Leadership is a team sport, according to Versiti president and chief executive officer
Chris Miskel, and Versiti’s upward trajectory stems from that team effort.
Miskel has served as Versiti’s CEO since February 2017, taking over from Jacquelyn Fredrick. The Milwaukee-based nonprofit blood health organization operates blood donation and research facilities in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Texas and Wisconsin. In 2016 – before Miskel was hired – the organization’s revenue totaled $289.5 million. By the end of 2023, Versiti’s total revenue had grown to exceed $420 million.
Under Miskel’s leadership, Versiti has seen further progress and expansion this year.
Most recently, the organization announced on Nov. 4 that Versiti Blood Center of Ohio acquired Solvita Blood Center in Dayton, Ohio. Versiti has operated and will continue to maintain a blood center in Ohio, so this acquisition expands Versiti’s presence in the state. Miskel said Versiti leadership had been in talks with Solvita, which also owns and operates global tissue services, since he first became CEO.
“We’ve always felt like there was a nice strategic fit because of the geographic location and because of the mission alignment,” Miskel said in a recent interview with BizTimes. “Conversations accelerated in the last, I’d say, 12 to 18 months. (Solvita is) exceptional at tissue, and they entrusted us as someone that is maniacally focused on blood to care for their blood operation and make sure that the community in Dayton is served by an organization that cares about blood.”
On Sept. 10, the nonprofit broke ground on the Versiti Blood Research Institute’s 79,000-square-foot expansion. The VBRI is located at 8727 W. Watertown Plank Road at the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center in Wauwatosa.
The $79 million project will double the facility’s research capacity, add about 100 jobs and help support Versiti’s work to advance blood health. Over 30 years, the addition is projected to create about $19 million in tax revenue for the state. The project also received a $10 million state grant.
Versiti has also recruited “some of the best scientists in the world,” over the past 12 to 18 months, Miskel said.
“We have a recent recruitment that we’ll announce soon,” he said. “We feel like we’re cooking with gas on our research mission.”
In 2023, Versiti acquired two Indiana-based diagnostic laboratories, Quantigen and Pearl Pathways, that it has worked to integrate into its clinical trials operations this year.
“The integration stage takes grit and determination and perseverance,” Miskel said.
In October, Versiti opened a blood center and community resource center – called Versiti on King – inside the ThriveOn King building, located at 2153 N. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. Versiti held an open house for community members looking to give blood, connect and learn more about the services offered at Versiti on King.
Versiti on King does not only serve as a site for blood donations. It also offers education about diseases that commonly affect people of color, such as sickle cell, lupus, cancer and organ failure. Versiti on King also provides a community health navigator – a liaison between members of the community and health or social service organizations – as well as basic social services. There is also a training center on-site for Versiti staff to learn elements of phlebotomy.
Versiti recognized a deficit in collecting blood in Black and brown communities, which limits the ability to serve patients with sickle cell disease and other blood disorders, Miskel said in a previous interview. This potential service to the community contributed to Versiti’s presence as a health care anchor at ThriveOn King, he said.
“Lifting communities is a spark for us, and bringing our excellence in blood expertise to all communities is something that we wanted to live, breathe and act upon,” Miskel said.
In recognition of his leadership at a momentous point for Versiti, Miskel is the BizTimes Milwaukee 2024 Best in Business CEO of the Year.
Looking ahead, Miskel said that galvanizing philanthropic support for Versiti’s research is his number one priority for 2025. Miskel also hopes to harness the “boundless” opportunities of Versiti’s clinical trial services, he said.
It’s important to ensure that all employees under the Versiti umbrella are connected to the organization’s culture and that the hundreds of hospitals receiving blood from Versiti have what they need to save lives, Miskel said. Versiti Blood Center of Wisconsin provides more than 230,000 units, or pints, of blood and blood products annually to more than 56 hospitals in the state.
“On a day-to-day basis, there’s a chase, there’s a sense of urgency with everyone here to keep our vision moving forward,” Miskel said.
