Robert P. Best

President/Chief Executive Officer, ISPE

Robert P. (Bob) Best is the President and CEO of ISPE, the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering, the Society of choice for 25,000 pharmaceutical manufacturing professionals in 90 countries around the globe.

Best joined ISPE as Executive Director in January 1985 and was named President in November 1998. Under Best's 20-plus years of leadership and guidance, ISPE has grown exponentially to become a global Society with more than 40 Affiliates and Chapters worldwide. The staff has grown from four employees in 1985 to more than 65 in offices in Tampa, Florida, Brussels, Belgium, and Singapore.

Under Best's leadership, ISPE was awarded the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner's Special Citation in 1997 "in appreciation of outstanding cooperation with the Food and Drug Administration in providing vital support to the industry through educational and special projects, nationally and internationally."

In 1997, ISPE was also honored with Vice President Al Gore's Hammer Award, which was presented for its work on the efficient implementation of Scale-Up and Post-Approval Changes (SUPAC) guidance for products in immediate release - solid dosage form.

Again in 2005, ISPE received a Commissioner's Special Citation from the FDA from Dr. Janet Woodcock, in recognition of ISPE's "outstanding commitment and many years of continued support of crucial initiatives."

Initiatives include publishing a new science-based, peer-reviewed journal: the Journal of Pharmaceutical Innovation, launched September 2006. The FDA also called upon ISPE to develop a training program to be utilized by both Industry and Regulators; and establish a competency-based global industry certification program, the Certified Pharmaceutical Industry Professional (CPIPSM) that sets a standard for Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Science and Technology competency. The CPIP was launched in 2006 and is an international certification program for pharmaceutical manufacturing professionals.

Before joining ISPE, Best was Director of Public Relations and Promotions for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers U.S. National Football League team. He earned his Bachelor of Arts and Master degrees in Communications/Marketing from Notre Dame University, and was assistant sports information director for the university from 1973-1978. Prior to this, he was the Assistant Public Relations Director of the Pittsburgh Pirates U.S. Major League Baseball team, and a sports reporter for the Cincinnati Post and Times Star newspapers.