John van der Valk Appointed MD of UBM Live Amsterdam

UBM Live, a global events-led marketing and communications services business, has announced the appointment of John van der Valk as the new Managing Director of the UBM Live Amsterdam business.

His responsibilities will include the management of the pharma portfolio including the company’s flagship brand CPHI Worldwide, which continues to evolve as the leading pharmaceutical event globally. As part of his new role,  John is focusing on the integration of digital media within the live events portfolio. One example is the CPHI Online directory, which provides pharmaceutical buyer’s access to the CPHI database of the industry’s foremost suppliers, including a search function for individual services and products. The ultimate goal is to make it easier for exhibitors to meet with international pharmaceutical companies, stay informed about the latest industry trends and remain ahead of a constantly changing pharmaceutical market.

John has more than 15 years' experience within the events and media business, and comes to UBM Live from VNU. He has extensive knowledge of large-scale trade and consumer shows, digital marketing services, partner relationships and product development.

"I am delighted that John has joined the UBM Live team. John's experience and expertise is invaluable to his leadership of the food and pharma portfolios as we continue to focus on our customer's needs, and the deliverance of outstanding customer experience," stated Simon Foster, CEO of UBM Live. Foster continued, "John's contributions to the UBM Live Board, and to our global collaborations for growth and development of the business, play a significant role."

Commenting on his appointment, John van der Valk remarked: "It is a really exciting time to be joining UBM Live as we build a global portfolio of industry leading pharma events. Working alongside Chris Kilbee, together we look forward to helping grow the pharma portfolio so that CPHI Worldwide and sister events continue to drive growth, partnerships and business across the pharma industry. Our aims for 2014 are to launch our events in new markets and to expand the scope of content we provide so that we can help industry stay in touch year round.”