Prepping for next year’s growth in hiring

Something we do fairly well in dentistry is to account for yearly growth and project what our production and collections needs to be in the coming year in order to ensure a stable business.

We’ve got that down, right?!

Well, what can happen when we increase productivity and systems within a company? Oftentimes we stretch team members too thin and the opposite of what we wanted is what we get, resulting in a lack of productivity and increased multi-tasking that ultimately gives us chaos and craziness. Anyone ever felt that?? I know I have! 

Something I fear we overlook is staffing ratio and preparing for it far enough in advance. This is similar to supply chain management – it IS supply chain management! Based on the output you’re looking for in results, how many employees within each department will it take? Coming up with this data early on will allow you to strategize a hiring plan throughout the year, hire the right people, and reduce chaos and miscommunication within your practice.

Here are a couple of examples of “growth” areas that may require hiring more team members:

• Increasing New Patients + Active Patient Count – Do you have enough hygiene hours to accommodate this or do you need more? Does that require a hygienist addition?
• Adding an Associate Dentist – Do you have enough dental assistants to fully equip an additional dentist? What about hygiene, are there enough hygiene hours to allow diagnosis? Will you need to hire in either of these departments? 
• Increasing high value treatment in the practice (EX: orthodontics, implants, full mouth reconstruction, cosmetic procedures, etc.): Do you have enough Dental Assistants to accommodate the procedures and are they well trained for what you’re aiming to accomplish? 
• Increasing collections: Do you have a dedicated billing department or person who can ensure increased results? Do you need to hire someone or an outside billing resource?

These are just a quick snapshot of a few areas that could easily impact your hiring or team member needs. Our goal is to always equip you with the best resources possible and we hope that this information helps to spur some ideas as you get prepared to create your goals for the coming year!

For more tips, join us on our podcast and check out the other resources that we have! We love spreading ideas and sharing what we’ve seen work!

We are happy to help you in your practice ownership journey so feel free to reach out with questions, any time! Send us an email at [email protected] or schedule a FREE Strategy Call.