Ripley, MS – Oct. 30, 2013– Chris Griffin, Founder of The Capacity Academy, a dental practice consulting company, recently published an article on his website (http://www.TheCapacityAcademy.com) discussing employee management. The article, titled “Dental Practice Management: How to Get a ‘Trouble Employee’ Back on Track” offers practical guidance for his readers.

Chris Griffin writes, “Dealing with underperforming employees is challenging for many dentists and practice managers, and so today we are going to examine five key principles to keep in mind during this process.”

The Capacity Academy specializes in dental practice consulting. They help clients increase production and profitability through the use of efficient techniques and systems.

The entire article can be found here.

To learn more about The Capacity Academy, please visit http://www.TheCapacityAcademy.com

About Chris Griffin:

One of the few dentists brave enough to tackle lecturing and coaching dental assistants, Chris Griffin, DDS, formed The Capacity Academy in 2008 to help dentists increase both their hourly production and overall clinical efficiency.  He soon found that no dentist can truly flourish without the help of their trusted auxiliaries.  Now, their training is an essential cog in the wheel of his style of dental coaching, along with teaching the absolute essentials of efficiency without sacrificing clinical excellence.

Dr. Griffin is a columnist for The Profitable Dentist magazine and self-publishes a monthly newsletter called the Capacity Review. He is the Lead Author of the new best-selling book, More Than A Mouthful, a human interest book to the general public about dentists.  His previously published book, Time Genius: Design, Achieve and Implement Any Goal Into Your Already Hectic, Crazy Life (or Business), has sold over 770 copies, and his self-published book The Ultimate Secret of Success: Not Just For Dentists has had over 530 downloads as an ebook.  That book has 6 top notch guest authors, such as Dr. Howard Farran, Dr. Sam Puri, Dr. Bob Westerman, Dr. Woody Oakes and others.  His newest venture is his ezine, The Winning Dentist, which currently boasts over 2000 subscribers.

But what happens when an employee isn’t performing as well as he or she should be? How can you get him or her “back on track?” Dealing with underperforming employees is challenging for many dentists and practice managers, and so today we are going to examine five key principles to keep in mind during this process.

1) Face the facts. For most dentists, the first instinct is to ignore the problem and hope that it goes away on its own. Confrontation is stressful and can sometimes seem like a waste of time. But trust me when I tell you that the problem will never go away on its own. It will only get worse. The best thing you can do is address it immediately before it becomes a habit.

2) Clearly explain what is wrong and what needs to change. When you sit down to talk with your employee, be as clear as you can be. Explain what the employee is doing wrong and what needs to change. Remind him or her of your expectations. Make sure that when the conversation ends, the employee knows exactly what needs to happen.

3) Provide the employee with the necessary support to improve. Do your best to put employees in position to succeed. Give your employees the necessary support, training, and resources they need to get the job done right. Set them up for success!

4) Monitor the situation and provide regular feedback. Once you’ve had a conversation with your underperforming employee, pay very close attention to the situation. Provide feedback as much as you can, whether that’s positive reinforcement or constructive criticism to get the employee back on track. If your employees feel that you aren’t going to follow up on your instructions and your expectations, they’re not going to change.

5) Don’t hesitate to cut ties if the situation doesn’t improve. Sometimes, despite your best efforts, you just won’t be able to get the employee to turn the corner and improve his or her performance. In these cases, don’t hesitate to let the employee go. If he or she is showing no commitment and no desire to improve performance today, it’s not going to change tomorrow. Keeping that employee around is a waste of time and resources that you could be spending on the training and development of a replacement. And keeping an underperforming employee around will oftentimes have a bad impact on the morale and the effectiveness of the rest of your team.

Managing underperforming employees is part of running a dental practice. It happens to all of us. When it does, keep these tips in mind and proactively address the problem before it gets worse. Contact me today if you’d like to learn more!

Ripley, MS – Oct. 25, 2013 – Chris Griffin, Founder of The Capacity Academy, a dental practice consulting company, recently published a blog on his website (http://www.TheCapacityAcademy.com) discussing practice management. The blog, titled “Dental Practice Management: Make the Most of the Last Months of 2013!” asks readers to answer a series of self-evaluative questions.

Chris Griffin writes, “Today, I thought I’d give you the opportunity to evaluate your progress so far in 2013, in order to help you sharpen your focus for the rest of the year.”

The Capacity Academy specializes in dental practice consulting. They help clients increase production and profitability through the use of efficient techniques and systems.

The entire blog can be found here.

