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Kids Fun K participant getting snacks at MasterControl's "Munchies" table.
Supporting Huntsman Cancer Institute has been an integral part of MasterControl’s culture and mission. For the last seven years, the software company has made its mark as Huntsman SportsFest’s “Munchies” sponsor, providing finish-line fuel for riders and runners at the signature fundraising event for Huntsman Cancer Foundation. MasterControl’s culture of health and wellness includes organizationally funded clubs for employees to pursue activities they enjoy. The running and road-cycling clubs participate in SportsFest, with some cyclists training for months and riding in the 140-mile course.
MasterControl employees, including Alicia Garcia, chief culture and people officer, look forward to the energy and camaraderie of Huntsman SportsFest.
“The 5K run is always a favorite,” Alicia says. “We love sporting MasterControl jerseys to show our support at such an amazing event. Whether we run, walk, cycle, or just support the MasterControl Munchies table at the finish line, we are honored to help this incredible organization save lives.”
Based in Salt Lake City, MasterControl is a cloud-based quality and compliance software provider for life sciences and other regulated industries. Its mission is to bring life-changing products to more people sooner by streamlining the things that matter. Its leaders believe this mission aligns with Huntsman Cancer Institute’s work to bring lifesaving treatments and cures to patients and their families.
To broaden their impact beyond Huntsman SportsFest, MasterControl leaders explored ways to use their product and expertise to make a difference. Their Quality Management System (QMS) software helps organizations automatically manage documents, procedures, and compliance efforts—essential duties in the Clinical Trials Office at Huntsman Cancer Institute. Clinical trials are heavily regulated: documentation must be updated, and employees must be regularly trained, which is a huge undertaking.
MasterControl team members running in Huntsman SportsFest.
In 2017, MasterControl made an in-kind donation of its QMS software to help the Clinical Trials Office more efficiently manage that compliance process. The company has also dedicated 50% of an employee’s time to training and troubleshooting with the Huntsman Cancer Institute team. Time saved managing compliance documents can now be spent helping patients who participate in trials. Jessica Moehle, senior clinical research administrative director in the Clinical Trials Office, estimates a full-time person would be necessary to do the work MasterControl’s QMS provides.
“With nearly 500 clinical trials and 170 employees, this is an excellent platform and significant tool to help us maintain compliance with operations and logistics and keep our staff up to date with required training,” says Jessica. “We are very fortunate to be able to partner with them.”
Given the success that the Clinical Trials Office has had with using MasterControl, Kris Frisby, director of Research Administration, is now in the process of implementing the QMS in her department. Research Administration is responsible for the day-to-day maintenance of the Cancer Center Support Grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI). NCI requires Huntsman Cancer Institute to meet certain standards to receive the grant, and it’s critical for national standing.
“MasterControl’s support is a great gift to Huntsman Cancer Institute,” Kris says. “It’s going to be a huge improvement for us in Research Administration.”
MasterControl’s gifts—both financial support for Huntsman SportsFest and the in-kind gift of software and staff time—empower the teams at Huntsman Cancer Institute to focus on what’s most important and operate more efficiently.
“Our partnership is centered around Huntsman Cancer Institute’s goal to deliver life-changing therapies to patients and ultimately eradicate cancer,” says Jonathan Beckstrand, MasterControl CEO. “When we help Huntsman Cancer Institute improve operational outcomes and regulatory compliance, we have helped cancer patients have access to a therapy that may change their lives. Whether it’s sponsoring and participating in Huntsman SportsFest or providing support with our software, this is what we think about.”
Learn more about Huntsman SportsFest. Huntsman SportsFest will take place on Saturday, June 8, 2024 at Fort Douglas Field at the University of Utah. Registration will open on October 18, 2023. To find out more about sponsorship opportunities, please email events@huntsmanfoundation.org.