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Josh Gwinn

Leverage a Successful Exit in your Dental Practice: The #1 Tool for Scaling and Exiting

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This month we’ve taken a deep dive into scaling your dental practice and doing it successfully. Scaling any business is time-consuming and work intensive. You need the right teams, tools and resources to scale effectively. And there is one tool that stands out among all the others. But this tool is versatile. There are a couple vital ways to use it, so let’s get into it.

In the dynamic landscape of dental practice management, finding effective metrics to guide growth is crucial. One such metric that has gained prominence is EBITDA, or Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization. This is also a tool used by PE, banks, and other investing institutions when they are interested in buying a dental practice or organization. So, why not learn how to use this tool to your advantage, even and especially when devising your exit strategy. In this post, we’ll explore how leveraging EBITDA can be a strategic move to scale and even selling your dental practice. 

Understanding EBITDA and How To Use it for your Dental Practice 

EBITDA is a financial indicator that provides a snapshot of a company’s operational performance by excluding certain non-operating expenses. It essentially measures a company’s ability to generate operating income before considering the impact of financing and accounting decisions. Investors use this tool so they can have a clear picture of your short-term operational efficiency, in short, a dental practice’s profitability.

EBITDA essentially isolates earnings in your dental practice to gauge the value and feasibility of your practice as it stands separate from external financial factors.  

  • Earnings: The total revenue (all the money earned from your dental services) minus the cost of services sold (the money spent to offer those services). Also known as net income. 
  • Interest: The cost of debt financing (like loans or credit). 
  • Taxes: The amounts paid to the government can vary and thus are excluded. 
  • Depreciation: The decrease in value of tangible assets (like operatory tools and equipment, office equipment, etc.) over time. 
  • Amortization: Similar to depreciation, but for intangible assets (investor arrangements, real estate, dental offices, etc). 

Why EBITDA Matters for Scaling your Dental Practice 

1. Operational Efficiency:

EBITDA focuses solely on the core operations of your dental practice, making it an effective tool to assess operational efficiency. By identifying areas where costs can be optimized, dental practice entrepreneurs can streamline their operations for better scalability. This is also an incredibly valuable tool for dental practice exit strategies. Having a clear picture of your operational efficiency can put you in a strong negotiating position while giving you better tools for exit strategy planning.

2. Comparative Analysis:

EBITDA allows for easy comparison between organizations in the same industry. This can be invaluable for benchmarking your dental practice against your competitors, identifying areas for improvement, and implementing best practices to foster growth as well as exit strategy analysis.

3. Investor Appeal:

Investors often look at EBITDA as a key metric when evaluating an organization’s financial health. A strong EBITDA margin can make your dental practice more attractive to potential investors, facilitating funding opportunities for expansion and exit. You’re in a much stronger negotiating position when you see what they see and work on increasing your profitability.

You May Also Like This Post:

How Dental Practices Can Increase Their EBITDA and Why You Should Care

Steps to Utilize EBITDA for Scaling your Dental Practice 

1. Detailed Financial Analysis of your Practice:

Conduct a thorough analysis of your dental practice’s financial statements to calculate EBITDA. Understand the components and identify any extraordinary items that might distort the true operational performance of your practice. This step cannot be overlooked. In order to get from point A to point B, you’ve got to design a roadmap with the correct data and information.

2. Identify Cost Optimization Opportunities:

Utilize EBITDA as a tool to pinpoint areas where costs can be optimized without compromising operational efficiency. This may involve renegotiating contracts with your vendors, streamlining processes, or investing in upgraded technology for your operatories for greater efficiency. Whether you’re scaling or planning to exit, optimizing your operations will have strong long-term benefits.

3. Strategic Decision-Making:

Armed with a clear understanding of your dental practice’s EBITDA, make strategic decisions aligned with your growth objectives based on your Strategic Plan. This might involve where you choose to open your next location, expanding services perhaps into cosmetic or surgical dentistry, investing in affiliates and partners to increase value, or building your strategic plan for exiting your dental practice organization.

