Mako Medical Laboratories: A Game-Changing Testing Company, Changing Lives Locally and Globally

“We have some of the country’s leading doctors specializing in methodology development and pathological services heading up the team at MAKO Medical Laboratories.”

Mako Medical Laboratories is a healthcare brand, specializing in methodology development and pathological services. Mako aims to disrupt the sector while offering support to veterans by hiring them as fleet drivers. The company combines a wealth of new technology including robotics, app platforms, and cloud-based tech. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the laboratories have expanded and adapted their services to offer accurate virus testing.

Mako Medical is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Chad Price, who serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Mako Medical Laboratories, spoke to The Silicon Review about how the company is making a difference in this segment, especially tackling Covid-19 testing challenges. Below is an excerpt.

Head to Head with Chad Price, CEO of Mako Medical Laboratories

Q. What’s your story? And tell us what motivated you to establish Mako Medical Laboratories.

The truth is that I started out with no healthcare experience. While I’d previously started businesses, the medical world was a mystery to me. However, the idea for MAKO Medical Laboratories was born out of the personal experience when I saw the long wait my sister had to go through. She has a long-term medical condition and my brother and I were shocked to witness firsthand how unclear and frustrating the process can be. It was then that we teamed up with our mutual friend, Josh Arant, to start a new type of testing business.

We aim to change the way that these testing services operate by offering transparent and speedy results when customers need them the most. Since starting MAKO Medical, we’ve been very fortunate and the company has expanded organically. I can only say that this is down to the values that we adhere to and our team of highly dedicated experts.

Q. Trust is one of the most important currencies of leadership that requires authenticity and consistency to maintain. What’s your take on this?

Leading a team of more than a thousand experts has taught me that trust trickles down in any company. My actions will have a direct impact on the team and I take that position very seriously. Everything I do—both in my professional and personal life—needs to adhere to the values of authenticity and consistency. In the simplest of terms, it’s about leading by example. Through my charitable activities and outreach in the community, I hope to demonstrate my passion to each of the MAKO Medical employees.

Of course, we’re all human and none of us is perfect. However, I am dedicated to being the best possible leader I can be. That means working hard, putting the needs of the greater community first, and making decisions that benefit everyone around me. I am fortunate enough to have a strong team that shares these values and my vision.

Q. Where does Mako Medical stand at the moment relative to other participants in the industry?

MAKO Medical aims to disrupt the healthcare industry and I do believe we do just that. Since the COVID-19 pandemic started, we showed our versatility by quickly adapting our services. There was a clear need for speedy testing and research to stop the virus spread. By acting fast, we were able to expand one of our laboratories immensely and also hire hundreds of new staff members. I believe that this move enabled us to quickly support the community by offering affordable testing and research into different virus variants.

While I can’t comment directly on other companies in the industry, I think it’s fair to say that we stand in a good position. With MAKO Medical Laboratories, we have always valued the needs of customers above all else, and this is something we continue with in the future. The company will continue to adapt to local and global needs, offering the best service.

Q. ‘Laboratories should truly support patients and healthcare professionals’. Would you like to elaborate on this a bit more?

One of the things that I noticed before starting MAKO Medical Laboratories is that putting patients and healthcare professionals first is not industry standard. There’s a whole load of red tape associated with this sector, which can lead to long wait times and a lack of clarity. That is something that I wanted to change when we founded the company. I do believe that laboratories like ours have to support the individuals who use their services.

We work directly with both patients and healthcare professionals. These customers are looking for swift and accurate results—nothing more, nothing less. Since our beginnings, we have always followed that closely and ensured that we offered the best support. Of course, we are continually adapting our approach to make sure we’re up to date.

Q. What can you tell us about the Mako Medical team and the technology in place?

Of course, we have some of the country’s leading doctors specializing in methodology development and pathological services heading up the team at MAKO Medical Laboratories. These are the experts who lead the way when it comes to our future developments and the processes that we currently use within our testing laboratories.

When it comes to technology, we’re aiming to be one of the industry leaders. Our team works with the latest advancements including robotics, cloud-based systems, and apps to offer the highest level of service. Additionally, we have teamed up with other healthcare companies to collaborate on projects and push forward medical advancements.

Q. That’s not all Mako Medical does. What are its other focus areas?

At MAKO Medical Laboratories, we’re passionate about supporting veterans. These brave individuals often see high rates of unemployment after leaving the services. My brother and co-founder Adam Price spent a decade serving in the U.S. Army, and so understands this problem better than anyone else in the company.

When we started the business, we also launched the Mako Medical Shark Fleet. That means that we hire veterans as drivers and delivery professionals for our brand. We currently have a massive 99.9% pickup success rate, meaning that the majority of patients get their lab results the next day. We believe that these people need to be supported and paid the respect that they deserve, and we are thankful for all their hard work.

Q. How do you plan to counter challenges that you think Mako Medical might face in the next five years?

The past two years have shown that you can never tell what the future holds. However, I have been extremely proud of how quickly the existing MAKO Medical team was able to adapt to the demands of the pandemic. For that reason, I have the utmost confidence in our employees and their versatility. To support this, we offer our team members ongoing training and development opportunities within the business. By investing in the talented individuals already in our ranks, I believe that we can strengthen the entire company.

Q.  Is there anything else you want us to highlight that we might have missed?

Most recently, the team at MAKO Medical has detected three cases of the omicron variant here in the U.S. Since the start of the pandemic, we have dedicated ourselves to researching the variants and detecting them quickly. By teaming up with leading organizations and public bodies, we have been able to share this information. I would like to highlight the role our team plays in the ongoing fight against COVID-19 and its variants.

Chad Price | CEO

Chad Price is the CEO of MAKO Medical Laboratories. He has had a long entrepreneurial career previously, co-founding MakoRx, BrideGenie and Element Services Group Mechanical LLC. He led sales and marketing for Cary Reconstruction and is a board member for Trill A.I. He currently offers tailored consulting services to companies embarking on new mergers or primed for growth.

 Along with Adam Price and Josh Arant, he co-founded MAKO Medical Laboratories in 2014.

“MAKO Medical aims to disrupt the healthcare industry and I do believe we do just that.”