Strengthen Participant-Site Readiness for Complex Rare Disease Trials

Florence Mowlem, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer, uMotif

Dr. Mowlem is an expert eCOA Scientist who has spent her career advising and guiding organizations on the electronic capture of clinical outcome assessments (COA) and the use of digital health technologies (DHTs) in clinical trials. She has a deep knowledge of clinical research, study design and leveraging technology to support it, having worked at the intersection between science and technology to develop better solutions.

She actively participates in industry consortia, regularly publishes and presents at international conferences. She uses her passionate and progressive mindset to drive positive change in the industry, focusing on optimizing clinical trial data capture to enhance the participant and site experience.

At uMotif, she provides scientific leadership across the organization, ensuring that the scientific voice is embedded across all functional areas to inform rigorous scientific practices. She previously held positions at Signant Health, Medable and ObvioHealth.

Paula Brown Stafford, CEO, Allucent

An industry veteran, Paula brings to Allucent more than 35 years of industry experience. At Quintiles (now IQVIA), she played a key role in growing its CRO services. As President of their largest business unit delivering Phase I-IV Clinical Research Services, she served in many administrative and operational capacities, leading 22,000 employees across 60 countries. In addition, Paula was President, CEO and Chairman of Novan, Inc., a biotechnology company with commercial assets and a clinical platform. She is also an Adjunct Professor in Public Health Leadership for the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Among many awards and accolades, Paula received the 2022 Triangle Business Journal’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Women in Business and was named one of Fierce Biotech’s 10 top women in biotech in 2012. In 2016, she was presented with the Distinguished Alumna award from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she received her Bachelor of Science and Master of Public Health in Biostatistics.

Matteo Lai, Co-Founder & CEO, Empatica

Matteo Lai is Co-Founder and CEO of Empatica, an AI and medical devices company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Milan, Italy. Empatica has developed Embrace, the world’s smallest and most accurate wearable sensor suite for research and has become the world’s first FDA-cleared smart watch for use in Neurology.

An MIT spin-off, Empatica is a pioneer in offering continuous, passive and unobtrusive monitoring for patients with neurological conditions. Empatica’s technology empowers thousands of patients, clinicians and researchers with real-time human insight, driven by physiological and behavioral biomarkers.

Jennifer Cook, Senior Project Manager, Accellacare

Jennifer Cook is a Senior Project Manager at Accellacare, where she leads clinical research programs with a focus on operational excellence, site performance and high‑quality delivery. With a career spanning roles in project management, clinical trial start‑up and site operations, Jennifer brings a uniquely comprehensive perspective to the clinical research lifecycle.

At Accellacare, Jennifer oversees trial start‑up, enrollment and retention across a global site network, ensuring alignment with regulatory requirements and sponsor expectations. She provides mentorship and leadership to cross‑functional teams while driving timelines, quality standards and site compliance. Prior to her current role, she served as a Start‑Up Associate at Labcorp Drug Development, where she specialized in essential document management, site activation and compliance with ICH/GCP guidelines. Earlier in her career, Jennifer held previous roles including Senior Study Manager, Site Coordinator and Data Technician.