4. Communicate Effectively:

When communicating with stakeholders, including team members, investors, and partners, use EBITDA as a transparent metric to showcase your practice’s financial performance. This fosters trust and confidence in your growth strategy and strategic planning.  

One More Tool for Investing in your Dental Practice  

Leveraging EBITDA can be a game-changer for dental practices aiming to scale or exit successfully. By focusing on operational efficiency, comparative analysis, and strategic decision-making, a dental entrepreneur can use EBITDA as a compass to navigate the path to sustainable growth or a profitable exit.

And don’t overlook mindset. The mindset of a dental entrepreneur cannot be underestimated. You are the driving force behind your vision, mission, and strategic plan. Your passion and clarity are what inspire your team, your vendors, and your partners, they need to trust not just where your practice is headed, but that you have a plan to get there.

If you’re ready to put your vision into action and keep your finger on the pulse of your practice’s value and growth, the next step is simple: track your key performance indicators.
That’s why we created the OPA KPI Tracker, a free, easy-to-use tool designed for dental entrepreneurs. With it, you’ll gain clear insights into the metrics that matter most for scaling, boosting EBITDA, and preparing for a successful exit… whenever that day comes.

Ready to turn clarity into momentum?
Download your free OPA KPI Tracker now and start making every decision data-driven, from growth to exit and every step in between.

The future of dentistry belongs with dentists.

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Scaling Your Dental Practice: 6 Actionable Benefits to Unlocking Your Growth, Prosperity and Legacy

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Scaling a dental practice might seem daunting in today’s economic mine field of private equity takeovers, the possibility of recession constantly on the distant horizon, a labor-driven economy and slim profit margins. But it may be the smartest move you consider planning for right now.  

Scaling a business is akin to nurturing a thriving garden. Your dental practice must be in good shape before you develop a strategic plan to scale. After all, scaling, in essence, is duplicating the success you’ve already created. You don’t want to duplicate your past stagnation. You want to figure out why and how you created your success and then duplicate that.  

It requires careful planning, consistent effort, and the right conditions to flourish. For dental practice entrepreneurs, the decision to scale is a pivotal moment that opens doors to a myriad of benefits. Let’s delve into the advantages of scaling your dental practice and why it’s a strategic move for your long-term success and your legacy.  

Increased Revenue and Profitability for your Dental Practice 

The whole point of scaling your dental business is to introduce new revenue streams. As you expand your services, reach new demographics, and explore additional revenue channels, the financial health of your organization receives a significant boost. 

As your business grows, you now have the ability tap into new markets, attract more customers, and offer additional services. This diversification of revenue streams will help stabilize your profit margins and create a foundation for sustained profitability. In essence, it’s the age-old idea of spending money to make money. Using this strategy smartly allows you to grow your dental organization comfortably.  

In designing your strategic plan for growth, you will consider incorporating new dental services, exploring different locations that align with your market and patient profile, and researching innovative treatment solutions. This not only caters to a broader patient- base but also opens up opportunities for higher-priced services, contributing to a healthier bottom line while attracting and keeping a diverse patient population.  

Enhanced Brand Visibility 

A scaled dental practice commands attention in the marketplace, elevating your organization’s visibility. This heightened recognition not only attracts new patients but also establishes your dental organization as a prominent player in the industry as well as the communities your organization serves. A strong brand presence fosters trust and confidence among both existing and potential patients. 

And this includes online visibility. For a scaled dental practice organization, a strong online presence is crucial. Scaling provides an opportunity to invest in digital marketing strategies that can significantly boost your visibility and engagement. Consider expanding your social media presence, investing in targeted advertising, and optimizing your website for search engines. 

 Include in your strategic plan, strategies for patient-nurturing programs, social and traditional media marketing efforts as well as community outreach programs to affiliate with your organization. 

Operational Efficiency and Cost Optimization 

Scaling your dental practice will require streamlining and optimizing your business processes. A proper strategic plan for growth will lead to improved operational efficiency across your organization, reducing costs and minimizing waste. You can leverage tools and technologies to automate repetitive tasks, allowing your teams to focus on more strategic and creative aspects of your online presence.  

