First, check out this outstanding financial resource that Jonathan has provided for the RD audience: http://dentistmetrics.com/relentless

Quotes & Notes:

Jonathan VanHorn on working less & making more - RD Podcasts

  • The biggest struggle I see a dentist has is knowing where to start.
  • A business has people, products, and processes.  And a lot of dentists have a lot of problems with those processes.  It really comes down to managing people.
  • They [dentists] have the innate ability to be able to manage the clinical side plus the business side.
  • Nothing is going to run without your staff.
  • Whenever you really start niching down, in the dental industry . . . you can actually see where people are doing things wrong by just looking at the numbers.

The goal is to have 55-60% overhead [for a solo practice].  And that is an average.  I am a believer in the saying averages apply to everyone and no one at the same time.

  • This issue doesn’t work for you because of why? And they will say, well it is because of the contract of the person in this role.  You can say, has any dentist ever bought a practice, had a contract in place, and changed that contract?  It’s really hard for them to say no.
  • Staffing is the biggest thing to get in check if you want to get to that 55-60%.
  • Lab fees and dental supplies both go hand in hand.  That is really the #2 thing we tell people to look at after their staffing.
  • Part of being a business owner is trying to find the best deals.
  • Really make sure that that process [the process of purchasing lab equipment and so] is for convenience but rather for profit.
  • Ask other people in your area what they are paying.
  • Because I am a CPA I should probably say [the next big-ticket item is] taxes, but I’m actually not on that board.
  • If you keep 15% for lab and equipment, and 20% for staffing then really you only have 20% left for everything else, be it rent or anything else.
  • Any practice that is from the start-up level or is just in the running level, anywhere from zero 800,000 dollars in revenue.  Their sole responsibility should be in marketing.
  • If you have a great service or a great product, then you are actually doing disservice to the public if you don’t offer it.
  • The problem with that is if you are doing what everyone else is doing then you are just going to get caught in the crowd.
  • If you have a light to shine, shine it for the world to see.  Don’t hide it.
  • If you have a sneaking suspicion of something, don’t let it just go by the wayside and just accept it as fact.
  • I would definitely go to check out dentalcardservices.com.
  • Take control of supplies.

“What’s measured is improved,” Peter Drucker.  But also “What’s not measured is not improved.”

  • I feel like driving revenue is so much more important in the early stages of running a practice.
  • I use Xero.com for accounting.

Jonathan VanHorn’s website is dentistmetrics.com.

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