Is it time for your practice to add an additional staff member? You may want to consider Temporary-to-Hire. Whether you need a new Hygienist, Office Manager, Front Desk or Dental Assistant, adding a new staff member can be a daunting task. ETS Dental is ready to help by now offering a Temporary-to-Hire placement option.
So, why choose Temporary-to-Hire?
We spare you the tedious details involved in hiring. While the individual is a temp, he/she is not your employee. All applicable taxes, unemployment liabilities, and workers’ compensation are paid, in addition to the payroll process being managed for you.
Be sure you are getting the best person for your practice. Have you ever interviewed an outstanding candidate only to have him/her turn out to be someone totally different? Not only qualifications, but personality can affect quality of care, office dynamics, and even patient loyalty. With Temporary-to-Hire placements, the individual you select stays on our payroll for a predetermined period of time- consider it an extended working interview. This minimizes your risk by allowing you to evaluate the candidate on the job. At the end of the evaluation period, you can hire our candidate. If you decide at anytime during the temporary period the individual is not a fit, you can terminate the contract.
You can rest assured that you are being given the same quality candidates that you would be receiving for a direct placement. We specialize in finding and placing Dental Staff. We take the time to understand your requirements and the unique needs of your practice. If your situation is urgent, we often have candidates who are available immediately.
For a complete overview of our recruiting capabilities, please call me at (540)491-9112 or email me at tworstell@etsdental.com. You may also visit our website at www.etsdental.com.
Written by Tiffany Worstell, Dental Staff Recruiter at ETS Dental
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Expectations of Dental Associateships
Associateships begin and fail everyday. Why do they fail so often? A simple way to answer this is that either or both sides failed to meet expectations. More specifically, the expectations were never even laid out at the beginning, so one side was letting down the other and never knew why or that he/she was doing this.
Some common feedback I get from owners when I ask them about their previous associates is that it didn't work because that doctor could not produce enough, or that doctor did not want to buy-in, or that doctor needed more mentoring than owner was willing/able to give.
Upfront communication during the interview process could have helped a lot of associateships succeed better, or simply never start in the first place. It is better to find the right person rather than hire the wrong person and have to repeat the interviewing and onboarding process over and over again.
What the owner/practice should lay out upfront:
(simple examples, not comprehensive)
- Production goals
- Required schedule
- Transition plans
- Associate's leadership role in the practice in relation to staff
- Compensation
- Whether the associate will have any say so in equipment, office systems, and staff management
- Insurance accepted by the practice
- Particular cases or situations which must be handled by the owner
- What must be referred out
What the associate prospect should lay out upfront:
(simple examples, not comprehensive)
- Income goals
- Transition or practice ownership goals
- Skill sets
- Comfort level with various cases and patient types
- Length of time willing to commit to a practice/area
Remember not to rush into hiring an associate or becoming an associate when you still have a lot of questions or uncertainties.
Related articles by ETS Dental you should check out:
Carl Guthrie is a Dental Recruiter with ETS Dental. He covers the Western U.S. Region. Carl can be reached at cguthrie@etsdental.com or www.facebook.com/carl.guthrie
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Business Planning For Your Dental Practice
Dental Practice Owners: Are You Planning for a Record Year in 2011?
Every week, our team has hundreds of conversations with practice owners about their plans for the future. Some of our client practices are growing and want to add an Associate simply to keep up with demand. Others are seeking an Associate to replace a Partner or Associate who will be transitioning out of the practice. A number are interested in expanding their reach and acquiring other practices. Additionally, some owners are nearing the end of their career and looking for an exit strategy.
I am always amazed at how few practice owners take the time and effort every year to develop a business plan. Most of the truly successful practices we work with have a plan in place.
A business plan consists of three parts:
1) A statement of what you want your practice to be in the future
2) An assessment of where your practice is today
3) A realistic breakdown of the steps you need to get from where you are now, to where you want to be
You can do this! In fact, you should do it right now! You don’t need an MBA, CPA or Law degree to write a Business Plan for your Dental Practice. Certainly, advice from a trained professional is helpful, but in most cases you have what it takes to get the basics down on paper.