Explore project management tools, diagnostic tools, and analytics software to enhance your teams’ abilities to meet demand not just efficiently but also effectively. And with the advent of new AI technologies constantly coming online, this could prove to make these analyses and tasks easier to navigate. This exploration and implemenation will ensure your teams, as well as patients, are happy with the results. Efficiency gains not only save time but also make your operations more agile and responsive to patient needs and market trends. 

Creating a strategic plan for scaling necessitates a thorough examination of your operational processes. This evaluation alone can often lead to increased efficiency, better resource utilization, and cost optimization. Whether it’s implementing advanced technologies like AI or streamlining administrative tasks, the result is a leaner, more agile organization. And a lean, agile dental practice is ready to scale.  

The dental industry is dynamic, with trends and patient preferences evolving rapidly. Scaling your business ensures that you remain adaptable to these changes. Whether it’s adopting cutting-edge dental technology or introducing innovative service offerings, scalability enables your organization to stay ahead of the curve. 

Talent Acquisition and Development 

As you scale your business, you will need to expand your team. Undeniably, this will mean figuring out how to attract skilled and motivated professionals. There are two aspects to this process: attracting the team members you want and figuring out how to retain them. You will need to integrate professional development, training programs, and career advancement within your organization to attract the people you want.  

Keeping them means fostering a culture of continuous learning and development through Investing in training programs, mentorship initiatives, and employee benefits.  

While you’re implementing these initiatives give thought to yourself and your leadership skills. Because retaining the kind of professionals you want means developing a top-down structure of accountability, inclusion and diversity. Taking the time to understand and integrate the values that you want reflected in your workplace will mean greater team buy-in when you introduce your team to your strategic plan for growth.  

If your team sees themselves reflected in your strategic plan for scaling they’re more likely to take on these efforts and own them, thereby helping you share the scaling challenges and labor efforts. My business partner, the President and Founder of OPS, Dr. Jack Bayramyan, has written an excellent book on his personal experiences scaling his single practice to a thriving dental practice organization spanning two states.

The last chapter in his book is dedicated to the dental practice owner turned investor and entrepreneur. In it, he delves into the tools, strategies and experiences that shaped his leadership style and helped him achieve his astounding success. Learning to shape is leadership gave him the skills to assemble the team that ultimately drove his success. Give it a read.  

Extraction by Dr. Jack Bayramyan - Dental Practice

Improved Patient Experience 

Scaling your dental practice allows you to enhance the overall patient experience. Learning to Implement customer feedback systems to gather insights and make data-driven improvements to your services will greatly enhance your understanding of what patients need and want.

At the same time, the type of outreach shows patients and potential patients that you are interested in what they have to say and what they are looking for. In referral-based marketing this kind of outreach goes along way with the communities your organization serves.  

In your strategic planning, research and invest in technologies that facilitate smoother appointment scheduling, communication, and follow-ups. Personalize your interactions with patients through tailored communication strategies as well as new dental technologies to enhance patient-experience and entice new patients. Building a positive and memorable experience for your patients not only encourages loyalty but also generates positive word-of-mouth referrals, a powerful tool in dental care. 

Risk Mitigation for your Dental Practice Organization 

Diversifying your dental practice through scaling can act as a risk mitigation strategy. Relying on a single service or a limited market exposes your practice to potential downturns. Scaling allows you to spread your risks across various services, locations, and patient segments. 

Diversifying allows you to stay ahead of the competition, which can feel like a perpetual challenge. Scaling provides a competitive advantage by positioning your dental partnership organization as an industry leader.  

In developing your strategic plan, think of scaling as a necessity for risk-mitigation as well as organizational health and longevity. Your plan for the long-term survival and health of your dental practice must include scaling. The challenges you’ll face while scaling are much more exciting than the ones you inevitably face if you do nothing in an era of exponential growth and development.  

A Strategic Plan for Scaling your Dental Practice  

The dental industry is no exception to wildly fluctuating market forces at any given time. If you do nothing, you risk losing everything you’ve worked for to this point including your legacy. In this moment of incredible technological upheaval there are those ready to take advantage of this upheaval and those that will fall by the wayside; very similar to what we saw during the pandemic. Scaling your practice, as I stated, is a direct and effective way to avoid becoming irrelevant while ensuring your future success.  

