Premier Applied Sciences

Denise Juliano

Denise Juliano is the Group Vice President of Premier Applied Sciences, bringing over 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. Previously, she held various leadership positions at Merck, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies globally, where she earned a reputation as a key innovator and relationship builder. Now, she is committed to aligning healthcare challenges with life sciences capabilities to co-create solutions that improve clinical practices and patient care.

From Data to Transformation

I have been with Premier for nearly seven years, leading the life sciences division, which encompasses med tech, pharmaceutical, and diagnostic companies. When I first took over, we focused on leveraging data and services to transform care. Since data is incredibly powerful, it enables us to generate actionable insights that drive change. Over time, we have dedicated significant effort to generating real-time evidence, particularly in the medical device field. This includes conducting qualitative research with our health systems—which comprise 80 percent of the healthcare systems in the U.S.—to understand new technologies, innovative approaches, and the evidence needed to support them.

By collaborating with these health systems, we aim to enhance healthcare delivery rather than simply push new products. Our approach goes beyond understanding functionalities; we focus on driving behavioral change and implementing clinical transformations in partnership with healthcare providers. This model of combining data with services has been key to our success.

I often emphasize that the industry cannot operate passively by relying on market forces alone. It’s crucial to bring healthcare systems in as partners in transforming care delivery.

Life Sciences and Healthcare Collaboration

In my role as Group Vice President of Premier Applied Sciences, I oversee the integration of real-world evidence and advanced analytics to optimize clinical research and improve operational efficiencies. Our data—some of the best in the industry—plays a crucial role in clinical trials. We have been collecting longitudinal data for nearly 25 years, covering everything from billing information to complete clinical records and the largest outpatient chargemaster database, providing a comprehensive view of health system dynamics. This data helps us identify gaps in care and implement research solutions that address those gaps.

“The era of pharma and health tech solely presenting indications and safety profiles is over. Success now requires a strong economic narrative, early evidence generation, and real-world data to accelerate market adoption.”

To support this, we leverage technology such as safety surveillance products and clinical decision support tools to accelerate clinical trials and identify patients for research in real time. These technologies, combined with our strong relationships with healthcare providers, set us apart in the field. We have learned that to truly impact healthcare, we must integrate technology and data while maintaining a clear understanding of the challenges health systems face. Once we understand these challenges, we collaborate with tech companies to address them, ensuring that research is strategically designed to meet the real needs of communities.

Navigating High-Stakes Decisions

The future of healthcare lies in collaboration. Too often, organizations attempt to go it alone, but true transformation requires the collective effort of all stakeholders—health systems, life sciences, and technology companies. Collaboration is the foundation for meaningful change, and understanding each stakeholder’s perspective is vital to driving innovation.

In a landscape filled with uncertainty and evolving regulations, staying informed is crucial when making high-stakes decisions. At Premier, we work closely with government offices and participate in national discussions to anticipate how regulatory changes will impact our work. One of our recent initiatives is a partnership with the National Evaluation System for health Technology, an initiative within the Medical Device Innovation Consortium, to drive medical device innovation using real-world data and evidence. This partnership is particularly important for med tech, where real-world evidence and data generation are becoming increasingly essential.

Real-World Data Matters

With the shift toward value-based care, life sciences companies need to rethink their commercialization strategies. The days of simply presenting indications and safety profiles are over. Companies now need a comprehensive economic story, supported by early evidence generation and real-world data. Clinical trials are costly, and leveraging data to support these trials will be essential for speeding up market adoption.

Wisdom from Experience

My advice to fellow executives in life sciences and healthcare is to keep innovating. At Premier, we don’t accept the status quo. We are always looking for ways to drive innovation while maintaining efficiency. This combination is essential for making meaningful progress in healthcare.

My focus has always been on collaboration—working with healthcare systems, technology companies, and life sciences organizations to co-create research that directly impacts communities.

The greatest success comes when all stakeholders come together, leave egos at the door, and work toward the common goal of improving healthcare. Too many organizations try to operate independently, failing to realize that the most effective way to create meaningful change is through collective effort. With the right partnerships, we can innovate, overcome barriers, and improve patient outcomes.

Through our work with health systems, technology companies, and life sciences organizations, we are not just conducting research for the sake of research—we are driving progress toward a better healthcare system. I firmly believe that the future of healthcare will be shaped by continued collaboration, and at Premier, we are committed to leading that transformation.