Steps:
1. Develop a Mission/Vision Statement for your practice - Simply stated, why does your practice exist? Who do you serve? What do you offer to patients that they can’t get elsewhere?
2. Assess Current Reality – In a few paragraphs, summarize your results for 2010. It helps to look at your monthly financials.
3. What will your practice look like in 2015? – This is the fun part. Now is the time for specifics. There are plenty of ways to grow and be successful. In fact some practices even choose to shrink and be profitable. It is up to you.
4. 2011 Key Initiatives – Decide on a small, achievable set of initiatives that will help move you toward your goal. In most cases, you can’t achieve your vision in just one year. But, you can take steps toward reaching it. Typically these initiatives fall into one of five categories:
5. Break your goals up into bite-sized chunks - Figure out what your 2011 objectives mean to each team member. It is critical that you involve your team. If you involve them in the process it will improve their buy-in to the plan. They will probably be the source of many of your best ideas. Define what the plan means to each team member:
6. Install Guardrails - Make sure each member knows their daily, weekly and monthly goals.
7. Create a Budget - This is the tough part. Tips:
8. Print and Bind the Plan - Commit to the plan. Don’t just put it in your desk drawer.
You are the leader of your practice. Nobody will do it for you. If you are serious about growing your practice, offering new services, expanding your reach, serving new patients, preparing for a comfortable retirement, you need to write a Business Plan. If you haven’t done so already, start your plan today!
Written by Mark Kennedy, Owner/ Managing Director of ETS Dental, ETS Vision & ETS Tech-Ops. To talk to us about how we can help your practice, give us a call at (540) 563-1688. Find out more at www.etsdental.com.
I am always amazed at how few practice owners take the time and effort every year to develop a business plan. Most of the truly successful practices we work with have a plan in place.
A business plan consists of three parts:
1) A statement of what you want your practice to be in the future
2) An assessment of where your practice is today
3) A realistic breakdown of the steps you need to get from where you are now, to where you want to be
You can do this! In fact, you should do it right now! You don’t need an MBA, CPA or Law degree to write a Business Plan for your Dental Practice. Certainly, advice from a trained professional is helpful, but in most cases you have what it takes to get the basics down on paper.
Steps:
1. Develop a Mission/Vision Statement for your practice - Simply stated, why does your practice exist? Who do you serve? What do you offer to patients that they can’t get elsewhere?
- Vision – Write out a compelling description of a future desired state of your practice. Make sure you can clearly picture what your practice will look like in the future. Think in terms of where you want to be. The purpose of the business plan is to lay out the steps between where you want to be and your current reality.
- Values – What do you stand for? What are the guiding principals by which your practice operates? Write down what your values are. Values motivate us before we achieve a goal and determine how satisfied we are once we attain it. Does your current culture support your values?
2. Assess Current Reality – In a few paragraphs, summarize your results for 2010. It helps to look at your monthly financials.
- Positive Effects on Growth: In what areas of your practice are you experiencing the most success? How do you optimize those to produce continued results?
- Negative Effects on Growth: In what areas of your practice are you experiencing the most challenges? What do you need to change to obtain positive results?
- Current Office Structure – Diagram current office structure. Will your current team, with their current duties and responsibilities, help you achieve the vision for your practice?
- Equipment – What equipment, systems and software are you currently using? From a technology perspective do you have the tools you need? Or, are you underutilizing equipment and systems you currently own?
- Understand your key metrics – What is the average per patient production for each Dentist and Hygienist in your practice?
- SWOT – Draw a box with four quadrants: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Be honest with yourself. Give a lot of thought to each area.
3. What will your practice look like in 2015? – This is the fun part. Now is the time for specifics. There are plenty of ways to grow and be successful. In fact some practices even choose to shrink and be profitable. It is up to you.
- Will you limit your practice to a certain type of patient base?
- Will you cater to patient needs by expanding hours, days, and providers in your current facility?
- Will you expand your facility to accommodate greater patient demand?
- Will you expand your presence in a market by acquiring or building new practice locations?
- How many patients will your practice treat?
