European CEO of the Year Awards 2026 Aug22676 Best Health Screening Solutions CEO 2026 (Belgium): Katleen Verleysen & Most Innovative Molecular Diagnostics Company 2026 – Belgium miDiagnostics is a healthcare company focused on transforming quality control testing for advanced therapies. Its team works in close collaboration with pharmaceutical companies, cell and gene therapy developers, and partners across the broader life sciences ecosystem who all share the common goal of bringing lifechanging therapies to patients faster, safer, and with more affordability. The advanced therapy sector continues to mature at a remarkable pace. Cell and gene therapies are expanding the boundaries of medicine and offering hope to patients facing diseases that were previously difficult or impossible to treat. At the same time, manufacturing complexity remains a significant challenge; developers face increasing pressure to reduce timelines, improve consistency, and maintain regulatory compliance whilst scaling production. This is where advanced diagnostics and rapid quality testing play an increasingly critical role. Technologies that can deliver faster and more reliable testing have the potential to remove bottlenecks and accelerate patient access to therapies. This is precisely where miDiagnostics’ specialism lies: rapid sterility testing for advanced therapy medicinal products such as CAR-T cell therapies. Leveraging its proprietary silicon-based PCR technology, the company aims to dramatically reduce testing timelines while maintaining the quality and reliability required by the industry’s stringent regulatory standards. In the past year, miDiagnostics has achieved what its team believes to be a significant industry breakthrough: demonstrating that ultra-sensitive PCR technology can achieve sensitivity comparable to traditional culture-based sterility testing. Such an accomplishment required the team to build capabilities from the ground up, combining expertise from molecular biology, engineering, software, manufacturing, quality systems, and regulatory sciences. The development of this world-first innovation was overseen by CEO For medical manufacturer miDiagnostics, 2025 was a year of successful reinvention. Now, the company has taken 2026 by storm with the breakthrough development of the ultra-sensitive PCR sterility solution, a world-first scientific achievement that reflects the unwavering passion and expertise of its team. We at EU Business News Magazine are proud to celebrate CEO Katleen Verleysen for a third consecutive year in the European CEO of the Year Awards, recognising the instrumental role the leader has played in miDiagnostics’ continued growth. We heard more about this year of success from Katleen below. Katleen Verleysen, who has been with the company since her appointment in 2021. After earning her PhD in Analytical Chemistry from Ghent University and completing postdoctoral research at Duke University, Katleen found herself fascinated by the challenge of translating scientific breakthroughs into real-world applications. Following this passion, Katleen has spent the last two decades founding, funding, building, and exiting multiple biotech and medtech companies across Europe and the United States. “My career has never followed a predefined plan. It has evolved through a combination of scientific curiosity, entrepreneurial opportunities, and a desire to create meaningful impact,” Katleen shared. “Each role taught me something different. Early stage ventures taught me resilience. Scaling companies taught me the importance of execution and teambuilding. Board positions required a broader perspective on strategy and governance. Most importantly, I learned that sustainable success is never driven by a single individual. It comes from creating environments where talented people can do their best work together.” This perspective was instrumental in the development of miDiagnostics’ ultrasensitive PCR technology. At the helm of miDiagnostics, Katleen leads with authenticity, transparency, and a deep respect for people. Recognising that high-level innovation cannot happen in a silo, the CEO focuses on creating a shared vision, fostering trust, and bringing together talented individuals with different perspectives and capabilities. In doing so, she has created an environment in which multidisciplinary teams can thrive, driving forward the development of world-first innovations. Much of Katleen’s inspiration comes from science itself. The CEO believes that scientific discovery is an exceptional way to learn humility, because every answer achieved generates a cohort of new questions and every scientific finding is subject to revision as new evidence emerges. Scientists must routinely question their own assumptions, trial their Contact: Katleen Verleysen Company: miDiagnostics Web Address: www.midiagnostics.com
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