A Message from David Simmons, Chairman and CEO of PPD, on the COVID-19 Pandemic

Dear Valued Customers,

As the world continues to follow the developments of the COVID-19 global pandemic, it is with resolve and, frankly, incredible gratitude, that I share this message with you.

At PPD, we are committed to ensuring the safety of our employees, patients and customers, to helping safeguard public health and to working closely with our customers to ensure the continuity of their initiatives. Our commitment to being part of the solution includes supporting customers developing treatments and vaccines for COVID-19.

With the pandemic impacting the lives of people worldwide, our sympathies are with those who have lost loved ones, with those suffering from the effects of the virus and with communities adjusting to new realities, as we come together to address the crisis and emerge stronger than before.

We are closely monitoring the pandemic and taking appropriate and necessary action. At the onset of the pandemic, to lead our company’s efforts, we mobilized a cross-functional pandemic response committee, chaired by our chief medical officer and chief human resource officer, reporting directly to me and our executive leadership team. Our pandemic committee meets regularly to monitor the pandemic’s progression, government policies and official public health recommendations, including from the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At the country and local level, we are utilizing our global network of site emergency action teams to support our employees by responding quickly to local changes related to the pandemic.

To reduce risk to our employees and ensure their safety and well-being, we are providing frequently updated guidelines on travel, internal and external meeting planning, and self-care. To implement social distancing while maximizing work productivity, we are limiting personnel in our facilities, with remote-capable employees working from home. We are suspending all international business travel and limiting domestic travel to essential meetings only. Wherever feasible, we have transitioned to virtual meetings, while limiting face-to-face internal and customer-facing meetings to those that are deemed essential.

We are committed to working closely with you, our customers, to ensure the continuity of your research programs. We are here to listen to you, and we are committed to being nimble and innovative, as we leverage our project teams’ experience to do our best to ensure studies stay on track. For example, we are accelerating the use of remote monitoring and ensuring that our digital and virtual trials teams are partnering on creative alternatives to deliver for our customers.

In these challenging times, our mission has never been more clearly in focus: to help you, our customers, deliver life-changing therapies to patients in need. PPD has stepped into action – and I am grateful and humbled by the extraordinary level of commitment demonstrated by our leaders and colleagues around the world. Their tireless efforts embody the best of our culture, going above and beyond to meet the needs of our customers and patients. While our own lives have been impacted by this pandemic, we are committed to doing our jobs to the utmost of our abilities. We thank you for your ongoing partnership. And we are proud to be a part of the solution.

There is no doubt in my mind that PPD is at the forefront of keeping our colleagues safe, doing our part for public health and navigating the complexities involved to help find solutions to make our world a healthier place.

David Simmons
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
PPD

David Simmons, Chairman and CEO of PPD