- Email: [email protected]
Adapting business planning for the dental office
demonstrate that the team is personally and professionally valued by the dentist. The dentist must be willing to commit to this investment and provide the training needed as well as a system of pay for performance. These two aspects of investment are vital to helping the team become great. Provide training.—All teams need training to improve their skills and it should be delivered consistently and often. A good choice is quarterly on-site training sessions because they provide the highest return on investment. Training begins with the telephone and the front desk team because new patients are essential to the practice. By providing this training, the dentist equips the team with valuable skills that will be applicable throughout their careers. The dentist benefits by learning which team members are excited to have the opportunity to grow and develop their talents and which team members resist the training and put up road blocks. This can help the dentist in deciding if the right people are in the right places—and prepare for the next step. Incentivize.—To motivate the team to be their best, the dentist must create a culture that connects pay with performance against goals set. In this way, performance goals are continually moved up, which increases pay through incentives and bonuses. People who want to use their talents well or expand their capabilities thrive in such an atmosphere and are well rewarded; they are the practice’s ‘‘power players.’’ The incentives should be meaningful dollar amounts. Each team member has unique talents and abilities, so the incentives must be personalized to each individual. Setting goals but not rewarding the team sufficiently conveys the message that they will receive essentially the same reward regardless of their performance—and the result is many people will do the minimum that is acceptable—which won’t grow your Dream Team. Results.—When the personal incentive structure is set up, team members will either change their behaviors because they want growth or the reward or they will be
unwilling to change or develop any of their capabilities. The dentist will quickly see the difference between power players and ‘‘weak players.’’ For individuals who don’t want to participate or change, the dentist must recognize that there may be no way to fix that attitude. These weak players may even resist or react negatively to training, organize to fight the change, or generally make it known that they feel it is ‘‘unfair’’ to get paid for performance. The dentist may give them some time to change, but if it’s clear that their negative attitude and actions are going to hurt the practice, they need to go. This allows the power players to have greater influence over the practice’s performance and drives everyone closer to reaching the goals set. Discussion.—When the team works together toward a common goal and is rewarded for their performance, the result is generally excellent patient care and professional growth. The difficult aspects of instituting such a change are worthwhile because of the value that is realized in creating a dental office Dream Team.
Clinical Significance.—Building, training, and developing an outstanding team is a never-ending process and will continue throughout the life of the practice. The dentist must take the lead and institute the changes, but the potential for growing a team in terms of professional and personal skills is worth the investment of time and money.
Geier J: Creating the (sigh) dream team. Dentaltown, July 2016, pp 68, 70-73 Reprints not available
Strategic Planning Adapting business planning for the dental office Background.—Strategic planning is an essential activity for businesses. It is designed to find creative ways to respond to opportunities and challenges that a business may face. Although many methods have been developed, not all have been well conceived and some are poorly implemented. For strategic planning to be useful in a
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dental office setting, it needs to be simplified so that the employees can concentrate on taking care of their immediate responsibilities (which is meeting the needs of patients and other staff members) but have an idea of the ultimate objective for the practice. A simple process was outlined, with information about why it works for dental offices.
Method.—The dentist should begin by developing a vision statement that defines what the practice should be like in 3 years. He or she should share this with all staff members so that they know the objective for the practice. Next, a half-day staff meeting should be held purely for the purpose of strategic planning. Staff members should be told about the meeting, its purpose, how it will work, their roles, and what it should accomplish. They should be given assignments to complete in preparation for the meeting. During the meeting, staff members should be asked to list 20 things that went well in the past year, especially those that relate to the vision statement. Then they should list 20 things that did not go well. Sometimes staff members need the dentist to encourage them to be honest about the latter. It helps to view the second list as opportunities to improve. All of the items on both lists should be discussed in a brainstorming session focused on how to move forward toward the vision. Ideas can include ways to build on the successes or innovative approaches to poor performance areas. Once the discussion is complete, the group should collectively identify the three most promising ideas. Then the group should develop and record the details associated with implementing each idea. This would include budget issues, a timetable, who is responsible for what, targets to aim for, and how to measure the results. Innovative Approaches.—The goal of strategic planning is to come up with creative solutions to manage problems and opportunities. The ideas can come from anywhere, which is why the entire staff should be included. It also pays for the dentist and staff to be aware of the solutions that have worked for other dental practices and the possibility that they could be adapted. Ideas can be suggested by journals, books, newspaper articles, Web sites, management experts, and even personal experiences with other businesses or organizations.
Staff Engagement.—Including all the team members in strategic planning is wise not just to ensure a broad range of possible creative solutions but also to engage them in the process, which increases the chance that they will buy into the result. Employees often question strategies that are imposed on them, especially if these strategies involve changing how they perform their tasks. If team members are excluded, they may resist the implementation of changes, especially if they don’t see the plan as realistic. Engaging them in the brainstorming, the choice of ideas, and the plan for implementation will help them to take ownership of the strategic planning activity. Staff should not only be encouraged to attend all planning sessions, but also to participate in them. Any contributions should be acknowledged. The entire team should be told about the final plan and have ongoing reports on the results. Once the implementation process is in place, staff members should be encouraged to give feedback to help the process along.
Clinical Significance.—Strategic planning helps in addressing opportunities and problems in innovative ways. Dentists need to work with their entire staff to create plans for managing situations that arise, whether good or bad, so that the patients they serve receive the best possible oral health care.
