Kelly Johnston McKee is a clinical research executive with more than 20 years of leadership in clinical innovation, optimization and site and patient engagement, known for building ecosystems that accelerate enrollment, reduce cost, and elevate the clinical trial experience. Kelly has led global initiatives spanning hybrid and decentralized trial execution, AI-supported enrollment workflows, site network optimization, and KPI-driven operating models that translate into measurable performance across therapeutic areas. She is also recognized for advancing inclusive engagement models, boosting underrepresented participation through pharmacy and community partnerships, and improving study quality through stronger prescreen logic and workflow design.
McKee has held senior leadership roles at Evinova (AstraZeneca’s digital healthcare company), Medidata (Dassault Systèmes), Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Eli Lilly & Company, and Merck, where she built and scaled recruitment and patient engagement capabilities and helped modernize trial operations through durable platforms and cross-functional delivery. Her work has been recognized with multiple industry honors, including 1nHealth’s “25 Leaders Making an Impact in Patient Engagement” (2025), LifeSci Voice’s Top Industry Leaders (2022) and PharmaVoice’s “100 Most Inspiring Leaders” (2020), among others.