News Flash, running a successful dental practice is a challenge! I have understood that statement at an intellectual level for many years now. However, after purchasing a practice in May of 2007, I now fully understand just how challenging it is to run a successful dental practice at the practical level! The last four and a half years have increased my empathy quotient considerably. It has not been easy, but the great news is that we are succeeding, and so can you!
One of the biggest challenges is making progress on the many practice improvement projects that are never ending. It reminds me of that circus act where the performing troupe spins the dinner plates on sticks. I’m sure you have seen it. It is really quite masterful. The performance begins with a troupe member spinning a dinner plate on top of a stick. He then starts adding more sticks and plates until he has about 15 plates simultaneously spinning on sticks! Sometimes I feel like the circus performer trying to keep all the plates spinning at the same time. The solution is to create ‘Champions’ within your team.
I love the term, Champion! Everyone wants to be a Champion. In this context, a Champion is someone on your team who has responsibility and accountability for a particular area of your practice. He/She has a passion and command for this area and it is their responsibility to achieve the established results. Here are three particular areas where I would like you to create Champions in your practice:
Whitening Champion
This team member is responsible to making whitening a core element of your practice. He/She is someone who is absolutely passionate about whitening and loves helping your patients have the whitest teeth possible. The goal is one whitening procedure each day. Here are some resources from an earlier blog post:
http://www.takacslearningcenter.com/practice-building-strategies/do-more-whitening/
Marketing Champion
This team member has the responsibility of helping implement your comprehensive marketing plan. He/She is a person who enjoys the challenge of marketing and understands that new patients are critical to your practice success. You will need to define your own new patient goals based on your particular practice, but as a reference point, our goals at LifeSmiles Dental Care are 32-35 new patients each month.
Perio Champion
This team member is responsible for helping create a world-class perio therapy program within your hygiene department. He/She understands the link between oral and systemic health and really enjoys helping your patients get as healthy as possible. You can define specific goals here depending on your patient base.
To help you with this project of developing Champions in your practice, I’d like to point you to the audio podcast I have created titled, ‘Thriving Dentist Show’. In a recent episode, I interviewed Dr. Greg Pitts about the concept of Dentistry as a Team Sport. Greg talks about the concept of Champions in this show:
If you like what you hear, let me encourage you to go on iTunes and subscribe to the Show. It is free! I have some amazing interviews coming up with some really cool people in dentistry. Pardon my excitement, but you will really enjoy the audio podcast and it is a great way to make productive use of your commute time.
I look forward to providing resources that will help you make 2012 your best year yet! Keep Smiling!