- What clinical services will you offer?
- Will your equipment be all state-of-the-art?
- Will your practice thrive because of your strong engagement with and ties to the community?
4. 2011 Key Initiatives – Decide on a small, achievable set of initiatives that will help move you toward your goal. In most cases, you can’t achieve your vision in just one year. But, you can take steps toward reaching it. Typically these initiatives fall into one of five categories:
- Improving office efficiency – Improving your responsiveness to current patient demand by treating more patients; maintaining or improving the quality of care with the same number of resources (team members and operatories) by eliminating inefficiencies in your current systems and processes.
- Broadening your level of services – Providing your patients with more clinical choices, which in turn improves the value and revenue from each patient visit.
- Increase Demand – Do a better job of filling your team’s schedule through advertising, referral programs and/or adding new/profitable plans.
- Add Capacity – Add new Dentists or Hygienists to your practice to satisfy demand. (Don’t take this step until you have the demand and efficiencies to add someone profitably).
- Buy or create a new patient base – Serve a new patient pool by buying or starting a new practice.
5. Break your goals up into bite-sized chunks - Figure out what your 2011 objectives mean to each team member. It is critical that you involve your team. If you involve them in the process it will improve their buy-in to the plan. They will probably be the source of many of your best ideas. Define what the plan means to each team member:
- Does it mean they need more training in a certain area?
- Does it mean they need to schedule more efficiently?
- Does it mean they need to improve recall?
6. Install Guardrails - Make sure each member knows their daily, weekly and monthly goals.
- This is as simple as taking your annual goals and dividing them by the number of working days in a year.
- The key to exceeding your goals every year is to exceed them every day.
- Make it a routine to share results on a daily and weekly basis.
- Reinforce how important each team member’s part is to the practice’s overall success.
- Celebrate the daily and weekly victories.
7. Create a Budget - This is the tough part. Tips:
- Zero-based budget – Challenge each cost. Don’t assume you have to pay for something this year, just because you did it last year.
- Never count on revenue from a new hire or new initiative until it becomes a reality. Most practices count on a very rosy picture when a new team member joins their practice.
- Fund new initiatives off the excess. Don’t buy something or hire someone unless you can survive a failure. Don’t borrow money and risk your practice because you think a new Associate, a new location, or a new piece of equipment will produce. Wait until you can afford a failure. “Plan for the worst, hope for the best”.
- Budgeting is the toughest part of the process because it makes you say no to things you really want to do.
8. Print and Bind the Plan - Commit to the plan. Don’t just put it in your desk drawer.
- Carry it with you.
- Check progress weekly.
- Refer to it in team meetings.
- Get aggravated if you are falling behind.
- Celebrate the little victories and share them with your team.
- Bankers and perspective team members will LOVE you when you show them your plan.
You are the leader of your practice. Nobody will do it for you. If you are serious about growing your practice, offering new services, expanding your reach, serving new patients, preparing for a comfortable retirement, you need to write a Business Plan. If you haven’t done so already, start your plan today!
Written by Mark Kennedy, Owner/ Managing Director of ETS Dental, ETS Vision & ETS Tech-Ops. To talk to us about how we can help your practice, give us a call at (540) 563-1688. Find out more at www.etsdental.com.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
When To Start Looking For Your Next Associate
You are a dentist and an owner of a successful business. You know the value of planning and you feel that you are ready to take your practice to the next step by adding an associate. What you may not know is that it could take much longer than you realize to find the right associate who shares your vision, clinical philosophy and is willing to put in the hard work to make your dreams a reality.
Factors that affect the quality and depth of the talent pool
There are many blogs and articles that cover the demographics of the dental field. To summarize, there are much fewer new dentists entering the field than there are baby boomers who are retiring. At the same time, patient demand is increasing as a result of population increase and the increased care required by aging boomers. In short, supply is not adequate for demand.
In the past, the talent pool met demand. Now, the unemployment rate for dentists is practically nil. Practices seeking to add help quickly have no choice but to accept an associate from a meager pool, indeed. Will you be satisfied turning over your patients and your practice’s future to just anyone?