If you do plan to scale your practice, you need to start with creating a strategic plan.  

Scaling your dental practice is a strategic move that unlocks a myriad of benefits. From financial prosperity and enhanced brand visibility to operational efficiency and adaptability to industry trends, the advantages of scaling are vast and transformative. As you embark on this journey, remember that scaling is not just about getting bigger; it’s about building a foundation for sustainable success and ensuring your legacy.  

Track What Matters Most to Scale Your Dental Practice

There are countless challenges you’ll face as you scale and implement your growth strategies—but you don’t have to navigate them blindly. One of the most effective ways to overcome obstacles and accelerate your progress is by consistently tracking your practice’s key performance indicators (KPIs).

The right KPIs help you see what’s working, spot opportunities, and address issues before they become costly. That’s why we created the OPA KPI Tracker—a simple, powerful tool designed for dental entrepreneurs who want to make data-driven decisions and unlock new growth.

Ready to gain clarity on your numbers and take control of your growth?
Download the OPA KPI Tracker below and equip yourself with the insights you need to scale your dental practice with confidence.

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The 10x Rule: Supercharging Your Dental Practice for Success

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The 10x rule is a powerful concept that can take your dental practice to the next level. So, let’s look at how it can work for you.  

Do you think of yourself as an entrepreneur? Do you think of yourself as an investor? If not, why not? You’re a business owner. Your dental practice is a business. For this post, I would like you to see yourself as an investor and see how you can apply the principles discussed below to your dental organization, no matter how big or small it is. Deal?  

The 10x rule has a simple but game-changing premise: Instead of aiming for small, gradual improvements, aim to multiply your efforts and results by 10 times. It’s about setting audacious goals and taking massive actions to achieve them. 

Ultimately though, the 10x approach is really about adopting an investor mindset when you’re optimizing your dental practice. This might be a little challenging to think about at first. As a dental practice owner, you may not think of yourself as an investor; you may not even see your business as scalable. Yes, it can be done, yes, you’ve seen it happen in other practices, but how do you do it yourself? How do you begin to change your thinking and start taking action like an entrepreneur and investor in your practice?  

Changing your mindset is the first step. Learning to apply a growth mindset to your thinking and then to your business is life changing. That shift in mindset can change the trajectory of your life. Are you ready?  

Let’s dive into the deep end of the pool and look at ways that you can begin to see your dental practice as an investment and every dollar you’re spending in your practice as a down payment on that investment.   

The size of your dreams must always exceed your current capacity to achieve them. If your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not big enough.”

~Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Africa’s first woman president

The 10x Rule for Your Dental Practice 

Yes, 10x is about maximizing your investment but it is also about making sure every dollar you spend is necessary and a reinvestment into your practice. Here’s why, for every unnecessary dollar you spend on your practice, that is one dollar less that you will get back when it’s time to exit. Likewise, for every necessary dollar you spend, that is one more dollar that goes into your pocket when you exit.  

So, the question becomes, how do you invest and reinvest in your practice wisely, so you maximize your investment? And remember, we want big, audacious goals. Jim Collins has a term for this, Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal or BHAG. In his book, Built to Last, Jim talks about setting these goals for yourself to think big and create a plan for long-term success. Big goals are not short-term hops, they are long-term leaps that keep teams focused thereby giving your organization tighter restraints to achieve them.  

Setting 10x Goals for Your Dental Practice 

When setting a goal for your dental practice, the goal, at first glance, might seem almost impossible to achieve. This could mean setting a goal to increase your patient base by 10 times or to generate 10 times the revenue you’re currently making. Keep in mind, these are audacious goals, not modest ones.  

If you want to read firsthand how one dental practice did this, take a look at this case study.

The Power of Massive Action in your Dental Practice 

Once you’ve set your 10x goal, it’s time for massive action. To achieve such an audacious goal, you need to take massive, consistent, and persistent actions. For instance, if your goal is to increase your patient base, you might need to ramp up your marketing efforts, improve your online presence, and offer exceptional patient experiences to attract and retain more clients. All those elements need to be taken into consideration.  

