Building a Company While Your Country Is at War

Yuriy Lebid on Building a CRO during Ukraine War & Never Giving Up | Pharma Prescribed

Yuriy Lebid — CEO of Pharmaxi — joins Adam Walker for Episode 2 of the Pharma Prescribed Podcast, and one of the most extraordinary stories of entrepreneurial resilience in the entire series.

Yuriy is a doctor, scientist and self-taught clinical research expert who built a full-service CRO from scratch in Ukraine. When Russia invaded on February 24th, 2022, he made a promise to his 28 employees: no one would be fired, salaries would be paid in full for six months, whatever happened. He made 90 calls in 30 days, relocated his team, restarted trials, expanded into Poland — and came out the other side stronger.

Pharmaxi just celebrated its 10th anniversary.

🎧 LISTEN ON YOUR PREFERRED APP
Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/episode/4G7L6P4qMxZghoa0cTVx7u?si=KBa6XG-jTriJv9ixjKgggA
Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/pharma-prescribed-podcast-with-yuriy-lebid-ceo/id1829715970?i=1000719645727
Amazon Music → https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1a43eb87-b83e-441d-9a87-321263e3f821/adam-walker%E2%80%99s-pharma-prescribed-podcast
Podbean → https://www.podbean.com/eas/pb-decmi-191ab66

📖 WHAT WE COVER
- Building a CRO from scratch in Ukraine with no portfolio and no clients
- The promise on day one of the invasion: no one fired, full salaries for six months
- 90 calls in 30 days — finding work while his country was being invaded
- Enrollment rates higher during the war than before — and why
- Expanding into Poland: 30% of the team now there, 40% of new projects
- Travel restrictions: men aged 18–60 cannot leave Ukraine without permission
- "Home is our castle" — productivity, stress and the power of rootedness
- What disaster recovery actually looks like when you've lived through it
- Conference speaking: teaching companies to build resilience before crisis hits
- Passion first, money will find you — the golden rule
- Tennis, fresh minds and forehand down the line

⏱️ CHAPTERS
0:00 Introduction & podcast mission
1:00 Meet Yuriy Lebid — CEO of Pharmaxi
2:00 Medical university to science to clinical research — not a straight line
3:00 Self-education in clinical research: from protocol to final report
4:00 Building a CRO with no portfolio — "just trust our eyes"
5:00 10th anniversary: the milestone that almost didn't happen
6:00 February 24th, 2022 — the invasion begins
7:00 Russian tanks in Kyiv and the pain of a threatened entrepreneur
8:00 The promise: no firings, full salaries, six months guaranteed
9:00 Relocating 28 employees and their families
10:00 Remote work under fire — phones, internet and travel restrictions
11:00 90 calls in 30 days — finding contracts during invasion
12:00 "Legs in the sand" — moving forward under impossible pressure
13:00 Restarting trials: enrollment higher than before the war
14:00 Canadian biotech and a device study completed in six months
15:00 Expanding into Poland: regulatory differences and growth
16:00 30% in Poland, 70% in Ukraine, growing fast
17:00 Speaking at conferences on resilience and disaster recovery
18:00 Building resilience before crisis — not during it
19:00 Travel restrictions: special permission to cross the border
20:00 "Country and motherland means a lot" — the biggest discovery
21:00 Home as productivity: background stress vs rootedness
22:00 10 years and looking forward to growth
23:00 Ukraine as a fruitful space for clinical trials right now
24:00 Most famous Ukrainian CRO — one name, everyone knows it
26:00 Quick-fire: think about opportunities, not fears
27:00 Honesty, fire in the eyes and continuous learning
29:00 Tennis: forehand down the line and a fresh mind
30:00 Golden rule: passion first — money will find you
31:00 Daughter Irina and passing on the principle
32:00 LinkedIn and the beauty of this industry
33:00 Closing thanks

👤 ABOUT YURIY LEBID
CEO of Pharmaxi, a full-service CRO covering Ukraine and Poland. Doctor, scientist, self-taught clinical research expert. Conference speaker on entrepreneurial resilience.
💼 Search "Yuriy Lebid" on LinkedIn

🎙️ ABOUT PHARMA PRESCRIBED
Long-form conversations with leaders in clinical research, digital health and mental wellbeing, hosted by Adam Walker.
🌐 https://pharmaprescribed.com
💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-walker-2327951/

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