1-Day WorkshopLeading Through Uncertainty: Strategic Decision-Making for the Next Generation of Clinical Research
Participants will work in small teams through realistic clinical research scenarios requiring difficult strategic choices involving portfolio investments, operational priorities, innovation adoption, workforce constraints, and stakeholder expectations.
The session equips leaders with practical tools for decision-making under uncertainty and helps them develop actionable plans for their organizations.
Participants will leave with:
A strategic prioritization framework
Risk assessment and decision-making tools
Stakeholder alignment techniques
A 90-day leadership action plan
Facilitator
Willette Wilkins, MBA
Chief Strategy Officer | Duke Clinical Research Institute
Willette R. Wilkins brings more than 25 years of progressive experience in strategic leadership and business development to her role as Chief Strategy Officer. As a member of the DCRI Executive Management Team, she helps shape and execute strategic plans that advance the organization’s growth, reach, and scientific impact. She leads DCRI’s short- and long-term business strategy by identifying opportunities for growth and partnership that expand the institute’s footprint.
Her experience includes serving as Associate Director and Assistant Director of Research Proposal Development, where she helped develop strategic grants and proposals for faculty clinical research portfolios and served as a key liaison with industry, federal, and foundation sponsors. Earlier in her career, Wilkins was a Biochemist at GlaxoSmithKline, developing small molecules, proteins, and peptides in multiple dosage forms across therapeutic areas including oncology, antivirals, endocrine and metabolic disorders, and cardiology.
She earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and a Master of Business Administration from North Carolina Central University and completed advanced graduate training toward a PhD in Molecular Cancer Biology at Duke University.