Our Team
Maria Ho, PhD
Partner, Group Scientific Director
Maria Ho joined McGivney Global Advisors with expertise in clinical guidelines and medical communications. Dr. Ho developed deep expertise in oncology and hematology as staff oncology scientist at NCCN. During her 7 years at NCCN, she worked closely with thought leaders from top cancer institutions to develop NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology® for over 20 types of cancers and was responsible for journal manuscripts, accredited CME events, conference materials, patient educational content, and oversaw the scientific content development for NCCN international programs.
Prior to McGA, Dr. Ho was Medical Director at BioCentric Inc., a medical communications company, serving as the scientific lead on multiple accounts with pharmaceutical/biotech companies spanning oncology, hematology, women's heath, cardiology, diabetes, arthritis, and infections (vaccines). Her broad experience includes product branding and messaging, medical advisory boards, key opinion leader interviews, scientific/medical conference activities, product website development, sales training materials, monographs/manuscripts, and clinical trial recruitment materials. Dr. Ho holds a PhD in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
Courtney Smith, PhD
Scientific Consultant
Courtney Smith joined McGivney Global Advisors as a Scientific Associate after working in clinical guidelines and immuno-oncology research. Prior to McGivney Global Advisors, Dr. Smith developed clinical content for the National Comprehensive Cancer Network in areas spanning solid tumors, hematologic malignancies, immuno-oncology, biosimilars, and supportive care. These guidelines were developed with the expertise of clinicians from 27 leading cancer centers to detail oncology management decisions and interventions. She has authored numerous journal publications and book chapters and has reviewed and developed conference materials and clinical slide decks for key opinion leaders. Prior to NCCN, Dr. Smith worked on immune-oncology agents, focusing on strategies to overcome immune suppression.
She holds a PhD in Immunology from George Washington University and graduated from the University of Delaware with an Honors Bachelor of Science, Degree with Distinction, in Medical Technology.
Jacy Rider, MBA
Business Manager
Jacy Rider is the Business Manager at McGivney Global Advisors. In that role, Ms. Rider coordinates consulting projects, maintains customer relationships, tracks business growth, and manages marketing and outreach activities. Prior to joining McGA, Jacy was a Project Manager at Merck with extensive experience in vaccine life-cycle management and early drug development in oncology. She led cross-functional teams based on integrated project plans and nurtured and maintained productive relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
Ms. Rider received her BS and MBA from Penn State University and is certified as a project management professional.
William T. McGivney, PhD
Managing Principal
Bill McGivney is the Managing Principal at and founder of McGivney Global Advisors. Dr. McGivney has decades of experience in oncology and specialty managed markets, coverage policy and reimbursement, and health care policy. His key accomplishments include leadership of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) as CEO from 1997 to 2011 where he established NCCN as a global authority on oncology clinical policy and significantly grew the reach of NCCN and the NCCN Guidelines. During his tenure at NCCN, Dr. McGivney founded the NCCN Drugs and Biologics Compendium and established NCCN's global footprint through collaborations across Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. Before joining NCCN, Bill was the Vice President, Clinical and Coverage Policy for Aetna Health Plans from 1991 to 1997.
Dr. McGivney has been a member of the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee (MedCAC), the Liaison to the FDA for the American Medical Association (AMA), and developed and directed the AMA's Technology Assessment Program, DATTA. He holds a PhD in Pharmacology from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and did a post doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School.
His deep understanding of the biopharmaceutical and managed care industries serves as the platform for his innovation in strategic approaches and product optimization, always focusing on "real world" issues and strategies.
