Group Team
David Youds
CEO and Founder
Victoria Boswell-Smith, PhD
Group Managing Director
Derek Annan, PhD
Head of Group Healthcare Strategy
Sarah Cripps
Group Financial Controller
Katie Penfold
Business Support Manager
Meet the team who inspire and enable our people to do the best work of their lives and keep us true to our mission to improve the lives of anyone managing, caring for, or living with a healthcare condition.
David Youds
Founder and CEO
David is the founder and CEO of Resonant Group, an independent agency group consisting of healthcare experience, medical communications and public relations companies operating within the pharmaceutical sector.
Prior to Bedrock, David worked for several leading companies including Servier Laboratories, Novartis Pharma, Baxter and Archimedes Pharma, holding senior commercial roles across therapy areas such as dermatology, haematology, rheumatology and transplant immunology.
David has a wealth of experience across many communication channels and a particular interest in audience expectation. This has fueled Resonant’s focus on creating and delivering a wide range of audience centric communication and engagement programmes.
Victoria Boswell-Smith
Group Managing Director
As Group Managing Director at Resonant, Victoria leads the strategic direction and operational performance of Bedrock Healthcare Communications, Origins, and Anthem Public Relations. Working closely with the leadership team, she ensures the Group delivers exceptional client value, drives commercial growth, and maintains a strong cultural foundation across its agencies.
Victoria brings extensive experience in healthcare communications with previous roles at Prime, 90Ten and Virgo. Her track record includes building high-performing teams, shaping international strategy, and delivering award-winning programmes that make a real difference for clients in pharma and biotech.
Energised by Resonant’s unique independence and ambition, Victoria is focused on shaping the Group’s next chapter of integrated, values-driven growth—ensuring innovation and impact remain at the heart of everything they do.
Derek Annan
Head of Group Healthcare Strategy
Derek serves as Head of Group Healthcare Strategy at Resonant, where he leads cross-functional initiatives that bring clarity, strategic alignment and meaningful impact across Bedrock, Anthem, and Origins. A seasoned healthcare strategist, he has partnered with a wide range of pharmaceutical and biotech clients across Medical Affairs, Commercial and Marketing, Patient Engagement, and PR and Communications.
With a passion for transforming insight into action, Derek works closely with agency teams and clients to shape strategic plans that address complex challenges, craft compelling corporate, franchise and product narratives, and support issue preparedness and management. He also enjoys facilitating internal and external strategic meetings designed to foster alignment and unlock opportunity.
His extensive experience spans across agencies including Lucid Group, FCB Health (IPG) (formerly BrandX), Virgo Health (IPG), ApotheCom (Inizio), and Bedrock.
Energised by collaboration and the potential for impact, Derek is deeply committed to building bridges across disciplines and shaping work that resonates with purpose and precision across the healthcare landscape.
Sarah Cripps
Group Financial Controller
Sarah Cripps is an accomplished finance professional. With a strong foundation in accounting, Sarah holds the MAAT designation, reflecting her expertise and commitment to the field.
In her role at Resonant Group, Sarah oversees the organisation’s financial operations, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and strategic financial planning across its diverse portfolio. Her leadership contributes to Resonant Group’s mission of delivering impactful healthcare communications and consulting services.
Sarah’s professional journey is marked by a dedication to excellence in financial management and a passion for fostering robust financial frameworks within the healthcare sector.
Katie Penfold
Business Support Manager
As the Business Support Manager at Resonant Group, Katie ensures seamless operations across facilities, executive support, and administration, driving efficiency and enabling Resonant Group’s growth. By managing infrastructure, compliance, and employee engagement, her position fosters a high-performance, collaborative workplace, allowing the team to focus on delivering exceptional healthcare communication solutions.
Katie has over 20 years’ experience in the healthcare sector both in client and agency positions.
Group Team
David Youds
CEO and Founder
David is the founder and CEO of Resonant Group, an independent agency group consisting of healthcare experience, medical communications and public relations companies operating within the pharmaceutical sector.
