Marquis Who’s Who Honors Barri McDonough Blauvelt for Expertise in Pharmaceuticals and Health Care
Barri McDonough Blauvelt is lauded for her distinguished tenure as the chief executive officer at Innovara Inc.
Her career is marked by significant contributions to global health and marketing strategies.
BOCA GRANDE, FL, February 17, 2025 /24-7PressRelease/ — Barri McDonough Blauvelt has been selected for inclusion in Marquis Who’s Who. As in all Marquis Who’s Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Ms. Blauvelt is a distinguished leader in the pharmaceutical and health care industries, currently serving as the chief executive officer of Innovara Inc. since 1983. Her career is marked by significant contributions to global health and marketing strategies. Over the past four decades, Ms. Blauvelt has focused on heading a leading global firm that provides clients with customized training, medical, thought leadership, strategy and business development services for the health care, pharmaceutical, life sciences, biotechnology, diagnostics and medical device industries.
Besides her corporate role at Innovara Inc., Ms. Blauvelt has excelled in her appointment as adjunct faculty member at the Institute for Global Health at the University of Massachusetts Amherst from 2008 – 2018, primarily involved in conducting global cancer control policy informing research, in collaboration with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Medical Institutes. Additionally, she teaches courses on quality health metrics and research methods in health care at Vedere University as part of their online Master of Science in Healthcare Management program. She also is codeveloper and co-lead of Drexel University Close School of Entrepreneurship’s medical affairs certification course, The Transformational MSL, new launched in 2025.
Ms. Blauvelt’s early career included being recruited by Pfizer Inc. to work in the USA to help establish its Effectively brief, evaluate and give feedback to agencies to develop creative programs that deliver against SMART objectives and reinforce the brand positioning.hen-new cardiovascular business marketing. This position laid the foundation for her subsequent appointment leading marketing and operations for Asia, for Lederle Laboratories and David & Geck (under American Cyanamid Corporate), rising to become one of the youngest highest ranking female executives in the industry. During this time, along with launching new drugs in cancer, infectious disease and nutrition, she led the development and co-launch of Centrum multivitamin, first in USA, followed by Asia, then to the world (now owned by Pfizer). In 1980, she was the first person to successfully negotiate a healthcare product sponsorship with the International Olympics Committee, as part of the global objective to make Centrum the leading multivitamin brand in the world. She left Cyanamid to establish Innovara, in 1984.
Possessing a robust academic background, Ms. Blauvelt received a Bachelor of Arts in international education and law from Hampshire College in 1973. Subsequently, she studied at Columbia University, receiving a Master of Business Administration in international business and marketing in 1976. Subsequently, she was adjunct faculty in International Business in Fairleigh Dickinson University (New Jersey) MBA specializing in the pharmaceutical industry, and guest lecturer in the Executive MBA program at Columbia University. In Fall of 1983, she also began her PhD at Columbia University School of Business, but subsequent relocation to Asia prevented her from completing it. Returning to Columbia University years later, Ms. Blauvelt attended the Mailman School of Public Health, where she acquired a Master of Public Health (MPH) in 2017. Additionally, she holds certifications in social and behavioral research investigation and other courses as part of the CITI Program, as required by U. of Massachusetts, and multiple requisite certifications in virtual learning and teaching online as required by the Florida Association of Post Secondary Schools and Colleges (State of Florida).
Throughout her career, Ms. Blauvelt has been actively involved in various civic organizations. She founded and chaired Women in High Places: Leading the Global Challenge of Medicine since 2001 and in 2018. founded and served as Chair, Co-Chair and executive steering committee for the Extraordinary Women Advancing Healthcare Awards, in partnership with the Commonwealth Institute of Massachusetts (now known as The Women’s Edge). Ms. Blauvelt’s commitment to advancing women’s roles in health care is further demonstrated through her mentorship of women CEOs and heads of life science industries.
Ms. Blauvelt’s groundbreaking research on ethnicity as a factor in breast cancer, which influenced global clinical research policies, has been a career highlight. She has disseminated many of her research findings in scholarly journals, such as Cancer Research, Journal of Global Oncology, Value in Health, and Health Planning and Policy, including numerous publications and projects that address critical global health issues. She notably authored “International and National Priorities for Liver Cancer Control” and several studies on breast cancer control and access to cancer medication. In addition to her written contributions, Ms. Blauvelt participated in a podcast interview with Steve Forbes titled “Two-Year-Old Question,” highlighting her innovative approach to problem-solving applied to global health challenges.
Ms. Blauvelt remains committed to breaking barriers in world health through technology-supported clinical research and artificial intelligence-driven machine learning. She is also focused on creating solutions that will have a lasting impact on global health and cancer control. Moreover, she holds to more precisely defining breast cancer and innovating preventive measures for cancer by transforming early cancer detection leveraging Smart and Generative AI technologies. Ms. Blauvelt attributes much of her success to the inspiration and mentorship of her father, James Edwin McDonough, who rose from extreme poverty in the Great Depression to President of Seagram Overseas Sales Corporation, until his retirement around the time of the new Millenium.
About Marquis Who’s Who®:
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who’s Who in America®, Marquis Who’s Who® has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. Who’s Who in America® remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the world. The suite of Marquis® publications can be viewed at the official Marquis Who’s Who® website, www.marquiswhoswho.com.
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