SHYFT Analytics, the leading analytics cloud for life sciences, today announced it has secured a $7.5 million investment from Optum Ventures, closing out a strategically-lead $20 million Series B Round of funding that included McKesson and Medidata Solutions.

"Our growth is a reflection of the value we're delivering to our customers and the importance of data analytics in clinical and commercial decision making," said Zack King, CEO and Founder of SHYFT Analytics. "The investment from Optum is an affirmation of that value and of our shared view of the exciting and transformative changes happening in health care today. As our customers become ever more patient-centric, we're partnering with leading companies to develop and deliver the right treatment to the right patient with the best possible outcome."

Optum's investment in SHYFT closes out an all-strategic and oversubscribed $20 million Series B round, including an initial $12.5 million from McKesson, Medidata and existing investors. The funding will fuel SHYFT's rapid growth and expansion and further advance its leading healthcare cloud analytics solutions in the areas of Real World Evidence (RWE), Specialty Pharma, and Rare Disease. Along with the investment, Optum Ventures will join SHYFT's Board of Directors.

SHYFT customers include a number of the top 10 and emerging mid-market global pharmaceutical companies with a rapidly-expanding customer base in oncology, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, specialty, rare disease and biotechnology.

About SHYFT
SHYFT is the leading analytics cloud for life sciences that enables companies to catalyze clinical development and commercial growth through converged insights. Customers drive collective patient-centric action against key business drivers as they unleash the patient paradigm and become capable of anticipating, designing and delivering the right treatment to the right patient at the precisely the right time. Learn more about SHYFT at www.shyftanalytics.com, or follow the company on Twitter @SHYFTAnalytics or LinkedIn.

About Optum Ventures
Optum Ventures is an investment arm of Optum, a leading information and technology-enabled health services business and a UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) company.