Meet The Team

Aaron Gorall

Aaron Gorall, CEO and Co-founder of Sierra Clinical Services, is an accomplished clinical research and clinical data management professional with over 30 years experience in the medical device industry. After years of encouragement from Ophthalmic Industry Leaders to start his own CRO, he founded Sierra in February 2011 with the vision to become the partner of choice for transforming vision research.

Throughout Aaron's career he has managed clinical studies, extensively monitored study sites, attended numerous FDA inspections, trained surgeons on the use of new medical devices, and managed multiple CRAs and clinical application teams. His clinical trial experience includes Phases I, II and III as well as post-market surveillance studies. Aaron boasts over three decades in the therapeutic area of Ophthalmology and has successfully contributed to over 80 clinical trials during his tenure as CEO at Sierra.

Aaron lives in Royal Palm Beach, Florida. He enjoys traveling, culturally diverse food and wine and is always up for an adventure. On the weekends you can find him on a golf course or on a paddle board with his dog Milo.

In His Own Words

What do you LOVE about working at Sierra?

"Partnering with a group of professional and experienced team members whose determination and commitment create success. I constantly remind myself how fortunate and proud I am to be surrounded by an amazing team! Every day is a new challenge and our team rises to the occasion." - Aaron

What do you LOVE about your role?

"Working closely with industry leaders and being a critical part of the decision making process to ensure high quality research and success are achieved. Through these partnerships, we are transforming vision research and that excites me." - Aaron

Most IMPACTFUL study you have worked on:

"All studies where we are involved are impactful as we are not only helping companies achieve success, but we are also improving the lives of so many people who are able to literally see the world better than they ever have." - Aaron

Favorite Quote:

"Roads? Where we’re going we don’t need roads." - Back to the Future

"Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary." - Dead Poets Society

Jen Lee

Jen Lee, President and Co-founder of Sierra Clinical Services, is an accomplished clinical research and clinical data management professional with over 30 years experience in the medical device industry and ophthalmology. Driven by her passion for the industry and her desire to transform vision research, she co-founded Sierra in February 2011.

Throughout her career she has managed clinical trials, directed data management teams, designed, developed, tested and managed clinical databases, managed CRAs and monitored study sites. She has extensive experience in partnering and collaborating with sponsors and statisticians during study planning, conduct, data analysis and audits. Jen's trial experience includes Phases I, II and III as well as post-market studies.

Jen lives in Woodinville, Washington and enjoys spending time with her family and pets. The ocean and the mountains are her happy places. Whether it's a weekend getaway, a road trip or traveling the world, Jen loves the adventure of exploring and experiencing new places.

In Her Own Words

What do you LOVE about working at Sierra?

"I love the camaraderie of our team. The dedication our team has and the closeness that we share makes me feel super confident that we can tackle any project and any hurdle that comes our way. Possibly even better is the fact that we have fun while doing it." - Jen

What do you LOVE about your role?

"I'm a nerd so I really enjoy the techy side of the eTools we use at Sierra and digging into the details of the data we manage." - Jen

Most IMPACTFUL study you have worked on:

"A CMV Retinitis study for an intraocular device that released ganciclovir into the eye because it preserved vision and increased quality of life for AIDS patients who didn't have much longer to live." - Jen

Favorite Quote:

"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." - Leonardo da Vinci

Ryan Johnson, MBA

Ryan serves as the Chief Operating Officer at Sierra, where he oversees the company's day-to-day operations, ensuring efficiency, scalability, and strategic alignment across all functions. A seasoned business leader, Ryan brings over 16 years of experience in both public and private companies, with a strong track record of driving sustainable growth. Before stepping into the COO role, he joined Sierra in 2022 as CFO and Head of Business Development, leveraging his expertise in financial strategy and corporate expansion to support the company's mission.

Prior to joining Sierra, Ryan held leadership roles at Fortune 500 companies and managed cross functional teams in the wholesale and apparel industry. Ryan served as Director of Merchandising at Nike, while there he focused on strategic business management of the Nike marketplace to determine product, pricing, promotion and placement for the North America business. Ryan has also held various roles in Sales and Strategic Management where he was responsible for driving profitable business results and creating the strategic business vision.

Ryan received his BA in Political Science with Honors from UCLA and an MBA from the University of California, Irvine with an emphasis in Finance.

Ryan is a Southern California native, where he lives with his wife Katie, two kids, Asher and Savannah and their Boxer, Piper. Outside of work, Ryan is an athlete, who enjoys running, swimming, mountain biking and golfing. On most weekends he can be found supporting his kids at a soccer tournament or a cheer competition.

