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
ChromaVision Targets National AP Market
CEO SUMMARY: Three new business strategies are moving ChromaVision into different segments of the laboratory testing marketplace. The company has built a new laboratory facility and will support local pathology groups with advanced diagnostic technology. It is also expanding its presence …
Oncology’s Potential Drives AP Lab Expansion
CEO SUMMARY: It is no coincidence that another public company is shifting its business focus and expanding its efforts to capture cancer-related anatomic pathology specimens. Demographic trends predict a steady increase in the number of new cancer cases yearly, while new technologies are …
Mayo’s Scottsdale Hospital Lab Hits Big “Lean” Home Runs
CEO SUMMARY: Are Lean and Six Sigma techniques ready to make a big contribution in the laboratories of smaller hospitals? If you ask lab managers at Mayo Clinic’s Scottsdale Hospital, the answer is an unqualified “Yes!” Their 15-week Lean project in the hospital’s high volume core…
Leonard Joins AEL’s Board, Cenetron Is Newest Acquisition
There were two big announcements at American Esoteric Laboratories, Inc. (AEL) during the past few weeks. First came news on July 20 that Larry L. Leonard was now on the Board of Directors at AEL. Leonard had been part of the senior executive team at Laboratory Corporation o…
Cerner, Gajema Software, India Labs Look to U.K. & U.S.A
CERNER CORP. ACQUIRES GAJEMA SOFTWARE WITH ITS ACQUISITION of Gajema Software, announced on August 17, Cerner Corporation is moving an existing four-year business relationship to a higher level. Gajema, based in Charlotte, North Carolina, sells a solution t…
“August 30, 2004 Intelligence: Late Breaking Lab News”
Film-maker Michael Moore is ready to turn his cameras on the American healthcare system. During a tour of the United Kingdom this summer, the controversial director declared that he wanted to use his cameras to intervene and save lives. Moore, basking in the attention generated by his Fahrenheit …
Part II: Path Condo Labs As A Threat to Pathology
SPECIALIST PHYSICIAN GROUPS are taking active steps to capture anatomic pathology (AP) revenues that result from specimens generated by their groups’ patients. Yet the anatomic pathology profession is only now awakening to this threat. To educate and alert pathologists and their group practice adm…
LabCorp’s Smith Speaks On New Pathology Trend
CEO SUMMARY: During the past decade, Laboratory Corporation of America’s Brad Smith faced the spear point of evolving Medicare/Medicaid compliance initiatives which changed so many laboratory industry business practices. Smith believes that business models for in-house anatomic patholog…
Of Congress and the OIG: Speedy Action Ahead?
CEO SUMMARY: During the short life of AP laboratory condominium complexes, they have attracted the interest of both an influential Senator and the Office of the Inspector General (OIG). Last month, Senator Charles E. Grassley sent a letter to the OIG requesting that it investigate the AP …
Peeking Into Finances Of Pathology Lab Condos
CEO SUMMARY: In the possession of THE DARK REPORT is a copy of revenue and expense projections shown by a pathology condo laboratory complex promoter to prospective urology groups. They project that even smaller urology groups can realize worthwhile income if they invest in a pathology co…
CURRENT ISSUE
Volume XXXII, No. 13 – September 15, 2025
The Dark Report examines a new bill that would reform PAMA and avoid reimbursement rate cuts scheduled for January 2026. Clinical laboratory leaders are urged to make their voices heard in Congress. Also, an expert describes how labs can fix pre-analytical errors and avoid disaster.
See the full table of contentsHow Much Laboratory Business Intelligence Have You Missed?
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