Monthly Archives: July 2017

THIS is What Raises are Made of!

by

No team member should have to ask for an increase when they have clearly earned it

I talk about the value of team members all the time. I can’t stress enough how important it is to be able to clearly identify the employees that pull their weight “and then some.” I’m referring to those employees that get as much or possibly more satisfaction than you do when they can see their efforts paying off.

I recently worked with my wonderful “work sister”, Cyndee Johnson of scaler2schedule fame, and assisted one of her clients with a couple of team dilemmas. In this case the client believed that one of his business office personnel was not managing her post very well and with that, he asked that we review the additional office employee whom he thought was having her own difficulties with insurance filing and billing. These happened to be her primary responsibilities.

Upon conducting our usual due diligence, it was quite easy to see that there were even bigger problems than anyone expected, but the proof was in the numbers, and with comprehensive research we uncovered a myriad of unsettling issues.

Pre-determinations were filed, approved and tucked away with no appointments scheduled and apparently no follow-up calls even made to those patients that had their paperwork submitted and returned. There were 9 pages of problematic insurance issues that were never addressed where many simply needed an additional x-ray or even a simple narrative. Some claims that were discovered dated back to 2015!

Then there were the statements that had not been generated for a couple of months. And did I mention the major ADA code discrepancies? These were bogus codes obviously fabricated by past employees that were used periodically and sat in the system for years. No one seemed to know the origin of this.

Once we delivered our findings to the doctor (and administered his CPR), I knew it was time for us to now take charge and get his practice back on its feet again. Unfortunately, we had to dismiss the 2 team members, but we had clear documentation that they couldn’t defend, and apologized for not asking for help. They left the practice with the understanding that it was time.

To support the doctor, he like so many others in my experience hired quickly without properly checking to be sure the knowledge required to fill the positions was present. He also neglected to check on status, reports, numbers, etc. He loved his dentistry, was good at it, and felt he could count on his team to handle the business segment of his practice efficiently. This too is not uncommon. No strong hiring protocols, hiring with no formal systems, no information tracking, no period reviews and basically assuming all would be well.

I knew the caliber of candidates we needed to locate, and although it took about 6 weeks to find two great team members, the 2 we were fortunate to find were both perfect for the position. Both had ideal skill sets, terrific attitudes and worked extremely well together! We conducted our interviews with all my “road tested” systems in place, dotted all of our “i”s and crossed all our “t”s. Yes, it took time, but it was so worth it.

Here we are 2 weeks into the Superstar Front Office Team’s partnership and I got a report today. You see, we track the progress and we make sure the team members track their activities as well. We look at the challenges acquired and meet them head-on.

The main concerns were the time-sensitive issues, such as insurance re-filing. I spoke with the person who is managing the insurance this morning, and in only 2 weeks time she has recovered $6,000 of back claims and took the print-out list down from 9 to 7 pages! She has managed more in two weeks than the prior business team handled in 2 years. They actually moved the production back rather than forward.

This is an example of how increases are deserved and earned without a second thought or hesitation from the employer. My Progressive Salary Program is built around this premise and Suzie (not her real name) hit her first benchmark, exceeded her first goal, totally hit it out of the park . So…Suzie’s next pay check will reflect her first 2-week increase!

Deb Roberge has been coaching and writing about dental team development and related areas for the past 25 years. During her onsite visits to numerous periodontal practices, she quickly recognized the very specific challenges that were prevalent in this particular specialty. She felt it was important to step up and support not only these clinicians, but the team members that work alongside of them, as well as the referring generalists and their teams. Ourperioteam cloud-based software was created with Deb’s input along with perio practices and teams across the country. OPT is changing the way both periodontists and their referring generalists interact, as well as how they measure their mutual successes.

Are You Totally Prepared to Jump In?

by

Changing your wrong hires and short-term hires to winning employees!

The majority of dentists, when realizing it is time to hire a new team member, will either contract with an agency, search internet “resume clearing houses”, write an ad (or assign someone in the practice to construct one), or simply start asking local colleagues and dental peers for referrals. And let us not forget asking patients if they “know someone” (which I believe is the worst mistake of all).

No matter what avenue you take or the vehicle you use to attract candidates, the same applies in every case and that is that you need to have a well-developed plan in place prior to starting the process.  It isn’t simply ” Okay, let’s start interviewing people as soon as we start to see some good resumes or responses coming through.” I think not! It’s a bit more involved than this.

That is “if” you are seeking the best employees for you and your practice.  That is “if” you are wanting to hire passionate, honest, high integrity employees and “if” you can expect them to stay with you as long as possible.  You see, anyone can locate interested personnel, but are they the right people for your practice, do they align with your practice culture, philosophy and business model?  These are the things that will help assure you of not just filling an opening, but bringing in the quality employees you are truly seeking.

It may seem like a waste of time and effort, but honestly once the groundwork is laid and the systems and protocols are in place, it’s just a matter of reusing these materials each time you require additional team members and tweaking them to fit the specific requirements of the new employee. Although following this methodology will add this type of discipline into your hiring routine, you will probably find that you will not be going through this “drill” nearly as often as you have prior to working with structure in your hiring process.

I will list for you chronologically what you will require to change things for the better:

  1. Know exactly what you are looking for. Create a thorough, comprehensive Job Description for this position before you do anything else. Type it out with your letterhead.  This should be presented to every candidate that makes it in for a face-to-face-interview.
  2. Be prepared with a salary range (this is a RANGE that can fluctuate based on candidate).  This means that you do your homework.  Know what skill sets they MUST have to begin with. What licensures they MUST have.  Whether they will be working alone or have someone else with them (this can affect salary either up or down). Be well prepared and knowledgeable here even if you must conduct some due diligence.
  3. If you insist upon the traditional “Working Interview” (with which I discourage, by the way), I prefer a “Skill Assessment”, which is conducted during non-patient hours and is simply an extension of the interview process. If you have them in for a Working Interview then be prepared in advance with a compensation amount and paperwork that supports the time spent. This release should be signed by the doctor and the job applicant. You should have an amount per hour for this day preset so the candidates are aware of this prior to coming in. I can supply you with a sample if you email me @ deb@ourdentalteam.com.  Remember to have the WI overseen by a reliable team member or one of your family members.  They should not be alone to have access to patient records or information of any kind.
  4. Be prepared to supply the strong applicants with an overview of the hours and days that they will be responsible for.
  5. Having the finalists (you may have more than one) have lunch or coffee with your present team (without doctors). This is an excellent opportunity for the team to get a better feel for the candidate.
  6. If you don’t have a reputable company to conduct background checks and drug tests, please find one. This would be one of the very last steps prior to determining a starting wage. Until you have all these pieces completed you should not be offering anyone a position.
  7. Checking references is a tough one, although I do have a protocol I created a number of years ago.
  8. When everything clears and you and your team feel comfortable to offer this person the position, a Job Proposal should be created with every bit of information pertaining to their involvement with your practice.  This is when you should have them review your Employee/Practice Manual.  You must encourage them to read it and initial each page.  In it you should include things such as dress codes, CE courses, vacation information, well days, etc.  They should have everything understood and sign off on it all which will save you from those questions about time off, bereavement pay, etc., that so often comes up later.
  9. Your Job Proposal should also be thorough and comprehensive with regard to when checks are cut.  If you utilize my Progressive Salary Program System that gradually brings salary up as new skills are successfully acquired.
  10. Bringing in a new team member should also be an Office Event, especially when you find you are not hiring as often. Make their presence a big deal.  Balloons? A bio and picture of them set up in the Reception Room? Make sure every team member introduces them to each and every patient, vendor, mail/delivery people and others.