Take a look at the graphic below. This graphic shows the BHAG my partner and president of Optimize Practice Alliance, Dr. Jack Bayraymyan, designed when he was scaling his dental practice organization.

BHAG for your Dental Practice

This looks extremely ambitious, and it was. However, taking a very long view of what Jack wanted to build was the beginning of an incredible and ultimately successful journey. It took this level of vision to accomplish what he eventually accomplished. But he didn’t do it alone.

The first and most vital step after creating your audacious goal, is making sure your team is on board. You need to analyze your team and ensure that everyone is in the right job for them. Next, you need to be confident they are ready, willing and able to fight for your goal as hard as you are going to fight for it. Your team is the most vital component of reaching your goal.  

Embrace Innovation for Your Dental Practice  

To truly leverage the 10x rule, embrace innovation in your practice. Explore technologies and techniques that can help you stand out in the industry. Invest in the latest dental equipment and software that can enhance patient care and streamline your operations. Innovate not just for the sake of it but to drive real results and efficiencies. And remember to do it wisely. If you can find a gently used version of the same technology that is a strong investment because you’re saving money that will eventually end up back in your pocket.  

Digital Transformation in the Dental Industry 

Given your role in optimizing and growing the online presence of your dental organization, digital transformation is a key aspect of implementing the 10x rule. Here are some strategies to consider: 

  • Social Media Presence: Use social media platforms to showcase your practice. Share educational content, patient testimonials, and behind-the-scenes glimpses. Engage with your audience to build a loyal following. 
  • Website Excellence: Ensure your website is user-friendly, informative, and optimized for search engines. A well-structured website is your digital storefront, and it can attract new patients. 
  • Online Scheduling: Implement an online appointment scheduling system to make it convenient for patients to book appointments.
  • Telemedicine: Explore telehealth options for consultations and follow-ups, providing flexibility for patients and expanding your reach. 
  • Patient Reviews: Encourage satisfied patients to leave positive reviews on platforms like Google My Business. Positive reviews can significantly boost your credibility and attract more clients.  

Building a Strong Team 

Remember, having a strong, resilient and cohesive team is the main component of reaching your audacious goal. Communication, transparency, compassionate leadership and the free flow of ideas and feedback are the elements that will help you build a team that will drive your goal. If you have a team that fights for your vision, there is no end to what you can achieve.   

The 10x rule for your dental practice

10X Growth Requires 10X Clarity

The 10X Rule isn’t just about working harder, it’s about directing massive effort toward the right activities. If you want to scale your practice, expand your vision, and take your organization to the next level, you need absolute clarity on what’s actually driving results.

That’s why we created the Optimize KPI Tracker for dental entrepreneurs. This tool helps you focus on the metrics that truly move the needle, so your time, energy, and leadership are applied where they create the greatest impact. When you track the right numbers consistently, you stop guessing and start executing with precision. 10X growth requires discipline, accountability, and visibility. The KPI Tracker gives you all three.

What are you willing to achieve? Now, raise the bar 10x higher than that. You got this.  

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The Power of Authentic Partnership in your Dental Practice, Part 6: Values & Norms

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Do you live your values even in your dental practice? In this post, the last of my series on the power of authentic partnership, I talk about the importance of living your values even at the office. It’s been great to write this series of posts. I’ve gotten to relive my experiences meeting my partner, Dr. Jack Bayramyan.  

In my last post I got into the fine print of business deals and how you cannot allow that fine print to influence your core relationships. If a partnership is strong enough it can weather and survive the due diligence of creating a business partnership.  

There is a lot of trust that goes into that process. You both may get along, share common interests, and even share core values and visions. But if there is no trust as a basis of your relationship it will not survive the fine print.  

The Power of Authentic Partnership in Your Dental Practice: Part 6

How Does Partnership Survive Dental Practice Politics?  

