Employee Spotlight - Chris Knight

Chris Knight has been a part of the TrialSpark team for three and a half years. He started at TrialSpark as a Project Manager of Operations and is now working as the Associate Director of Program Management. Chris discusses what’s kept him here at TrialSpark all these years, a few exciting projects he’s working on, and the TrialSpark values which resonate most with him.

Q: Describe your role at TrialSpark.

Chris: As an Associate Director of Program Management here at TrialSpark, I help oversee sprifermin, one of our assets. It is a potential disease-modifying osteoarthritis drug (DMOAD). I love the role, as I get to follow a drug asset from diligence (prior to acquisition) through transfer, and ultimately help craft the overall development strategy and oversee the execution of our trials. I get to dive deep into? multiple indications and truly get to follow the asset every step of the way, working with my colleagues across clinical development, operations, regulatory, patient safety, medical affairs, CMC, and commercial.?

Q: When did you join TrialSpark and why?

Chris: I joined TrialSpark a little over 3.5 years ago. At the time, I joined the Operations Team as a Project Manager, helping oversee our site management organization (SMO) business and developing our clinical research organization (CRO) capabilities. We’ve since evolved into a really exciting pharma company developing our own drugs.

I previously came from academia where I was frustrated with the bureaucratic nature of a large healthcare system. While it was inspiring to work with brilliant physicians and scientists, I felt hamstrung from an operational perspective as there were mountains of red tape to cut through in order to start any novel study. TrialSpark gave me a refreshing breath of innovation and agility that was rooted in the core mission of running trials faster and more efficiently. What has kept me at TrialSpark over the years has been the ethos and culture that TrialSpark has curated. Teams across the organization are passionate about the mission and possess a bias towards action for any challenge thrown at us.?

Q: Tell us about one project you're working on currently that is exciting to you and why?

Chris: I’m working as the Program Manager for our DMOAD asset, sprifermin. Sprifermin has the potential to be a first-in-class drug that can have a life changing impact on people affected by knee osteoarthritis. It’s not an easy indication from a regulatory or operational perspective, each day is filled with a unique challenge for us to solve. But it’s the uphill battle that makes the work even more rewarding, knowing that people are waiting for a treatment. Each day brings something new and exciting.?

Q: What do you like most about working at TrialSpark?

Chris: I would have to say it’s a tie between TrialSpark’s commitment to professional development and TrialSpark’s people and culture. As I mentioned above, I joined the organization in an operational role, but have had the distinct pleasure of having impassioned managers who had my professional development top of mind (shout out to Jordan Lateiner, Sean Lynch, and Elizabeth Holmes!), allowing me to seek internal and external learning and development opportunities as well as additional roles internally (e.g. transitioning to the program management team).?

Q: Which TrialSpark value is your favorite?

?Chris: Champion the Mission. Even when faced with challenges and adversity, we keep the mission of bringing trials to patients faster and more efficiently at the forefront of what we do. While we’re not perfect in each project, we've developed a culture that is rooted in team-first, low-ego assessments of our work with a propensity for constant improvement.?

Q: What does your day-to-day look like?

Chris: Each day is different and that’s what I find exciting about my role! Our focus depends on where we are within the lifecycle of an asset. Currently, we’re focusing on our long-term, strategic development plan? for sprifermin while assessing the operational plans of our next trials.?

Q: What’s your favorite thing to do on the weekend?

Chris: Spending time with my fiancée, taking our pup for walks across the city, and cooking gourmet meals for friends.

If you'd like to learn more about open roles at TrialSpark check out our website!