Robert Michel
Until Robert L. Michel came along and founded The Dark Intelligence Group (DIG) two decades ago, the clinical laboratory industry and the anatomic pathology profession lacked a trustworthy source for information about the management and operations of medical laboratories. From its inception in 1995, The Dark Report quickly became the “go to” source of industry intelligence, innovations in lab management, and strategic market analysis.
This excellence in reporting has earned recognition from his peers. For example, twice Michel and The Dark Report have won national awards for best investigative reporting by the Specialty Information Publishers Association. In 2005, the award was for Michel’s coverage about how the anatomic pathology condominium laboratories (pod labs) operated by urologists and gastroenterologists came to be, who operated them, and how these owners marketed the AP condo labs to other physician groups. In 2009, Michel’s award for best investigative reporting resulted from his published interviews with Quest Diagnostics Incorporated when the company admitted that, for a period of 18 months, it had been reported inaccurate Vitamin 25(OH) D results because of problems with its laboratory-developed test methodology. The Dark Report’s story was picked up by The New York Times and was in the national news cycle for several days.
In his role as Editor-in-Chief, Michel brought unique capabilities to DIG and The Dark Report. His management training and diverse business experience—along with his skills as a concise writer and analyst—proved to be a winning combination for readers of The Dark Report. For that reason, Michel’s story has many intriguing elements.
Immediately prior to founding DIG, he had served in several executive positions for Nichols Institute based in Portland, Oregon, and San Juan Capistrano, California. This was during the time that Nichols Institute was an independent public lab company with annual revenues of about $280 million (prior to its acquisition by MetPath, Inc., now Quest Diagnostics Incorporated). He traveled extensively to many of the clinical lab business units owned by Nichols Institute in different regions of the United States and played a role in formulating effective market strategies in response to the emergence of closed-panel HMOs, capitated pricing, and full-risk managed care contracts, among other successful management initiatives.
Prior to his service at Nichols Institute, Michel served at three different Fortune 100 companies. These were Procter & Gamble, Centex Corporation, and Financial Corp. of America. Each was an opportunity to master new management techniques and apply them in different industries. Between these positions, he gained experience as an entrepreneur, having founded a real estate development firm and a general contracting company in the Southeastern United States.
Robert Michel earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he played rugby, a sport he participated in for another 22 years. He is a native of California and grew up in Santa Ana.
Articles by Robert Michel
Summary and Overview of Lab Industry
If there is any common theme to the different chapters of this White Paper on the laboratory industry, it is probably this: in the next couple of years, clinical laboratories will continue to have one foot in the past and one foot in the future. Simply put, lab administrators will continue to manag…
Year’s Ten Biggest Stories Reveal Modest Changes
CEO SUMMARY: In many ways, 2000 was a relatively quiet year for laboratory organizations. This list of the ten biggest stories in the lab industry for 2000 demonstrates that the most innovative laboratory organizations in the United States are “raising the bar” for service and quality…
Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics Embraces New Testing Technology
CEO SUMMARY: Despite a decade of consolidation, competition among the world’s largest diagnostics manufacturers remains intense. In response to this competition, Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics (OCD) is preparing a variety of new products and services for its clinical laboratory customers. I…
Dynacare’s IPO is Funded, Specialty Labs’ IPO is Next
IT WAS A DISAPPOINTING TRIP to the public equity markets for Dynacare, Inc. last month. The lab company raised only $50 million in its initial public offering (IPO). Dynacare had hoped to harvest as much as $89 million from this IPO. Plans were to sell seven million shares at about …
Premier’s Lab Vendors Hooking Up Via Internet
CEO SUMMARY: Laboratory members of Premier will soon be purchasing instruments, reagents, and supplies through medibuy.com’s Internet healthcare e-commerce site. Four major lab industry suppliers are actively working to link with the medibuy.com and Premier Web sites. For Premier, this …
“December 4, 2000 Intelligence: Late Breaking Lab News”
Evidence continues to grow that consumers are using the Internet to actively intervene in their health care. The Pew Foundation released a report last week that says 52 million Americans are using the Internet “to gain knowledge about disease, investigate how to participate in clinic…
AmeriPath Will Acquire Inform DX for $44.6 Mil
CEO SUMMARY: It’s another example of consolidation in the anatomic pathology marketplace. AmeriPath, Inc.’s acquisition of Inform DX, Inc. positions the company to do as much as $350 million in revenues next year. By acquiring Inform DX, AmeriPath also gains entry into six more states…
Medical Arts Lab Opts To File For Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
CEO SUMMARY: Dissident shareholders and a crushing debt burden are the reason Medical Arts Laboratory decided to file for reorganization under Chapter 11 bankruptcy laws. Both factors are the legacy of an ill-fated attempt to create a national laboratory organization between 1994 and 1997…
AmeriPath & InformDX Merging To Form Largest Anatomic Pathology Firm in U.S.
CEO SUMMARY: AmeriPath and InformDX shared several common elements in their respective business strategies. Both companies believe that pathology services are best delivered at the local level and benefit from the support of a national organization. Both companies believe that physicians …
Cheerios® Teaching Consumers Facts About Laboratory Testing
FOR YEARS, BOTH HOSPITAL LABS and independent commercial labs considered physicians and payers to be the primary customers for lab testing. The lab testing needs of patients as customers seldom came up when lab managers discussed how to organize and deliver their lab’s testing services. In fact, m…
CURRENT ISSUE
Volume XXXII, No. 12 – August 25, 2025
In an exclusive interview, a laboratory industry M&A specialist discusses what’s driving lab outreach sales to national lab companies. Also, The Dark Report analyzes ways in which pathology and clinical labs can profitably partner with pharmaceutical companies.
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