What Dentists Can Learn from Other Business Models

By Roger P. Levin, DDS

One of my key observations as the CEO of a dental management consulting firm is that most dentists don’t start out by designing an ideal model for their practice. Many of us either begin our careers working in another practice or by finding and purchasing an existing practice. Few dentists begin their careers by determining the ideal model for their practice. And even fewer start out with the documented systems needed to support their ideal model.

But what is an ideal model?

An ideal model provides the blueprint for the day-to-day operation of your dental practice with the goal of maximizing practice performance. Identifying your ideal model is the most direct path to a successful practice with high production, profit and income. This is essential because most dentists have significant student loan debt and desire a rapid return on that investment.

So, how do you identify an ideal model? Start by looking at goals. What size practice do you want? How many practice locations? Do you want to work solo or with partners and associates? What types of cases would you like to handle, and how many of each would you like to perform each year? How large do you want your patient base to be? The answers to questions like these help you set goals, and then you can build the ideal model for a practice that will achieve those goals for you.

To help understand the concept of a model that is supported by excellent systems, let’s examine McDonald’s as an example. McDonald’s is successful for one simple reason — a clearly defined model supported by excellent systems. Under a model created by its founder, McDonald’s spends millions of dollars every year improving current systems and testing new ways to operate its stores to prepare and sell food. McDonald’s can make the same Big Mac every single time in every individual location anywhere in the world. It has systems for the preparation of every item it sells. McDonald’s leaves nothing to chance and is one of the most successful business operations in the history of the world. The reason? An ideal model and excellent systems.

Obviously, fast food and dentistry are vastly different business models, but there are important aspects of the McDonald’s model that can be helpful to dentists who are seeking to improve practice performance. Suppose your ideal practice model includes a significant focus on implant dentistry. How could a dentist apply McDonald’s discipline to the systems required to support the first consult for a new implant patient? You would document every single step in the process. You would script out every sentence of what to say and when. You would document what every team member needs to do and when. It would start with the new patient phone call, including the exact dialogue of the scripts to use (with options to follow depending on what the patient says). Then, the system would include a detailed scheduling method and a process for greeting a new patient when they arrive at the practice.

McDonald’s leaves nothing to chance in the preparation of its products and their delivery to customers. This philosophy is applicable in a dental practice and can be extremely helpful. For example, many practices today are struggling with significant staff turnover. Fully documented systems are the best way to train new team members and ensure that every patient receives the ideal experience from your practice, even with new, potentially inexperienced staff members who may not have a dental background.

Systems allow you to achieve a specific result. How will you know you’ve achieved the result? A set of performance indicators (or targets) should be reviewed weekly, monthly and annually. Systems must be designed in a step-by-step manner. You need to outline every step that a doctor or team member must follow to achieve the desired result. If you skip steps, it is unlikely you’ll achieve the result. If you have too many steps, you become inefficient and waste time.

Is it simple? Honestly, it takes time to identify and document every step in a system, but, once that is complete, your team will be able to implement the system with every patient, every time. Look at how successful McDonald’s has been using this approach in its business.

Now it’s your turn. If you are willing to commit to building an ideal model and the systems needed to support it, there is no stopping you. The earlier you get it right, the higher your practice production, profit and income will be, and the sooner you will reach financial independence.

Roger P. Levin, DDS, is the founder and CEO of Levin Group, a dental management consulting firm. To receive his Practice Production Tip of the Day, visit levingroup.com. To comment on this article, email impact@agd.org.