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
Deluge of Blood Donors Triggers Response by OCD
CEO SUMMARY: It’s the story behind the story. Even as overwhelming numbers of people nationwide rushed to donate blood following September 11’s terrorist attacks, blood bankers in many cities found themselves rapidly depleting their existing inventories of supplies and test kits. One …
LabCorp to Help Collect Family DNA Specimens
CEO SUMMARY: DNA testing will be a primary tool in identifying victims of this major disaster. Officials in New York City are formulating a plan whereby private labs will do DNA testing in conjunction with New York State Police laboratories. Laboratory Corporation of America has been desi…
Events Trigger Several Responses from Quest
CEO SUMMARY: Terrorist attacks on September 11 impacted Quest Diagnostics Incorporated in a number of unexpected ways. Security measures in New York City and Washington, DC impeded normal courier activities. The immediate shutdown of all air traffic nationwide meant that air-freighted spe…
“September 24, 2001 Intelligence: Late Breaking Lab News”
Many different professions lost good people as a result of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11. However, the clinical laboratory industry and the pathology profession seems to have emerged unscathed. Following many conversations with laboratorians throughou…
It’s Modular Automation At Beaumont Hospital Lab
CEO SUMMARY: Many hospital labs are evaluating laboratory automation options. The fastest-growing problem which needs an answer is the shortage of trained medical technologists and technicians. At William Beaumont Hospital’s new laboratory, selective workstation and modular automation s…
Wireless Lab Reporting Now Active in Wash., DC
CEO SUMMARY: While companies like iScribe and Allscripts have attracted lots of attention with their efforts to convince doctors to use wireless PDAs to order prescriptions, InstantDx has quietly launched its “OnCallData” service in Washington, DC. It offers both prescription-ordering a…
Ohio Hospitals Prevail in Suit Against Federal Lab Claims
IT TOOK FIVE YEARS, but federal courts finally gave victory to the Ohio Hospital Association (OHA) in its long-running battle against federal regulators over laboratory test billing issues. Early last month, the OHA signed a settlement with the federal government which resolves the …
Lab Test Ordering On Web Presents Tough Challenges
CEO SUMMARY: During 1999, many factors pointed to the speedy introduction of Web-based lab test ordering between physicians’ offices and their laboratory providers. Several credible players, like Healtheon/ WebMD (now WebMD) and Advanced Health Technologies, held numerous contracts to i…
“September 4, 2001 Intelligence: Late Breaking Lab News”
Here’s early warning: Medicare and Medicaid funding will become high-profile issues during 2002. Numbers just released by the Congressional Budget Office indicate that Medicare spending will increase by 10% during fiscal 2001 over fiscal 2000. Increased provider payments are contri…
British Firm Acquires Sunquest Info Systems
CEO SUMMARY: Sunquest Information Systems was recently acquired by Misys Plc, a software company based in the United Kingdom. The transaction is another example of consolidation within the healthcare software sector. It also demonstrates that software products developed in the United Stat…
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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