Clinical Data Management Company | Niche Science & Technology

Dr Tim Hardman,
Managing Director

tim.hardman@niche.org.uk

Tim established Niche Science & Technology in 1998 following a number of years in clinical trials research and medical writing. From the beginning, Niche represented Tim’s vision for a different kind of company, one in which talented scientist-writers are directly involved in clients’ projects. More recently, Niche expanded its repertoire to include project management, which now represents a significant and growing part of the company’s activities.

A hands-on and highly inspirational leader, Tim radiates a determination born of many years’ training on the athletics track, and the same desire for success displayed in his sporting career pervades every aspect of his working life.

Tim retains the scientific bent and inquiring mind that emerged from his academic training in pharmacology, and he continues to be a prolific writer, publishing widely cited papers on his favoured area of diabetes in prestigious journals.

An indefatigable individual, Tim’s drive and commitment has made Niche the successful company that it is today and a respected name in medical communications.

Ammar Moussa,
Business Manager

ammar.moussa@niche.org.uk

Ammar has been the Business Manager and IT supervisor at Niche for the last 6 years. During this time, he has been responsible for coordinating client projects and managing office systems. He also ensures the smooth running of company software and hardware and is our point of contact for all IT issues.

Ammar has a broad range of experience which comes from running his own website development and post-production business. This has brought valuable skills to Niche and an alternative perspective to much of what our company does.

With a distinctly positive approach to problems and the energy and humour he brings to the office, Ammar’s dynamism makes an invaluable contribution to the success of Niche.

Karen Chalk,
Head of Clinical Project Management

karen.chalk@niche.org.uk

Karen has spent her professional career working in the pharmaceutical industry in both contract research organisations and blue chip pharma companies. Over this time Karen has become a vastly experienced clinical research project manager. She has been involved in various stages of the development of biopharmaceutical and chemical compounds. Karen excels at hands-on trial coordination of early phase studies in a variety of therapeutic areas. Through her extensive knowledge of regulations and thoroughness in her work, clients have come to rely on her for support during regulatory and due diligence audits. Over the last 4 years Karen has also been involved with the management of our in-house quality and training systems, ensuring we meet ICH GCP and EU clinical trials directive requirements.

Away from work, Karen’s varied interests include logic puzzles and cake decorating (our team particularly appreciate the cakes). Something not many people know about her is that she is also a prolific knitter who now proudly sports a winter coat that took a full 3 months to produce.

Perhaps the most wonderful quality that Karen displays is her practical common sense which, when coupled with calmness in the face of pressure and her incredible attention to detail, makes her a safe pair of hands for any project.

Dr Justin Cook,
Head of Medical Writing

justin.cook@niche.org.uk

An experienced and accomplished medical writer, Justin has been working at Niche Science & Technology since 2001, and has been Head of Medical Writing since 2008. He previously worked at one of the top global pharmaceutical companies, writing and submitting manuscripts, and as a Senior Medical Writer at a large CRO. As Head of Medical Writing, Justin manages the workflow, budgets and output quality of the writing group, while mentoring newer members of the team.

Unbeknownst to most people, Justin lives on a smallholding with pigs, chickens and bees, and regularly brings in produce to share with his colleagues.

There is nothing Justin likes better than a glass of homebrewed cider, which whets his appetite for his favourite pastimes including watching rugby, cooking (multiple bird roast anyone?) and tramping over the Brecon Beacons.

Justin exudes approachability, and is an ever-present source of managerial support and organisational skills.

Ruth Hardman,
Finance Director

ruth.hardman@niche.org.uk

Ruth has been Finance Manager at Niche for 7 of the last 10 years, managing company accounts, contracts and invoicing. She also deals with all aspects of payroll and employee records. In recent years, she has been in charge of maintaining quote and contract trackers, and she has developed and implemented comprehensive financial and budgetary monitoring systems for forecasting company budgets.

A trained biologist with an honours degree in pharmacology from King’s College London, as a postgraduate Ruth conducted research in the anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive fields and published several peer-reviewed papers on these subjects.

Ruth’s talents extend beyond the lab and something not many people know about her is that she is an extremely proficient exponent of the bassoon, achieving Grade 8 at a young age and playing with the Richmond Youth Symphony Orchestra, while on the sporting front her competitive side has been known to emerge when playing on the Wii with her three sons.

The Niche Team

info@niche.org.uk

At Niche we adopt a set of cultural values that are inherent to everything we do. These translate into a dedication to service that is appreciated by our clients and our colleagues. These values not only drive our professional and personal interactions, but also serve to inspire our team to achieve our single most important differentiator - our clients' satisfaction.

Our Values

Integrity: We do what is right for our clients and colleagues, striving to treat every individual with care and respect.

Commitment: We apply our dedication, extensive experience and passion to fulfil the needs of our clients.

Teamwork: We use collaborative approaches to fully engage and exploit the industry experience contained within both client and Niche teams to deliver client requirements.

Learning: We embrace the opportunity to learn new and creative ways of fulfilling the needs of our own clients. We share winning practices and coach for success.

Professionalism: We uphold the highest ethical standards and collectively we take responsibility for our actions.

Empowerment: We generate success through personal initiative, skills development and mutual support.

Satisfaction: True job satisfaction derives from the knowledge that you have had the opportunity to fully engage your skill set to deliver an excellent piece of work.

Dr Ayad Abdul-Ahad,
Chief Medical Officer

ayad.abdulahad@niche.org.uk

Ayad was born in Baghdad and obtained his Bachelor’s degrees in Medicine and Surgery from Baghdad Medical School.

Ayad was the first to use a therapeutic antibody to treat cancer. After his PhD in Cancer Immunotherapy from Southampton University, he worked at the Children’s Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit, Westminster Hospital conducting pioneering work in children with Leukaemia’s and various genetic disorders.

For the last 20 years Ayad has led Global Clinical Development and Medical Affairs of several drugs and vaccines, working in the US, Switzerland and the EU and has been involved in over 300 clinical trials.

For more information on Ayad's career see here...

Dr Tim Hardman, Managing Director

Dr Justin Cook, Head of Medical Writing

Ammar Moussa, Business Manager

Dr Ayad Abdul-Ahad, Chief Medical Officer

Ruth Hardman, Finance Director

The Niche Team

Dr Tim Hardman,Managing Director

Ammar Moussa, Business Manager

Karen Chalk,Head of Clinical Project Management

Dr Justin Cook,Head of Medical Writing

Ruth Hardman,Finance Director

The Niche Team

Dr Ayad Abdul-Ahad,Chief Medical Officer

Dr Tim Hardman,
Managing Director

Dr Justin Cook,
Head of Medical Writing

Ammar Moussa,
Business Manager

Dr Ayad Abdul-Ahad,
Chief Medical Officer

Ruth Hardman,
Finance Director

Dr Tim Hardman,
Managing Director

Ammar Moussa,
Business Manager

Karen Chalk,
Head of Clinical Project Management

Dr Justin Cook,
Head of Medical Writing

Ruth Hardman,
Finance Director

Dr Ayad Abdul-Ahad,
Chief Medical Officer