So then, how do you wade through the irrelevant to find the meaning in a relationship? This is where I rely on a principle called reciprocity. This is one of Robert Cialdini’s six principles of ethical influence. In his book, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. In the book, Cialdini describes reciprocity as giving first to get something later. When Jack and I were going through due diligence for our partnership, Jack came to me with a simple request.  

He had spent days answering repetitive lines of questioning for lawyers. He knew they had everything they needed for due diligence so he was perplexed by the constant barrage of questions, seemingly searching for a “gotchya” moment, that was honestly never going to happen. Jack was a man of his word; he opened his entire company to our due diligence process and was an open book during this period. So, why were the lawyers hounding him? They were just doing their…due diligence.  

He called me asking me to step in and help out. I knew the lawyers had everything they needed, so I called them off. In essence, Jack had been extremely open, offering up his entire company and entrepreneurial history. I reciprocated by choosing to trust the foundation our partnership was being built on and asked the lawyers to wrap up.  

Figure Out the Values That Will Guide Your Dental Practice   

Why? Why did I reciprocate in this way? Why didn’t I say to Jack, “well, if we’re going to be in partnership, they need to do their due diligence.” I didn’t say that because I knew that Jack had come to me with a simple and vulnerable request. I wanted to honor that and my values first. The lawyers came second.  

I take the values and norms that I instill in my teams just as seriously as I want them to do. I walk my talk and if I don’t, I want people to call me out on it. Our team values don’t just hang in framed photos on the walls in our offices. Our company values reflect our personal values and guide our teams, decisions and visions for ourselves and partners.

Two of those norms are being who you say you are and when you say you’re going to do something, do it. Pretty simple, but they make a world of difference when you live into them day after day. When you live your values, people know where they stand with you; they trust you; they trust your word; and everyone from your teams to your vendors and partners, begin to rely on your consistency and constancy.  

From the beginning, I knew that my relationship with Jack was not transactional. Transactional relationships especially in the workplace, are necessary to move the needle in your business. But longevity in a partnership and in an organization is born of more than just transactions. In order for a partnership to survive and thrive it needs a foundation of trust, communication, clarity of intention and transparency. Those qualities, by the way, are core values at Optimize Practice Services. Read more about our values here.

What are the values you hold and espouse in your dental practice or dental organization?

Trust As a Guiding Principle in your Dental Practice Organization 

Another norm that my team and I practice is assume positive intent. What does this mean? I think in business, it is very easy to assume that people are out to get their mission accomplished, or their goal met, no matter the cost, even if it means stepping on people or overlooking simple societal agreements like courtesy and cooperation.  

It’s very easy to allow that assumption to sort of color our views on the people we work with or see every day. It’s easy to assume that people are just out to get what they want and are planning to disregard you once they have it. However, I have found in my 20+ years of managing teams and leading people that by and large, people don’t walk around with ulterior motives. They don’t even lead with bad intentions. I have found that is the rule, not the exception.

So, I make it a point to lead my teams with this norm and to instill it in our workplace environment. We start by assuming positive intent, that people, by and large, have a positive intention, even if they don’t follow through with what they said they would do as the basis of cooperation and working together. Many times it’s overwhelm and forgetfulness that are the true ‘culprits’ of one not fulfilling one’s obligations, not negative intentions.

Someone doesn’t return an email; someone doesn’t close the loop on the detail of an important project; someone doesn’t follow through with a commitment. It’s very easy in these typical, quotidian occurrences, to assume bad intent or even negligence, isn’t it? So, assuming positive intent really goes against the grain of our thinking. But it’s a wonderful discipline that leads to greater harmony, cooperation and trust among co-workers, teams and partners.  

The Power of Living Your Values and Norms in Your Dental Practice Organization 

Of course, these values and norms I’ve described are just the ones that work for us based on the collective leadership experience of myself and Dr. Jack. I urge you to find out what works for you, your partners and your teams. Values-based exercises: Gallup’s CliftonStrengths finder, Julia Waller’s Unique Ability™ exercises, Via Institute on Character and the Kolbe Index assessments are all wonderful tools to help you determine your values and build them into your teams, organization and partnerships.   

