Reflecting on PHUSE 2024

Wrapping up an exciting 2024 conference season and gearing up for an eventful 2025 for Staburo GmbH! 

Last November, we had the privilege of attending the Phuse EU Connect 2024 in beautiful Strasbourg, a flagship event for statistical programmers in drug development and healthcare. With over 700 attendees from 36 countries, it was the largest in-person connect yet – buzzing with insightful sessions, engaging discussions, and wonderful networking opportunities. 

Our colleagues Jannis Ströbele and Angelika Böhm represented Staburo, diving into a rich program of plenary and parallel sessions, workshops, and a lively poster session. They also made the most of the social events, from speed networking on Sunday to the grand gala dinner on Monday – truly an event to remember! 

As we look back on the many conferences we attended in 2024, we’re thrilled to share that our 2025 agenda is already packed! We can’t wait to reconnect and share insights at events like DAGStat, PSI conference, BIO International Convention, APF, BVMA symposium and many more! 

We’re looking forward to connecting with many of you at upcoming events! 

Staburo presents at Biometric Colloquium – Medical University of Vienna

Our Staburo colleagues Dr. Hannes Buchner (Managing Director) and Tim Müller (Data Scientist) have the honour of presenting at the Biometric Colloquium at the Medical University of Vienna in about two weeks’ time.

Here are a few details and the abstract of the presentation:

When:                19-Feb-2025, 9:00 am

Where:               Medical University of Vienna

Presenter:         Dr. Hannes Buchner & Tim Müller

Topic:                  Permutation-based Multiple Testing-Controlled Variable Selection Using Random Forests

Abstract: Identifying relevant biomarkers is critical in clinical research and precision medicine, particularly when analysing high-dimensional data. Random forests (RFs) are promising for such settings due to their flexibility, ease of use and their ability to handle datasets with more variables than samples. RFs assess the importance of each variable in predicting the outcome using variable importance (VIMP) scores. However, the lack of a known statistical distribution of VIMP scores prevents standard statistical testing and associated multiple testing adjustment for the purpose of variable selection. To address this, we propose a novel method for multiple testing-controlled variable selection. Our approach, similar to permutation testing, involves generating permuted counterparts for each variable and comparing their VIMPs across iterations to calculate p-values. However, unlike competing methods, we preserve the correlation structure between the covariates in the permutations to guard against biases. With promising results, our method is evaluated against three competing RF variable selection approaches in simulations that involve high- and low-dimensional data, as well as correlated and categorical variables. Moreover, we apply it to a real dataset to demonstrate its practical use. The method’s results integrate seamlessly into standard VIMP plots, providing a flexible and transparent way to interpret results in a familiar format.

Many thanks to Dr. Franz König for the invitation. We are already looking forward to numerous participants and an exciting exchange.

Reflecting on Biomarkers in 2024 and looking ahead

As we step into a new year, here’s a recap of key highlights from 2024 in the field of biomarkers at Staburo. 

June: At the PSI conference in Amsterdam, biomarkers were the focus of a dedicated session, followed by an in-person meeting of the PSI/EFSPI Biomarker SIG.
August: Our team connected and collaborated during a productive and enjoyable team event at Kletterwald.
November: We presented Deep Learning in Image Analysis in the Machine Learning Substream of the PSI/EFSPI Biomarker SIG, showcasing advancements in the field of machine learning and biomarkers.
November: At the APF event, we met old friends, built new relationships and strengthened long-term collaborations in biomarker research. 

Looking ahead, we’re excited to continue working in the field of biomarkers and early clinical development on meaningful projects and further strengthening our collaborations in 2025. We’re also looking forward to the PSI conference in London this June, where we plan to reconnect with the PSI/EFSPI Biomarker SIG and engage with thought-provoking sessions. 

Biomarkers remain a key focus for advancing healthcare and research, and we’re proud to be part of this evolving field. 

For more information on biomarkers and our services, check out our page and click here.

Staburo is Top Company 2025!

What an incredible way to begin 2025!

We are beyond thrilled to announce that Staburo has been recognized with two prestigious awards as we step into the new year.

