Dentaltown November 2021 - 12

professional courtesy
column
Money-Saving Manual Transmissions
One of the message boards featured this month
highlights a timely discussion about raises for team
members (p. 22). This can be a diffi cult topic for dental
practices that have team members who are already close
to the top of the wage chart, and is further complicated
by the fact we're facing infl ation in every aspect of our
lives. Employers feel pressure to increase wages so their
team members can maintain their current standard of
living, and while we could raise fees to match infl ation,
insurance reimbursements will rarely match the schedule
or amount of our increases. As an owner, I'm the last
one to get paid, so this current situation leads to a pay
cut for " the big guy. "
Usually, the wage pressures from infl ation and the
threat to your bottom line would be counterbalanced
by a robust workforce. Team members who aren't happy
with their current salaries have the option of leaving
the practice for a better offer, and you could probably
fi nd a new team member who would work for the wage
you're willing to pay.
At this point, I expect your fi rst thought was that
hiring a new team member is a signifi cant expense of
time and money, which should be weighed against any
expected raise. If you have been blessed with a stable
team, you may not be aware of the current hiring crisis
in the dental industry: There's a signifi cant shortage of
quality team members for all positions. Your mileage
may vary, but many online discussions suggest that
the quality and quantity of applicants is at a low point.
So when it comes time to fi ll an open position in
your offi ce, you'll likely need to expand your search to
a broader group of candidates and be willing to pay a
competitive wage. In many parts of our country, the
de facto minimum wage is $15/hour
and the Amazon minimum wage is
at $18/hour plus benefi ts.
Some people use the round fi gure
of $10,000 to represent how much
a new team member costs. This
accounts for lost production during
the search, employment advertising,
time for training and diminished
trainer productivity. Regardless of
whether or not you are looking to fi ll a position, this
column is your reminder to refl ect on your current
method of training new members of your team.
Many offices don't face this situation with any
regularity, so their default method of training is to
have the new team member shadow someone with the
same position and learn as they go. One of the obvious
challenges to this approach is the fact that the trainer
will work slower as they teach and if your best (assistant,
front offi ce or hygienist) is the position you are fi lling,
who will set the example?
Your best option to solve this problem is to work on
an operations manual for the key positions in your offi ce.
This document describes every process and procedure
for each particular position on your team. (The entry
for a dental assistant, for example, might say, " Handles
the new-patient appointment from start to fi nish. This
includes greeting patients in the reception area and
escorting them to the front desk to check out. " ) If you
currently have job descriptions for your team members,
these documents are a good place to start; if not, you
can develop both documents in parallel.
The best time to start is before you need to replace a
team member, because your current all-stars will provide
the best information to build your operations manual.
You can simply start by sitting down with your team to
make a list of all the procedures completed daily. From
that outline, they can fi ll in the details.
A well-written operations manual should bring a new
team member up to standard quicker than shadowing,
and the reference document will support them as they
face new situations in the practice. Furthermore, that
new team member can improve the manual by providing
feedback and adding detail or adjusting as needed. If
you are overwhelmed at the prospect of creating this
document, many dental consultants can help you with
the process.
When someone leaves our team, it is often unexpected,
and I hope the tips I've shared in this column help you
have a plan in place.
If you have comments to share, please visit the digital
version of this article online at Dentaltown.com. I can
also be reached by email at tom@dentaltown.com. ■
by Thomas Giacobbi, DDS, FAGD, editorial director, Dentaltown magazine
12 NOVEMBER 2021 // dentaltown.com
http://www.Dentaltown.com http://www.dentaltown.com
Dentaltown November 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Dentaltown November 2021
