Taking a Schein to Dentistry - NSW Dentisti Magazine Interview Mike Covey

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THE MAGA Z IN E O F TH E A U STRA L IA N D EN TAL AS S O C I AT I O N N S W B R AN C H

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TAKING A SCHEIN TO DENTISTRY HENRY SCHEIN MD MIKE COVEY INTERVIEW Page 08

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RESPONDING TO NEGATIVE SOCIAL MEDIA IMPORTANT FACTORS TO CONSIDER Page 10

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CONNECTING THROUGH COVID

DIVISION AND STUDY GROUPS EVENTS OFFER ALTERNATIVE Page 14

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CPD: ONE VISION

MEET OUR NSW CPD TEAM Page 28

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FEATURE

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| ADX exhibition in Sydney availability of mask supply and restrictions on dentistry was becoming a huge issue.

‘Traditional’ supply partners were being squeezed because of the pandemic’s effects and aviation restrictions. Australia having no local mask manufacturing was exposed.

We started sourcing masks from non-traditional suppliers. We had a plethora of companies who said they could provide masks but we had to ensure not only were the masks TGA-approved but also to assess under what conditions were these masks being made. For example, were these companies ethically employing and treating staff?

There was so much demand (for masks) across the world because of the sudden scarcity of raw materials and manufacturing capacity. Everyone was just scrabbling for materials so it was a really challenging time.

ADA NSW Media Advisor Stuart Turner poses the questions to Henry Schein ANZ Managing Director Mike Covey.

“ A DENTIST IS AN ARTIST” Henry Schein ANZ Managing Director Mike Covey explains why he loves dentistry – and explains the secrets of effective leadership.

You were a trained optometrist and have worked in senior roles in the medical device supply sector in Europe, North America and Australia.

How did you arrive in dentistry?

My mother was a nurse and from a young age I always knew I wanted to use my skills to help others somehow. After graduating and working as an optometrist I later went into contact lens supply and further study and clinical research. I worked in areas such as marketing and general management before entering the dental industry linked to my medical device experience.

Even though I had moved about five centimetres down the face from the eyes to the mouth there were parallels between industries. As with contact lens supply, in dentistry you are working with that mix of small business owners, corporations and a diverse customer base.

I have been with Henry Schein for about eight years now and I am also on the Australian Dental Industry Association (ADIA) Board and Australian Dental Health Foundation (ADHF) Advisory Board.

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| NSW DENTIST | OCTOBER 2020

In your early 20s you spent six months working as an optometrist in Tanzania. How did the experience shape you personally and professionally?

Those were among six of the best months of my life. I think it further developed my sense of wanting to help others and the reward that brings. By removing a cataract or even ‘just’ providing reading glasses, you transformed someone’s life. You’d help a fisherman who couldn’t thread a line through a fishing hook because of eyesight problems and realised the difference you’d made.

I’ve been to Papua New Guinea recently as part of Henry Schein’s partnership with YWAM (Youth With a Mission) Medical Ships. They’re an organisation providing medical assistance to isolated communities across the globe.

We have provided equipment and consumables which has been used with dental care on the ship assisting in care for remote villages. Experiences like that teach you that we take so many things for granted here that are hugely important elsewhere in the world.

Having switched to the dental industry, what do you most enjoy about working with the profession?

There’s many things! I like how dentistry is quite complex. A dentist is an artist, but they are also an engineer, a physician and a surgeon. It’s incredible how a graduate dentist has learned so much knowledge and has that ability to work in different areas, whether it be orthodontics, paediatrics or something else.

I like how dentists are generally also very open to innovation. Whether it’s 3D printing, digital dentistry or other new technology, dentists embrace it because it can improve their working lives and provide better treatment for patients.

It’s great to have a customer base that wants to discover more.

Of course, with dentistry there’s still that rewarding sense as in other healthcare that you are helping patients.

Put us in your shoes when COVID-19 arrived. How did you react and what were the main concerns?

It was well on my mine and Henry Schein’s radar but I remember at March’s

Has the pandemic exposed the Australian manufacturing situation as inadequate?

