Best practices for scaling with volume (Sponsors & CROs)

Audience: Sponsor & CRO Users

Purpose: Learn how to adjust your workflows and oversight strategy as your study gains momentum and referral volume increases. This article outlines practical steps for managing candidate flow at scale while ensuring site responsiveness and data visibility. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Shift from manual review to dashboard monitoring
• Monitor site engagement in batches
• Automate reporting workflows
• Set a cadence for data reviews
• Communicate early & often with sites  
• Summary: from hands-on to strategic
• Related articles

As your study moves beyond the initial launch and begins to receive a high volume of referrals, it’s important to evolve your processes to match the pace. What worked well with a small number of candidates can quickly become unsustainable at scale, unless you plan ahead.

Here are proven best practices for managing recruitment volume effectively across sites, referrals, and reporting.

Shift from manual review to dashboard monitoring

When referrals are low, it makes sense to review each one individually. But as volume grows, it’s more efficient to focus on aggregated trends.

• Use the Insights module regularly to track:

  • Referral flow by site and source

  • Funnel conversion rates

  • Screen failure and dropout patterns

• Focus on outliers, not every referral:

  • High screen fail at one site?

  • A channel generating high volume but low enrollment?

This lets you act on signal, not just volume.

Monitor site engagement in batches

Instead of checking each candidate, monitor how sites are handling the flow overall.

Use the My Candidates and Sites tab to:

• Identify sites falling behind on follow-up

• Spot sites with referral bottlenecks or delayed contact times

• Review site performance scores and drill into low-scoring locations

 If a site becomes overwhelmed, you can adjust: 

•  Reallocate referrals to other sites 

•  Pause referrals temporarily by requesting deactivation 

•  Provide direct support to help them catch up 

Automate reporting workflows

High volume also means more eyes on results. Having fast access to reports can help internal teams stay aligned. 

• Use the Candidate Report from the Insights module for a full dataset

• Use the Candidates module > Table view for quick, customized exports

• Standardize your exports weekly or monthly to compare trends

Set a cadence for data reviews

When the study is scaling, data will change quickly. Establish a rhythm to stay in control.

Recommended Cadence

• Weekly review of referral and enrollment progress

• Bi-weekly deep dive into funnel performance and site responsiveness

• Monthly check-in on marketing channel performance and cost efficiency

Communicate early & often with sites  

Sites can become overwhelmed quickly if they don’t know what’s coming.

Proactive steps

• Alert sites to volume spikes with a quick email

• Encourage them to add staff or escalate internally if needed

• Remind them to log in daily and action new referrals quickly

 Use this reminder email template to follow up when needed. 

Summary: from hands-on to strategic

Scaling doesn't mean doing more, it means doing smarter. Lean on platform tools and automated views to stay informed and act where it matters most.

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