To learn more about The Capacity Academy, please visit http://www.TheCapacityAcademy.com

About Chris Griffin:

One of the few dentists brave enough to tackle lecturing and coaching dental assistants, Chris Griffin, DDS, formed The Capacity Academy in 2008 to help dentists increase both their hourly production and overall clinical efficiency.  He soon found that no dentist can truly flourish without the help of their trusted auxiliaries.  Now, their training is an essential cog in the wheel of his style of dental coaching, along with teaching the absolute essentials of efficiency without sacrificing clinical excellence.

Dr. Griffin is a columnist for The Profitable Dentist magazine and self-publishes a monthly newsletter called the Capacity Review. He is the Lead Author of the new best-selling book, More Than A Mouthful, a human interest book to the general public about dentists.  His previously published book, Time Genius: Design, Achieve and Implement Any Goal Into Your Already Hectic, Crazy Life (or Business), has sold over 770 copies, and his self-published book The Ultimate Secret of Success: Not Just For Dentists has had over 530 downloads as an ebook.  That book has 6 top notch guest authors, such as Dr. Howard Farran, Dr. Sam Puri, Dr. Bob Westerman, Dr. Woody Oakes and others.  His newest venture is his ezine, The Winning Dentist, which currently boasts over 2000 subscribers.

If you’re not careful, it is easy to get sucked into the busy-ness that accompanies this time of year. It’s important to make a conscious effort to make the most of the remaining days of 2013. Today, I thought I’d give you the opportunity to evaluate your progress so far in 2013, in order to help you sharpen your focus for the rest of the year.

Below are several key areas of focus, along with questions you can ask yourself to determine which areas need extra efforts.

1) Marketing and practice development. Is your practice growing? If so, great! How can you capitalize on your growth and ensure that your new patients enjoy an exceptional experience and continue to spread the word about you? If not, have you identified an effective marketing message? Have you found effective channels (like social media or local advertising) for getting your message out?

2) Financial performance. Is your practice profitable, and continuing to trend in the right direction? Obviously retaining current patients and bringing in new ones is key to profitability, but are there additional steps you can take to control expenses and improve your bottom line?

3) Team development and effectiveness. How effective is your team? Can you count on them to execute their responsibilities consistently? Do they provide exceptional service? Keep in mind that you can and should help your team to continue to grow by continuing to train and mentor them.

4) Personal effectiveness and enjoyment. Finally, how has this year been for you personally? Are you spending your time profitably, or do you find yourself consumed with mundane details? Are you able to spend plenty of time away from the office, with family and friends? If not, why do you think this is the case, and what can you do about it? (Hint: it usually starts with training and empowering your team to handle the details so that you don’t have to!)

Questions or comments? Please contact us today to learn more!

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Morbi id arcu id lectus convallis pulvinar vel non nulla. In at magna vel tellus accumsan pellentesque id at felis. Pellentesque sit amet felis non justo volutpat iaculis. Phasellus at posuere risus, a molestie erat. Duis elementum et nibh nec blandit. Vestibulum facilisis ligula tellus, in eleifend sem lacinia id. Aliquam lectus enim, sagittis at vestibulum at, sollicitudin in enim.

“Taking your dental practice to the next level is never easy. One of my biggest headaches and frustrations was not being as productive as I know I could be. What impressed me about The Capacity Academy is that Chris Griffin is a regular guy like you and I with extraordinary systems to make you a more efficient and effective dentist. He takes all the inefficiencies and time wasters in your office and turns that into productive time. Even though I have only got 80% of Chris’ systems in place and I was fairly productive before I met him, I realized at least a 15% to 20% increase in my production and my ability to help move patients in a more efficient manner. If you want to take your practice to the next level, one thing you have to do is practice dentistry effectively and efficiently and Chris is one of the few people I know that can get you there. I honestly believe if you want to be more successful, more productive and have a happier more fulfilling practice, getting involved with Chris and The Capacity Academy in some way is an absolutely no-brainer!”

“Your system is great for us. I thank God for you.”

In 2010 our practice was running 3 hygienist with two doctors. Starting 2011 we started the year with one doctor and two hygienist. After talking with Dr. Griffin in just two phone calls and 3 emails his strategy has increased my hygiene dept by 25% with one less hygienist. We are projecting a $120,000 increase in hygiene alone with one less hygienist. What he did for my bottom line!!

Dr. Griffin brings a healthy dose of common sense back into dentistry. At a time when dentists are inundated by fads and must have gadgets, it is refreshing to learn that bread & butter dentistry can be highly rewarding in a tough economy through smart practices and systems.