Reflecting on my first meeting with Jack and the partnership that led to Optimize Practice Alliance has been incredibly meaningful. That shared commitment to values, vision, and integrity is what continues to move our organization forward. Scaling a dental practice, entering partnership, and building a lasting legacy are among the most important steps an entrepreneur can take—and those steps are most powerful when they’re rooted in clarity and alignment.

That’s why we created the Extraction GPS. This tool helps dental entrepreneurs clarify their values, define their current reality, and articulate a clear vision for the future, so growth, partnership, and leadership decisions are guided by intention rather than pressure.

When your values are clear, your path forward becomes clearer too.

Thinking about scaling, partnership, or the next chapter for your dental practice?
Download the Extraction GPS and start designing a future that aligns with your values, your vision, and the legacy you want to leave.

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The Power of Authentic Partnership for Your Dental Practice, Part 5: The Fine Print 

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Entering a partnership within the scope of your dental practice requires due diligence on both sides. But where does due diligence end and trust begin?  

In the video below Optimize President, Dr. Jack Bayramyan, and I, discuss that very situation. If there is true trust in someone you choose to go into partnership with, there must also be clear and open communication between you both. Partnership doesn’t exist without communication or trust.  

One of the first tests your partnership will encounter will be the due diligence aspect of becoming a partnership. This is where lawyers come in and start looking at your books, your operations, and you. Being ready for this process is paramount to the success of it.  

Preparing Your Dental Practice for Partnership 

Being open and transparent is one of the keys to success in beginning the process of joining two entities. Make no mistake, lawyers will look at everything: your daily calendar of events, how you run your operations, the true valuation of your organization, etc. It is a normal and detail-oriented process and you’ve got to be prepared. You always want to put your best foot forward, but you also want to be honest and truthful throughout the process.  

After the glow of meeting someone and then determining they’re the right partner for your practice, creating a business partnership is actually a lot of work. One of the keys to success is to begin the process of scaling your practice. When you evaluate your practice and stress the system to see where the weak aspects are, you are already able to understand your business better. And that really is what it comes down to, you want to have a detailed understanding of the operations, teams and systems of your entire organization.  

One of the ways you can gain that understanding is with our Assessment.  OPS has a comprehensive assessment you can take for free. That assessment will give you a clear understanding of your practice and what it is ready to take on. It will also help you answer if you, yourself, are ready for partnership or even if you want to take those next steps or not.  

The Values that Guide You also Guide Your Dental Practice 

But when is too far, too far? In the video, Jack describes being inundated with the same questions over and over again. He describes an almost too painstaking experience of having to repeatedly prove himself to lawyer after lawyer. When is it too much and enters into the realm of redundancy?  

In my experience, dental entrepreneur has her or his own line in the sand, if you will. No matter what, due diligence is a necessity but as in Jack’s situation, my lawyers were going above and beyond what they needed to do. I appreciated their thoroughness but when I got that call from Jack, I knew I had to act.  

After all, Dr. Jack was about to become my business partner, I needed to do my due diligence, but then I needed to balance that with the trust I would extend to any other partner or colleague. I got on the phone with my lawyers immediately. I checked to make sure we had what we needed, we did, and then I told them to back off. I called Jack back, explained the situation and let him know we had got what we needed and there would be no more redundant questions, etc.  

It was at that moment that trust was forged for real. That was truly the first real test of our partnership. He expressed a real issue and was honest and open about it. I had the power to address that issue and solve it to his satisfaction, so I did. We both ended that day happy.  

Are your personal values reflected in your dental practice, and the work you do? You may be interested in this post… 

The Power of Authentic Partnership in Your Dental Practice, Part 2: Are Shared Values Enough?

What Do You Look for in A Partner as A Dental Entrepreneur? I knew that Jack Bayramyan’s organization was a cut above. I would be lucky to partner with him. His organization…

Are You Ready for Dental Partnership?  

That first real issue in a partnership often sets the tone for everything that follows. Issues are inevitable, no business is ever issue-free. What determines whether a partnership succeeds isn’t the absence of challenges, but how those challenges are handled. Communication, transparency, and trust are the foundations. Without trust, partnership simply doesn’t work.

