Welcome to our new blog! I founded Bright Research in 2008 with the dream of creating a full-service clinical research organization that placed high value on beautiful deliverables, exceptional customer service, smart strategies, and a human-first philosophy toward our clients and team members. I didn’t want the stereotypical stodgy corporate approach or the “work your team to the bone” consultancy. With little kids at home, maintaining a healthy work-life balance was important for me personally, and I knew others felt my same struggles. Too many smart women are pushed out of the workplace because of home-life demands and inflexible employers or are forced to settle for underemployment.
Now, into our second decade, I couldn’t be prouder of the high-caliber professionals we’ve attracted, a team that has embraced our mission of providing personable customized services, creative strategies, gorgeous deliverables, and an authentic customer service experience. Who would have known that my high school and college customer-first retail experience would be so important to Bright’s success today? Further, our efforts to retain employees, support professional development, and foster a company culture that embraces quality of life gives me a lot of pride and personal reward.
I reflect often on the early days of doing business in my Southwest Minneapolis basement laundry room, timing conference calls around my dryer cycle, working 12+ hour days, and feeling overwhelmed. Those days are long gone, and I am grateful for our early clients who trusted me and for the team members who jumped on board with their patience, expertise, and chutzpah. Every day I feel a deep sense of gratitude for my team, our incredible clients, our beautiful downtown Minneapolis office, and the smart collaborative culture we’ve carefully created and nurtured.
Whether you are new to clinical research or a seasoned professional, we hope you’ll find value in our experience as we share some of our favorite hard-earned tips regarding study design strategies, clinical operations, study management, as well as other topics that will help you get to know our Bright team and company culture. Clinical research is hard and challenging work, and this Bright team is passionate about facilitating the process. One of our favorite things is to receive a message from a client that says, “Thank you, that was so helpful!” I think that comes from our customer-first retail roots. We can’t wait to share our stories and know-how with you. To ensure you won’t miss a post, we invite you to subscribe. Enjoy!
Andrea Fenton Abbs
CEO and Founder
