After running four months without a proper new name following the completion of the $7.4 billion merger, INC Research and inVentiv Health were finally reborn as Syneos Health.
The new name created by branding agency Addison Whitney communicates two parts of information. “Syn” represents the value of synchronizing clinical and commercial capabilities offered by the old INC and inVentiv, respectively, while “neo” champions a new approach to biopharma solutions, the company said.
CEO Alistair Macdonald also saw the new name as a manifestation of synergies and innovative ways of working at the new company—after all, that’s what the merger is all about.
“Syneos Health fully expresses our value proposition—that is, our ability to deliver integrated end-to-end solutions and create new paths for our customers to develop and commercialize their therapies,” he said. “Unlike traditional CROs and commercialization businesses, we are knocking down walls and enabling clinical and commercial experts to work in sync by using the latest technologies, advanced business practices and the advantages of scale.”
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During the company’s third-quarter earnings call in November, Macdonald said the company remained on track to achieve the $100 million annual cost savings by 2020. Despite a few headwinds on the commercial side, including unprecedented levels of cancellations of drug programs, Macdonald said there is significant interest in its unique combination of service offerings and insights, particularly in the small- to mid-size market segment.
Syneos created feasible ways for the clinical and commercial segments to support each other. Behavioral insights can help accelerate trial recruitment, for example, and therapeutic know-how can engage hard-to-reach stakeholders.
When news about the combination between the top CRO and the commercial service provider came last May, it attracted attention no less than what the Quintiles-IMS megamerger had garnered. The two deals set the M&A and consolidation tone for the industry, with JSR’s acquisition of Crown Bioscience the most recent example.
With the name change, starting Jan. 9, the company will be traded on Nasdaq under the ticker “SYNH.”