Before entering into partnership, it’s critical to be honest—not just about the organization, but about yourself as a leader. What are you ready for? What do you want your role to be? What are your non-negotiables? And what kind of future are you actually trying to build?

That’s why we created the Extraction GPS. This tool helps dental entrepreneurs clarify their values, define their current reality, and map a clear vision for where they’re going. It gives you the clarity needed to evaluate partnership opportunities thoughtfully, so decisions are made with intention, not pressure.

Partnership and scaling are major steps. The clearer you are before you take them, the stronger your outcomes will be.

Considering partnership or the next phase of growth for your dental practice organization?
Download the Extraction GPS to gain clarity on your readiness and ensure your next move supports the future you truly want to build.

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The Power of Authentic Partnership for your Dental Practice, Part 4: Know Your Teams

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One of things I learned from and most admire about my partner Jack Bayramyan is his ability to connect with people. This is a very important quality in a dental practice owner and, really, any entrepreneur. Being comfortable around people, being comfortable speaking with almost anyone, these abilities help create instant connection and really do half the “selling” in your business.  

The Importance of Social Capital in Your Dental Practice 

Social capital is the positive product of human interaction. It is the cohesion that allows the people within an organization to function together as a whole through trust, and shared identity, norms and values. When a leader invests her or his time in building social capital within their organization that demonstrates an innate understanding of what the human condition needs to flourish, thrive and grow. 

Taking seriously your responsibilities as a leader involves putting time and effort into understanding different leadership styles and which fit your personality best, studying your team’s dynamics and being open to feedback around your leadership. When you have mastered the essential leadership qualities you can begin to craft a team that will be with you for the long haul and fight for your vision as hard as you do.

When you have a leader that innately understands those necessities and builds them into the framework of team structures, that is a leader who understands how to grow a successful business. You cannot grow or expand or scale an operation without team buy-in. To gain team buy-in, you can operate in one of two ways. You can intimidate everyone and rule through fear, bullying and belittlement; or you can lead with integrity, compassion and discipline of message. Of course, there are all kinds of leadership styles, but they mostly fall into one of those two categories, generally speaking.  

Dental Practice Partnership – Making a Lasting Choice 

Before Jack and I made it official, I took a tour of his organization, a chance to “kick the tires” so to speak. We visited one of his practices and the first thing he did wasn’t tell me the revenue of that particular location, or how the systems or operations worked on a daily basis. No. The first thing Jack did was introduce me to all his staff and share with me a little bit about each individual.   

At the time, Jack owned 6 locations in Southern California. And he knew the names and backgrounds of every single person that worked for him. That impressed me more than their profit margins, their EBITDA, their monthly overhead or yearly returns. And by the end of that field trip, I knew I had found the person I wanted to partner with. I knew that if this person took team building, social capital and leadership investment, that seriously this would be a person who understood the power all of that had in building an operation to scale.  

Using Team Cohesion to Grow Your Dental Practice  

Growing and scaling a dental organization is an immense undertaking and it’s not something you can do alone. Whether or not you ever enter into a formal partnership, long-term growth depends on your ability to build teams that are aligned, motivated, and committed to a shared direction.

True cohesion doesn’t come from job descriptions or compensation alone. It comes from leadership that understands what drives people, what inspires them, and what makes them believe in something bigger than their daily tasks. As Theodore Roosevelt famously said:

“People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

You can hire people who will show up and do their jobs. But inspiring people to fight for a vision requires clarity about where you’re going, why it matters, and how their work connects to that future.

That’s why we created the Extraction GPS. This tool helps dental practice owners clarify their values, define their current reality, and articulate a clear vision for where they’re headed. When your vision is clear, team alignment becomes possible. When alignment exists, cohesion follows and growth becomes sustainable.

Thinking about scaling your dental practice and strengthening your team along the way?
Download the Extraction GPS to gain clarity on your vision and give your team something meaningful to rally around.

At Optimize Practice Alliance, we believe the future of dentistry belongs with dentists and that future is built by leaders who lead with clarity, intention, and care.

Download Your Extraction GPS

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