Chief Product Officer for a Mid-Sized Medical Communication and Translation Services Company

The client is a leading provider of communication solutions including academic and scientific editing, medical solutions, publication support services, transcription and translation services. Editage, a division of the company helps scientists, researchers and doctors overcome barriers of the English language in getting their cutting edge research published globally through a combination of human and technology-backed support services. The client reached out to Ray & Berndtson to help them find a Chief Product Officer (CPO) that would help transform their new Editage division from one that relied on customized open-source technology solutions to one that was operating on a proprietary technology platform that would interface with and serve customers.

While there are many CPOs who have worked in the software development industry, there are only a handful who would have experience in the medical communication industry. Thus, identifying the right candidate from a small pool of prospects was going to be a challenge. Furthermore, the company was relatively small and the CPO role in question was with one of their newest divisions with newly-set up operations and little operational experience. Attracting relevant candidates from large consumer internet companies, with a pedigreed career was a challenging proposition and experience working with a private equity-funded company was a challenge.

After receiving a comprehensive brief, we determined it was best to focus on reaching out to candidates who were already leading the product development function. While this was a constraint, we realized that only a person in a number one role would be succesful in setting up the division and developing a viable proprietary platform.

Four candidates were presented, three were shortlisted by the client and two reached the final round. The final two candidates went through six rounds of interviews. One candidate from a similarly sized consumer technology company was selected and subsequently joined the company’s new division as its first CPO.