Finding the right talent
We have been recruiting associates, partners, buyers and staff for dental practices for many years. We can confidently say that the best associate for your office is likely working with another practice. Our most successful placements were actively employed out of the area when we first came into contact with them. Is their spouse from your area? Do they share your clinical philosophy? What would cause them to leave their current job for a better match? We ask these questions and are able to make the best connections from a nationwide pool of contacts in our network. A successful practice owner simply does not have the time or the means to identify, contact and screen all the dentists who could be a match.
How long does the interview process take?
To answer this question, we analyzed data from our last 250 placements spanning a period close to two and a half years. We found that the average time between the first phone interview and a signed contract was 1 month and 26 days. During this time, practice owners and associate candidates typically have 5-7 phone interviews, two in-person meetings, complete reference checks and negotiate contract terms.
Now that you have an agreement, when can the associate start?
Keep in mind that the dentist who shares your practice philosophy, has the necessary experience and whose personality does not drive you and your staff crazy is likely already employed. He or she will have to give notice. Would you want an associate who would abandon a previous employer? There may also be other factors such as relocation, completing cases, and/or finishing a residency or a military obligation. The average time between an agreement and the actual start date is 2 months and 20 days.
Planning
It will take an average of 4 months and 16 days from the first conversation to the start date. That does not account for the difficulty in sourcing candidates. Many factors will affect your ability to source candidates:
As you plan for your next associate, be sure to allow yourself enough time to consider all of your options. Remember, hiring the wrong dentist can cost you thousands.
Written by Morgan Pace, Sr Account Executive/ Recruiter at ETS Dental. You can reach Morgan at (540)491-9102 or mpace@etsdental.com. Find out more at www.etsdental.com.
Factors that affect the quality and depth of the talent pool
There are many blogs and articles that cover the demographics of the dental field. To summarize, there are much fewer new dentists entering the field than there are baby boomers who are retiring. At the same time, patient demand is increasing as a result of population increase and the increased care required by aging boomers. In short, supply is not adequate for demand.
In the past, the talent pool met demand. Now, the unemployment rate for dentists is practically nil. Practices seeking to add help quickly have no choice but to accept an associate from a meager pool, indeed. Will you be satisfied turning over your patients and your practice’s future to just anyone?
Finding the right talent
We have been recruiting associates, partners, buyers and staff for dental practices for many years. We can confidently say that the best associate for your office is likely working with another practice. Our most successful placements were actively employed out of the area when we first came into contact with them. Is their spouse from your area? Do they share your clinical philosophy? What would cause them to leave their current job for a better match? We ask these questions and are able to make the best connections from a nationwide pool of contacts in our network. A successful practice owner simply does not have the time or the means to identify, contact and screen all the dentists who could be a match.
How long does the interview process take?
To answer this question, we analyzed data from our last 250 placements spanning a period close to two and a half years. We found that the average time between the first phone interview and a signed contract was 1 month and 26 days. During this time, practice owners and associate candidates typically have 5-7 phone interviews, two in-person meetings, complete reference checks and negotiate contract terms.
Now that you have an agreement, when can the associate start?
Keep in mind that the dentist who shares your practice philosophy, has the necessary experience and whose personality does not drive you and your staff crazy is likely already employed. He or she will have to give notice. Would you want an associate who would abandon a previous employer? There may also be other factors such as relocation, completing cases, and/or finishing a residency or a military obligation. The average time between an agreement and the actual start date is 2 months and 20 days.
Planning
It will take an average of 4 months and 16 days from the first conversation to the start date. That does not account for the difficulty in sourcing candidates. Many factors will affect your ability to source candidates:
- Practice location: A small city or rural environment could require more sourcing time than a similar practice in a dental school city.
- Practice type: Do you see Medicaid? Do you have a niche practice? This will limit the number of interested or qualified candidates.
- Specialty: Do you own a specialty practice?
- Clinical Philosophy: Are you a Pankey doctor? Do you provide sleep dentistry services? Extra training will limit your options.
As you plan for your next associate, be sure to allow yourself enough time to consider all of your options. Remember, hiring the wrong dentist can cost you thousands.