Prior to Bedrock, David worked for several leading companies including Servier Laboratories, Novartis Pharma, Baxter and Archimedes Pharma, holding senior commercial roles across therapy areas such as dermatology, haematology, rheumatology and transplant immunology.
In 2011, David started Bedrock Healthcare Communications to focus on developing engaging communication and education programmes within the healthcare setting, making use of his commercial, client-side experience and keen audience focus. In 2018, Bedrock Group was formed with the creation of Origins, a company specifically focused on uncovering and understanding healthcare experience, from the viewpoint of directly involved stakeholders. In 2020, Bedrock Group was renamed to Resonant Group and the first commercial acquisition was made, enabling the Group’s entry to the healthcare public relations space with Anthem Ltd.
David has a wealth of experience across many communication channels and a particular interest in audience expectation. This has fueled Resonant’s focus on creating and delivering a wide range of audience centric communication and engagement programmes. These range from educational scientific symposia for the academically minded, to the use of ‘edutainment’– a relatively new concept in healthcare that aims to teach audiences in a thrilling, engaging and innovative way. An example of edutainment is the series of award-winning fictional films that have been created by Resonant Group and its clients.
Victoria Boswell-Smith, PhD
Group Managing Director
As Group Managing Director at Resonant, Victoria leads the strategic direction and operational performance of Bedrock Healthcare Communications, Origins, and Anthem Public Relations. Working closely with the leadership team, she ensures the Group delivers exceptional client value, drives commercial growth, and maintains a strong cultural foundation across its agencies.
Victoria brings extensive experience in healthcare communications with previous roles at Prime, 90Ten and Virgo. Her track record includes building high-performing teams, shaping international strategy, and delivering award-winning programmes that make a real difference for clients in pharma and biotech.
Energised by Resonant’s unique independence and ambition, Victoria is focused on shaping the Group’s next chapter of integrated, values-driven growth—ensuring innovation and impact remain at the heart of everything they do.
Derek Annan, PhD
Head of Group Healthcare Strategy
Derek serves as Head of Group Healthcare Strategy at Resonant, where he leads cross-functional initiatives that bring clarity, strategic alignment and meaningful impact across Bedrock, Anthem, and Origins. A seasoned healthcare strategist, he has partnered with a wide range of pharmaceutical and biotech clients across Medical Affairs, Commercial and Marketing, Patient Engagement, and PR and Communications.
With a passion for transforming insight into action, Derek works closely with agency teams and clients to shape strategic plans that address complex challenges, craft compelling corporate, franchise and product narratives, and support issue preparedness and management. He also enjoys facilitating internal and external strategic meetings designed to foster alignment and unlock opportunity.
His extensive experience spans across agencies including Lucid Group, FCB Health (IPG) (formerly BrandX), Virgo Health (IPG), ApotheCom (Inizio), and Bedrock.
Energised by collaboration and the potential for impact, Derek is deeply committed to building bridges across disciplines and shaping work that resonates with purpose and precision across the healthcare landscape.
Sarah Cripps
Group Financial Controller
Sarah Cripps is an accomplished finance professional. With a strong foundation in accounting, Sarah holds the MAAT designation, reflecting her expertise and commitment to the field.
In her role at Resonant Group, Sarah oversees the organisation’s financial operations, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and strategic financial planning across its diverse portfolio. Her leadership contributes to Resonant Group’s mission of delivering impactful healthcare communications and consulting services.
Sarah’s professional journey is marked by a dedication to excellence in financial management and a passion for fostering robust financial frameworks within the healthcare sector.
Katie Penfold
Business Support Manager
As the Business Support Manager at Resonant Group, Katie ensures seamless operations across facilities, executive support, and administration, driving efficiency and enabling Resonant Group’s growth. By managing infrastructure, compliance, and employee engagement, her position fosters a high-performance, collaborative workplace, allowing the team to focus on delivering exceptional healthcare communication solutions.
Katie has over 20 years’ experience in the healthcare sector both in client and agency positions.
Meet the team who inspire and enable our people to do the best work of their lives and keep us true to our mission to improve the lives of anyone managing, caring for, or living with a healthcare condition.