I know there are companies in Australia now, most notably in South Australia, who are looking to manufacture items such as high grade filtration masks. We welcome that and look forward at Henry Schein to possibly partnering with them.

I think something like 95% of all dental products sold are imported. That’s the reality of the situation. I think we will be looking around at other parts of the world and non-traditional suppliers in the future.

What lessons do you think COVID-19 has taught the dental profession?

Obviously, the whole area of infection prevention control and ensuring they have patient confidence in their practice will be huge for dental professionals.

What’s been interesting is that, apart from in Victoria over the recent weeks, business across the country among dentists seems good. We’ve especially

seen greater interest from dentists in more technical and capital equipment, linked to the Federal government’s asset tax stimulus, which seem like big areas for growth.

Also, I hope it’s made dentists who run their own practices realise that, as well as ensuring patient confidence and safety through their infection prevention control measures, in a crisis they must care for their staff. At Henry Schein we have done and continue extensive work in this area throughout the pandemic and have received industry recognition for our efforts.

I think generally flexibility of staff working arrangements will be the ‘new norm’ but I still believe in bringing your team together.

I don’t think there’ll be an overall ‘remote working’ experience for all. The flexibility new technology brings us is great, but it will remain about productivity.

How long will dentists continue to feel the current pinch in terms of supply costs?

It’s difficult to say. There has been a massive supply and demand shift. Mask prices have dropped in recent weeks but if you look at other PPE items it’s a different story. For example, it has been estimated that global demand for gloves has increased by about 40 per cent during the pandemic. The other thing affecting supply chains is of course the dramatic reduction in air freight volumes.

It’s extremely expensive to bring freight into Australia right now. We will continue to see global challenges in the supply chain for months to come.

Australia is heavily influenced by global supply chains so it is very tough to say how long this situation will last for.

What are the secrets to being a successful Managing Director in your opinion?

I think there are four key points. As MD you are responsible for setting strategy.

Mike Covey is Managing Director of Henry Schein, Australia’s largest supplier of products to dental professionals. He has been with the company since 2012 and has responsibility for their Australia and New Zealand dental business, with more than 400 employees.

He is also a member of the Australian Dental Industry Association Board and Australian Dental Health Foundation (ADHF) Advisory Board.

After training as an optometrist, he worked in Australia in private practice and in Tanzania as well as clinical research at the University of NSW.

FEATURE

How are you going to grow the company?

Where do you want the company to be in say five years? One of the things I’ve learned is you always need to be thinking about what is the future going to hold – and what does your company need to look like when it arrives?

That leads to the second thing. As MD you have a massive influence on the culture of your company or organisation.

Culture is an interesting thing to measure but it’s about the behaviours, the values, the expectations and accountability that exist in the organisation. The MD has to live that, as well as expecting that from his or her executive team and indeed the whole company.

Third is very much the delivering the overall financial performance of your company. You can’t escape that.

Finally, in my position if you are not close to your customers and the wider industry then you don’t get a sense of what is happening, what’s important to customers and trends. Being an MD therefore is also an ambassadorial role.

Many dentists are leaders of dental teams and practices. What have you learned about effective leadership?

Tying in with the four key aspects of being an MD, I think – particularly in Australia – leadership has a connection with authenticity. I think you have to be genuine and authentic in the care you have for your staff. Ultimately you have to deliver results but as a leader you must care for your staff – you can’t fake that.

What’s the best piece of business advice you have received?

At Henry Schein we live by ‘A concern for people and a concern for results’.

I think if you can find the right balance between both those things, you won’t go far wrong.

Prior to joining the Henry Schein business, Mike worked for five years at Nobel Biocare as Regional Director, Australia and New Zealand.

He spent eight years at CooperVision in the contact lens industry in management, marketing and clinical roles in Australia, North America and Europe.

He has a Bachelor of Optometry and Masters of Optometry.

He lives on Sydney’s North Shore and is married with four children.

NSW DENTIST | OCTOBER 2020 |

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