Blind Spots in Dentistry™: How to lead and work with an inherited team

Meet with team members individually and encourage an open dialogue. This is your opportunity to get to know them better, and find out more about them. For instance, ask questions like:  

• Do they need help with anything, and if so, where?
• What tasks are most comfortable for you, and why?
• What tasks are least comfortable, and why?
• What is the most frustrating aspect of your job and why? Encourage them to elaborate and give examples.
• What are the biggest distractions they encounter?
• What aspect of dentistry would they like to learn more about?
• “What can I do to help?”
• How can I help you make patient flow better?
• What do you need to help you grow your role in the practice?
• What can your team mates do to better assist you in your role?

Allow them time to think about their answers, don’t rush them. Think of this process as similar to presenting treatment and payment options. Silence does not necessarily mean ‘no’, it just means they are collecting their thoughts. Give them the courtesy of time to consider the question and respond.

Next, find out if they know and understand your vision for the new practice. Do they share that vision?

Lay the groundwork for handling gossip, communication issues.

Review job descriptions and make any modifications to adapt them to your expectations. Review the current performance evaluation used. If none exists, create one and implement it.

Have measures in place to make sure you know if your hygiene team is profitable.

Generate reports that will help you understand how the team is working. Create one for your assistants as well.

What about raises or bonuses? How do you know what to reward if you don’t know what you are measuring. Establish and communicate your guidelines what, when and how you will determine salary or bonus issues.

Are you tracking the number of patient contacts made and appointments scheduled each month to reactivate reluctant, overdue patients.

Are you measuring the number of cancellations in your schedule each day and how many of the changes were filled? Who is making the calls? How are they getting the patient into the schedule?

How much treatment did you recommend last month and how much is scheduled? Are you tracking this number?

The list could go on, but these questions/answers should be among your top priorities when working with an inherited team. Remember, they have questions and concerns just like you do. Establishing clear and easy-to-understand guidelines will go a long way in determining your long-term success as a new practice owner.