In His Own Words

What do you LOVE about working at Sierra?

"The team that I work with." - Ryan

What do you LOVE about your role?

"I love working closely with motivated and passionate individuals on a common goal of making the world better. We get to do this every day by providing quality research that results in positive outcomes for patients." - Ryan

Favorite Quote:

"Sometimes it's a little better to travel than to arrive" - Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

"Start with the end in mind" - Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Adam Hale

As a Clinical Project Manager for Sierra Clinical, Kiara works directly with our clinical sites and Sponsors to develop monitoring plans, train CRAs on study protocols and manage field monitors. She has over 11 years experience in the medical device industry and joined Sierra in 2013, previously serving in the capacity of a Clinical Research Associate. Prior to joining the team at Sierra, she worked as a CRA at Transcend Medical. Throughout her career, she has been involved in numerous aspects and phases of clinical trials in the field of Ophthalmology and has experience in conducting clinical audits in conformance with Good Clinical practice. Kiara's experience includes multiple types and phases of clinical trials. Kiara graduated Cum Laude from the University of La Verne.

Kiara lives in Chino Hills, California with her husband and three kids and enjoys being outdoors, hiking, and traveling.

In Her Own Words

What do you LOVE about working at Sierra?

"The team that I work with." - Kiara

What do you LOVE about your role?

"Being able to work on multiple projects with different Sponsors." - Kiara

Most IMPACTFUL study you have worked on:

"Probably the very first study I ever worked on. It was a glaucoma study and I learned so much, it's what started my career path into clinical research." - Kiara

Favorite Quote:

"Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory." - Dr. Seuss

Kiara Down

As a Clinical Project Manager for Sierra Clinical, Kiara works directly with our clinical sites and Sponsors to develop monitoring plans, train CRAs on study protocols and manage field monitors. She has over 11 years experience in the medical device industry and joined Sierra in 2013, previously serving in the capacity of a Clinical Research Associate. Prior to joining the team at Sierra, she worked as a CRA at Transcend Medical. Throughout her career, she has been involved in numerous aspects and phases of clinical trials in the field of Ophthalmology and has experience in conducting clinical audits in conformance with Good Clinical practice. Kiara's experience includes multiple types and phases of clinical trials. Kiara graduated Cum Laude from the University of La Verne.

Kiara lives in Chino Hills, California with her husband and three kids and enjoys being outdoors, hiking, and traveling.

In Her Own Words

What do you LOVE about working at Sierra?

"The team that I work with." - Kiara

What do you LOVE about your role?

"Being able to work on multiple projects with different Sponsors." - Kiara

Most IMPACTFUL study you have worked on:

"Probably the very first study I ever worked on. It was a glaucoma study and I learned so much, it's what started my career path into clinical research." - Kiara

Favorite Quote:

"Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory." - Dr. Seuss

Max Lane

Max brings over 15 years of strategy-driven business development experience to Sierra Clinical, where he serves as Director of Business Growth. In this role, he leverages deep market insight and offers development expertise to align sponsor needs in ophthalmic research with Sierra’s specialized study capabilities.

Prior to joining Sierra in 2025, Max led and scaled business development efforts at leading med-tech CROs, including NAMSA and ORA, Inc. At ORA, he oversaw all medical device and glaucoma opportunities, and helped shape global device strategy across departments and regions.

Max began his career in medical sales with Alcon, GN ReSound, and Henry Schein Dental, where he consistently ranked among top performers, earned President's Club honors, and drove double-digit territory growth.

He holds a B.S. in Marketing and Professional Sales from Bradley University and is passionate about mentoring emerging professionals in the med-tech and clinical trials space.

Max lives in Lake Elmo, Minnesota with his wife and three kids. Outside of work, he enjoys traveling, golfing, and supporting Minnesota sports, especially Vikings, Gophers, Timberwolves, and Wild.

In His Own Words

What do you LOVE about working at Sierra?

"I love Sierra's combination of open, top-down communication and genuine 'how can I help?' energy. We work hard, we have fun, and no one is on an island." - Max

What do you LOVE about your role?

"I love my role because it gives me a creative runway and real ownership. I get to help build the business while putting my long‑standing ophthalmology relationships to work for sponsors, sites, and ultimately patients." - Max

Favorite Quote:

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." - Wayne Gretzky

Trace Brookins

Bio coming soon.

In Her Own Words

What do you LOVE about working at Sierra?

"Coming soon." - John

What do you LOVE about your role?

"Coming soon." - John

Most IMPACTFUL study you have worked on:

"Coming soon." - John

Favorite Quote:

"Coming soon." - John