven analysis, and reinforcing our growth trajectory while amplifying our impact. Christian serves as a Company Level Officer (CLO) as designated by and at the discretion of the Board. Additionally, she functions as the principal advisor to the President & CEO, offering guidance on all matters pertaining to strategic commercial affairs.
With more than twenty years of experience in clinical research monitoring and management, Ghiorghis Belai serves as Total Trials’s Vice President, Global Strategy. In this role, Belai is responsible for managing Total Trials’s relationships with sponsors and sites, and he works on project feasibility to ensure optimal implementation of trials.
Belai previously served as Director of Clinical Operations for FHI 360, where he managed the clinical research unit based in Nairobi, Kenya, while supervising and mentoring the FHI 360 Africa Regional Clinical Research Unit. In this role, Belai was responsible for reviewing study protocols, coordinating study implementation of multi-center and multi-country trials in Africa, and ensuring that studies adhered to protocol requirements and applicable regulations and guidelines.
With a background in clinical research, Belai has also worked as a clinical research associate for PharmaNet Development Group, Inc., and PPD, where he participated in multiple multi-center clinical research studies, assisted with project data clinical review and management, and presented at investigator meetings for assigned studies. In addition, Belai monitored sites according to applicable standard operating procedures and Food and Drug Administration guidelines and reviewed case report forms for adherence to protocol requirements.
Belai holds a bachelor’s degree in Clinical Laboratory Science from the University of Louisiana at Monroe and a master’s degree in Clinical Research from the University of Liverpool.
Abraham Van Wyk brings more than 15 years of clinical research industry experience to his role as Total Trials’s Chief Financial Officer. Abraham previously served as the CEO of Triclinium Clinical Development (TCD) Global, where he executed the company’s acquisition by Total Trials.
While managing the TCD Group of companies, van Wyk led the M&A strategy, which included the acquisition of HeXor (now Value in Research), a health economics and outcomes research company, as well as being the co-founder of an eClinical solutions company (now NuvoteQ) and establishing TCD Global as a full-service CRO specializing in infectious disease and vaccine research across sub-Saharan Africa. The TCD Group of companies was sold to EOH (JSE Listed Group).
Abraham previously held the position of Managing Director of Africa at Cytespace Research (acquired by Premier Research). Prior to that position, Abraham established the East African region for Quintiles (now IQVIA) and managed the East and West African operations as Regional Head.
Abraham serves on the board of several biotech, medical device and medtech companies, including AMR-focused Bugworks; Burl Concepts, a medical device company; and NuvoteQ, an eClinical solutions company, among others.
Abraham holds a bachelor’s degree in medical sciences and a bachelor’s (Hons) degree in cellular biology from the University of Pretoria, in addition to an MBA from the University of South Africa.
Joy Toro, MA, MSW, PMP, has worked in clinical operations management for 15 years and has experience in clinical strategy, team facilitation, field monitoring and training for international project work in resource-limited settings. Most recently, Toro served as the Associate Director of Business Operations at IQVIA Biotech, where she was responsible for a large systems migration and process improvement.
Prior to that position, Ms. Toro was Associate Director of Clinical Operations for North America at Novella Clinical, working with Clinical Research Associates (CRAs), CRA managers and project management teams to ensure delivery of quality services, standardization, and performance across company projects. Ms. Toro’s experience also includes project manager roles at ICON Clinical Research and FHI 360, with field experience in multi-country trials in Asia and Latin America.
Ms. Toro holds bachelor’s degrees in political science and Romance languages from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH), a master’s degree in Trans-Atlantic studies, a master’s degree in social work from North Carolina State University, and a graduate certificate in core public health concepts from UNC-CH.
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