Written by Morgan Pace, Sr Account Executive/ Recruiter at ETS Dental. You can reach Morgan at (540)491-9102 or mpace@etsdental.com. Find out more at www.etsdental.com.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Bureau of Labor Statistics Report
The Bureau of Labor Statistics published its employment numbers for the month of October this morning. We asked Kitchen PR to put together a short summary and analysis of the numbers.
An Analysis of Today's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Report
The full report can be seen here: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.htm.
Total U.S. non-farm employment rose by 151,000 positions in October, according to the Labor Department, while the unemployment rate remained at 9.6 percent for a third month. In total, the private sector added 159,000 jobs, while the public sector lost 8,000 positions, with the most substantial loss being 14,200 non-education local government positions.
Of the 829,000 total gains in private sector employment over the last 12 months, 451,000 positions were with temporary staffing agencies. October, however, saw one of the most substantial gains yet in permanent positions, with additions spread across the services-providing sector. Seasonally adjusted, retail trade added 27,900 jobs from every category except building materials and gas stations. After an unexpected decrease of average weekly private sector earnings in September, earnings rebounded to an average of $779.64 per week in October.
The total number of unemployed people who were either laid off or completed temporary assignments fell to 9.1 million in October, the figure’s lowest level since April of 2009. Among workers who most recently held jobs in management, professional and related occupations, the unemployment rate was 4.5 percent in October, down from 4.7 percent a year ago.
While October saw the first gains in total U.S. employment since May, private sector employment has expanded now for 10 consecutive months. Stimulus spending helped fuel a bump in private sector hiring in April of 241,000 jobs. Since then, the impact of stimulus spending has worn off; yet, private hiring has slowly increased its gains to the level we see today. Conventional wisdom says the United States needs to add in excess of 150,000 jobs to make up for the overall population growth, a rate we are at last achieving. Should private sector growth continue on the trajectory seen over the last six months, U.S. unemployment should begin easing in Q1 2011.
Provided by MRI Network and Executive Talent Search. Find out how ETS can help your career by visiting us at ETS Dental, www.etsdental.com; ETS Vision, www.etsvision.com; and ETS Tech-Ops, www.etstech-ops.com; or by calling (540) 563-1688.
An Analysis of Today's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Report
The full report can be seen here: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.htm.
Total U.S. non-farm employment rose by 151,000 positions in October, according to the Labor Department, while the unemployment rate remained at 9.6 percent for a third month. In total, the private sector added 159,000 jobs, while the public sector lost 8,000 positions, with the most substantial loss being 14,200 non-education local government positions.
Of the 829,000 total gains in private sector employment over the last 12 months, 451,000 positions were with temporary staffing agencies. October, however, saw one of the most substantial gains yet in permanent positions, with additions spread across the services-providing sector. Seasonally adjusted, retail trade added 27,900 jobs from every category except building materials and gas stations. After an unexpected decrease of average weekly private sector earnings in September, earnings rebounded to an average of $779.64 per week in October.
The total number of unemployed people who were either laid off or completed temporary assignments fell to 9.1 million in October, the figure’s lowest level since April of 2009. Among workers who most recently held jobs in management, professional and related occupations, the unemployment rate was 4.5 percent in October, down from 4.7 percent a year ago.
While October saw the first gains in total U.S. employment since May, private sector employment has expanded now for 10 consecutive months. Stimulus spending helped fuel a bump in private sector hiring in April of 241,000 jobs. Since then, the impact of stimulus spending has worn off; yet, private hiring has slowly increased its gains to the level we see today. Conventional wisdom says the United States needs to add in excess of 150,000 jobs to make up for the overall population growth, a rate we are at last achieving. Should private sector growth continue on the trajectory seen over the last six months, U.S. unemployment should begin easing in Q1 2011.
Provided by MRI Network and Executive Talent Search. Find out how ETS can help your career by visiting us at ETS Dental, www.etsdental.com; ETS Vision, www.etsvision.com; and ETS Tech-Ops, www.etstech-ops.com; or by calling (540) 563-1688.
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