Linda M. Thienpont, PhD is full Professor at the University of Ghent (Belgium), where she teaches “Instrumental analytical chemistry” and “Statistics and quality control”. Her main research interests focus on development/implementation of standardization/harmonization concepts, and improvement of clinical laboratory measurements. In this area, she has published over 150 peer reviewed papers. All the mass spectrometric reference measurement procedures (for substrates/metabolites, 25OH-vitamin D, total and free steroid and thyroid hormones) she developed are listed in the Database of the Joint Committee for Traceability in Laboratory Medicine (JCTLM) (see: http://www.bipm.org/)/). She offers reference laboratory services and consultancy to all major globally operating IVD manufacturers, who in turn participate in projects chaired by her, e.g., the project of the IFCC Committee for Standardization of Thyroid Function Tests. Previous international standardization programs in which her reference laboratory served were from the European Commission-BCR, ADA–EASD, CAP, CEQAL, and the Vitamin D Standardization Program (NIH–ODS, together with CDC and NIST). Other responsibilities of Prof. Thienpont are: founding member and co-chair of the JCTLM, chairholder of the CLSI C45-A guideline, member of the AACC Harmonization Oversight Group, and of the Editorial Board of Clinical Chemistry. She was recipient of the Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics oral Communication prize (2008), the IFCC-Robert Schaffer Award for Outstanding Achievements in the Development of Standards for Use in Laboratory Medicine (2011) and the EQALM Adam Uldall Award of Appreciation for her unique contribution to the field of External Quality Assurance in Laboratory Medicine (2013).