Levin RP: A realistic approach to strategic planning for dental practices. J Am Dent Assoc 147:758-759, 2016 Reprints available from RP Levin, Levin Group, 10 New Plant Ct, Owings Mills, MD 21117; e-mail: [email protected]
Teamwork Creating collaboration, not competition Background.—Today’s business world often focuses on hiring superstar performers—the best, the brightest, and the highest achievers. These individuals are highly touted as shining stars who will achieve great things. A study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has found, however, that rather than ‘‘super-performers’’ or supersmart individuals, it is persons who can collaborate and
cooperate well who produce the highest productivity. Work is a social experience and when talent pits employees against one another, the workplace suffers. Inclusive, respectful, and consensus-building behavior creates a better environment for working, increases production, and yields more profits. The factors that contribute to this collaborative environment were discussed.
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unwilling to change or develop any of their capabilities. The dentist will quickly see the difference between power players and ‘‘weak players.’’ For individuals who don’t want to participate or change, the dentist must recognize that there may be no way to fix that attitude. These weak players may even resist or react negatively to training, organize to fight the change, or generally make it known that they feel it is ‘‘unfair’’ to get paid for performance. The dentist may give them some time to change, but if it’s clear that their negative attitude and actions are going to hurt the practice, they need to go. This allows the power players to have greater influence over the practice’s performance and drives everyone closer to reaching the goals set. Discussion.—When the team works together toward a common goal and is rewarded for their performance, the result is generally excellent patient care and professional growth. The difficult aspects of instituting such a change are worthwhile because of the value that is realized in creating a dental office Dream Team.
Clinical Significance.—Building, training, and developing an outstanding team is a never-ending process and will continue throughout the life of the practice. The dentist must take the lead and institute the changes, but the potential for growing a team in terms of professional and personal skills is worth the investment of time and money.
Geier J: Creating the (sigh) dream team. Dentaltown, July 2016, pp 68, 70-73 Reprints not available
Strategic Planning Adapting business planning for the dental office Background.—Strategic planning is an essential activity for businesses. It is designed to find creative ways to respond to opportunities and challenges that a business may face. Although many methods have been developed, not all have been well conceived and some are poorly implemented. For strategic planning to be useful in a
70
Dental Abstracts
dental office setting, it needs to be simplified so that the employees can concentrate on taking care of their immediate responsibilities (which is meeting the needs of patients and other staff members) but have an idea of the ultimate objective for the practice. A simple process was outlined, with information about why it works for dental offices.
Method.—The dentist should begin by developing a vision statement that defines what the practice should be like in 3 years. He or she should share this with all staff members so that they know the objective for the practice. Next, a half-day staff meeting should be held purely for the purpose of strategic planning. Staff members should be told about the meeting, its purpose, how it will work, their roles, and what it should accomplish. They should be given assignments to complete in preparation for the meeting. During the meeting, staff members should be asked to list 20 things that went well in the past year, especially those that relate to the vision statement. Then they should list 20 things that did not go well. Sometimes staff members need the dentist to encourage them to be honest about the latter. It helps to view the second list as opportunities to improve. All of the items on both lists should be discussed in a brainstorming session focused on how to move forward toward the vision. Ideas can include ways to build on the successes or innovative approaches to poor performance areas. Once the discussion is complete, the group should collectively identify the three most promising ideas. Then the group should develop and record the details associated with implementing each idea. This would include budget issues, a timetable, who is responsible for what, targets to aim for, and how to measure the results. Innovative Approaches.—The goal of strategic planning is to come up with creative solutions to manage problems and opportunities. The ideas can come from anywhere, which is why the entire staff should be included. It also pays for the dentist and staff to be aware of the solutions that have worked for other dental practices and the possibility that they could be adapted. Ideas can be suggested by journals, books, newspaper articles, Web sites, management experts, and even personal experiences with other businesses or organizations.
Staff Engagement.—Including all the team members in strategic planning is wise not just to ensure a broad range of possible creative solutions but also to engage them in the process, which increases the chance that they will buy into the result. Employees often question strategies that are imposed on them, especially if these strategies involve changing how they perform their tasks. If team members are excluded, they may resist the implementation of changes, especially if they don’t see the plan as realistic. Engaging them in the brainstorming, the choice of ideas, and the plan for implementation will help them to take ownership of the strategic planning activity. Staff should not only be encouraged to attend all planning sessions, but also to participate in them. Any contributions should be acknowledged. The entire team should be told about the final plan and have ongoing reports on the results. Once the implementation process is in place, staff members should be encouraged to give feedback to help the process along.
Clinical Significance.—Strategic planning helps in addressing opportunities and problems in innovative ways. Dentists need to work with their entire staff to create plans for managing situations that arise, whether good or bad, so that the patients they serve receive the best possible oral health care.
Levin RP: A realistic approach to strategic planning for dental practices. J Am Dent Assoc 147:758-759, 2016 Reprints available from RP Levin, Levin Group, 10 New Plant Ct, Owings Mills, MD 21117; e-mail: [email protected]
Teamwork Creating collaboration, not competition Background.—Today’s business world often focuses on hiring superstar performers—the best, the brightest, and the highest achievers. These individuals are highly touted as shining stars who will achieve great things. A study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has found, however, that rather than ‘‘super-performers’’ or supersmart individuals, it is persons who can collaborate and
cooperate well who produce the highest productivity. Work is a social experience and when talent pits employees against one another, the workplace suffers. Inclusive, respectful, and consensus-building behavior creates a better environment for working, increases production, and yields more profits. The factors that contribute to this collaborative environment were discussed.
Volume 62
Issue 2
2017
71