For the second time in a row, we were honoured this year with the top company 2025 award by Kununu for our outstanding company culture and high employee satisfaction. This recognition reflects the values we stand for: Check out our Kununu profile: Staburo als Arbeitgeber: Gehalt, Karriere, Benefits

In addition, presented by Kununu and Zeit Verlag, we were awarded Most Responsible Employer 2025.You can find the article under this link: https://www.zeit.de/angebote/most-responsible-employer-2025/index This highlights our commitment to environmental and social sustainability and our dedication to work-life balance. Out of 1,000 companies in the Research, Development, and Public Service category, we ranked 47th, earning an impressive score of 4.88 out of 5!

These awards are particularly meaningful as they are based on independent employee reviews. They validate our mission to create a supportive, empowering, and rewarding work environment where everyone can thrive. Think this could be the right place for you?  check out our current job openings and join our team: Jobs | Data science, biostatistics, data transparency, bioinformatics and statistical programming

 We owe these achievements to our incredible team – your hard work and passion make Staburo exceptional. Thank you for being part of this journey!

Here’s to a successful and exciting 2025, filled with growth, collaboration, and impact.

Advent season and Christmas party @ Staburo

As every year we at Staburo GmbH gathered in Munich for our annual Christmas party, celebrating the season with joy and creativity. This year’s event featured an exciting gingerbread house-building challenge — but with a twist! Teams competed in a series of fun and engaging games to earn more sweets for decoration purposes for their gingerbread houses.

With icing, candy, and plenty of enthusiasm as well as a bit of friendly competition, our colleagues designed their gingerbread masterpieces, showing off their creativity and teamwork. The festive atmosphere was filled with mulled wine, laughter, and the sweet scent of gingerbread, making it a truly delightful afternoon.

After the fun-filled gingerbread challenge, we continued our celebration at Da Rafaella. There, we enjoyed a wonderful evening with delicious Italian food, great drinks, an award ceremony, and plenty of lively conversations.

In addition, some colleagues have once again made the effort for the annual digital Staburo advent calendar. Therefore, this December was also a month for us filled with quizzes, creative coffee breaks, amazing, delicious fresh biscuits from our colleagues and the opportunity for everyone to be part of the charity activity of Johanniter.

A huge thank you to all our employees for their dedication throughout the year and to our customers for their trust and collaboration throughout the year. We are excited for everything 2025 has in store for us.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas, relaxing holidays, and a happy and successful New Year 2025!

APF 2024 @ Staburo

Staburo GmbH wants to thank everyone who joined the annual APF meeting 2024 on November 29, 2024, in Munich. The event opened with a statement from Staatsministerin Gerlach and Prof. Dr. Anne-Laure Boulesteix, LMU, President of the German Region of the International Biometric Society (IBS-DR), and brought together dedicated experts, researchers, and professionals who shared valuable perspectives on the challenges and innovations surrounding this year’s focus on drug development for rare diseases. Our agenda continued with the talks by our speakers including Dr. Michael Kunz, Dr. Martin Oliver Sailer, Prof. Dr. Franz König, Dr. Tim Friede, Dr. Tobias Bluhmki, and Dr. Katrin Kupas, for sharing their valuable insights and strategies. 

After the lunch break with plenty of refreshments and time to connect, the event continued with updates from the APF working groups and the elections for the new APF board. We are happy to announce that Dr. Frank Langer, Dr. Thomas Bregenzer, Dr. Frank Fleischer, Dr. Cornelia Kunz, Susanne Schäfer, Dr. René Kubiak, and Dr. Jens-Otto Andreas were elected. We would like to thank Prof. Dr. Christoph Gerlinger once again for his dedicated support of the APF since 2009 and hope that he will also be present at the next events! 

The panel discussion at the end with Hans-Juergen Lomp, Prof. Dr. Franz König, Prof. Dr. Tim Friede, Dr. Katrin Kupas, Dr. Tobias Bluhmki, and Dr. Tobias Mielke offered further insights and encouraged collaboration among participants. We were thrilled to see such active engagement, which continued into the informal get-together and beer tasting, where new connections were made and ideas exchanged. 

Thank you once again to our speakers, panelists, and participants for making this workshop a success. Your contributions are driving innovation and helping advance treatments for rare diseases. We look forward to future events and continued collaboration in this important field!