Amar Urhekar replaces Jon Koch as CEO at Avalere Health

The announcement comes through after 18 months of Urhekar’s association with Avalere Health when he joined the US office in 2023 as Chief Operations Officer (COO)

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New Delhi: The global strategic partner in healthcare, Avalere Health, appointed Amar Urhekar as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). 

Urhekar has replaced former CEO, Jon Koch, as part of a planned succession. Jon will be a strategic advisor to the board until the end of March 2025.

The announcement comes through after 18 months of Urhekar’s association with Avalere Health when he joined the US office in 2023 as Chief Operations Officer (COO). 

As the company CEO, he will be responsible for the overall leadership of Avalere Health—organised across three core capabilities: Advisory, Medical, and Marketing.

With over 27 years of experience across mature and emerging markets, Urhekar has been a trailblazer in healthcare communications, pioneering the formalisation and conceptualisation of the industry in India and other emerging markets.

Starting with McCann Health India in 2000, during an era when healthcare advertising was almost non-existent compared to B2C campaigns, he became the first Indian to articulate a visionary framework for elevating healthcare communications in India to global standards.

Amar further expanded operations across Asia Pacific, overcoming challenges like SARS and Japan's 2011 disasters to build award-winning networks. In the Americas, he transformed fragmented agencies into a unified powerhouse, making McCann Health a globally awarded leader. 

Prior to joining Avalere, Amar was associated with Ashfield Health and Evoke where he continued to innovate, integrating capabilities, building agile solutions, and creating lasting value in healthcare marketing.

Amar Urhekar, CEO, Avalere Health, said, "Avalere Health is ready to achieve its true potential. I look forward to partnering with our teams to further create an inspiring company that will amplify the patient voice like never before."

"I am very pleased to appoint Amar Urhekar as our next CEO," said Deborah Keller, Chairperson at Avalere Health. "Amar has a passion for purpose-driven organisations that can truly make a difference. He inspires colleagues and clients alike and his extraordinary breadth of health industry knowledge ensures that our business is in the very best of hands moving forward."

CEO McCann McCann Health
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