January 11, 2012

3-Prong HR Strategy to Protect Your Practice – Part 1

Filed under: General,HR Compliance,Practice Leadership — admin @ 3:36 pm
win lose draw 150x150 3 Prong HR Strategy to Protect Your Practice   Part 1

Don't Just Roll the Dice!

With employee related lawsuits continuing to rise at an alarming rate, it is critical to shine a spotlight on your responsibilities as an employer and get your HR house in order.  Lawsuits are often more about perception than the truth. Commit to a proactive approach to HR compliance, rather than a reactive one and you will not only protect your practice assets, you’ll enjoy a practice that runs much more smoothly, effectively and happily.

1.  Policy &Procedures Manual:

Practical: Management framework for your practice spelling out how you run your practice. A much-appreciated guide for the team to prevents misunderstandings.

Legal Protection: When done well, comprehensively and kept current, it is your best defense of your positions and your good faith attempt to stay on top of your legal responsibilities to your employees. Guided by an HR Professional, you will be aware of all state and federal requirements and your policies and procedures will be compliant. Don’t take chances copying someone else’s manual; the rules change according to number of employees, your state and your type of business.

 

 

November 3, 2011

Unleash Your “Inner Steve Jobs”

Filed under: Practice Leadership,Team Development — admin @ 9:02 am

Steve Jobs and the Seven Rules of Success

Great article from  www.Entrepreneur.com BY CARMINE GALLO Love Carmine’s advice to unleash our “inner Steve Jobs”

1. Do what you love

2. Put a dent in the universe

3. Make connections

4. Say no to 1,000 things

5. Create insanely different experiences

6. Master the message

7. Sell dreams, not products

 

September 20, 2011

Recommended Reading to Drive Dental Practice Success

for more recommended reading check out 150x150 Recommended Reading to Drive Dental Practice SuccessAfter speaking at the AADOM meeting in Nashville this month, I’ve received several requests for a list of books I recommend. Here is a list of what’s on my bookshelf right now:

  • A Sense of Urgency by John Kotter
  • Delivery Happiness by Tony Hsieh
  • Drive by Daniel Pink
  • Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Travis Bradberry, Jean Graeves
  • First, Break All The Rules by Marcus Buckingham
  • Good to Great by Jim Collins
  • It’s Called Word For a Reason by Larry Winget
  • Leading Change by John Kotter
  • Louder Than Words by Bob Kelleher
  • Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely
  • The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People  by Dr. Stephen R. Covey*
  • The Discipline of Market Leaders by Traeacy, Wierseman
  • The Five Dysfunctions Of A Team by Peter Lencioni
  • The Hundred Percenters  by Michael Murphy
  • The Kindness Revolution by Ed Horrell
  • The Secrets of Six Figure Women by Barbara Stanny (this is for men too!)
  • Wooden – A Lifetime of Observations

*This has been on my reading list for over 20 years ~ and I’m not done with it yet!

September 18, 2011

Deja Vu?

Filed under: Practice Leadership,Team Development — admin @ 11:18 am

shuffle 150x150  Deja Vu? Employee engagement may be the biggest buzzword in talent management today and yet it remains more elusive than ever. Studies show that only 29% of employees are truly engaged in the workplace. For a practice with six team members, that means you’ve only got the hearts and heads of 2 of those 6 team members. It’s no wonder that 70% of change initiatives fail and most managers suffer from what I call ‘Meeting Déjà vu.” If you’ve ever been in a team meeting and wondered to yourself, “didn’t we just have this meeting a few months ago… why are we here again?, you too are experiencing ‘Meeting Déjà vu.”

 

August 15, 2011

AADOM HR Sessions

Filed under: Practice Leadership — admin @ 9:21 am

It’s no secret that turnover is disruptive and expensive; working through it can also be a demoralizing experience for the entire team.  Did you know that 30% of new hires start looking for their next job after just 30 days? Or that 46% of new hires will fail within the first eighteen months?

These statistics may help explain why the leading human resource topic on The American Academy of Dental Office Administrators (AADOM) attendees’ minds for our HR: The Guts & The Glory session in Nashville is recruitment and hiring.

Join us in Nashville as we cover HR topics from recruitment & selection to training, performance management, leadership, accountability, practice culture and morale.  We’re shining the spotlight on best practices that develop your team members into your greatest competitive advantage while improving the bottom line.  (AADOM’s website is www.dentalmanagers.com)

 

July 18, 2011

Laser Like

Filed under: Practice Leadership — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 12:29 am

“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully.”- Steve Jobs

Your focus determines the impact. It’s so critical that we don’t confuse activity with accomplishment or being busy with being productive. I remember hearing a story years ago about a man who was touring a corporate headquarters and remarked that one of the team was sitting with his feet up on the desk doing nothing. The executive leading the tour corrected the man saying ‘actually he’s doing exactly what we pay him to do.. he’s thinking.”

Do you make the time to think as you begin your week or your day? Do you clear your desk or do you clear your head? When is the last time you physically wrote down the top priorities you must be focused on? Urgent issues demand our attention, but they may distract our focus from where it must be if we are to achieve great results. Don’t permit someone else’s emergency to divert your precious time and attention. Your team is counting on you.

GinnyHegarty.com Dental Practice Development Inc.

July 15, 2011

That’s a Bunch of Baloney!

Bob Kelleher of Southwest Airlines knows a lot about the power of purpose and the value of respecting your employees and treating them well. His company has been profitable for 38 years in a row – unheard of in the airline industry. He say that “the customer is always right” is a bunch of baloney if you have any respect for your employees. He believes that your employees are more important than customers and recommends taking care of your employees so they are able to treat your customers with warmth and hospitality that will keep your customers coming back, loyal to your company. CNBC Titans has a great episode devoted to Bob Kelleher’s story if you want to learn more.

GinnyHegarty.com Dental Practice Development Inc.

January 6, 2011

Is ‘It’ All in Her Head?

Filed under: General,Practice Leadership — admin @ 8:31 am

Just read a very provocative article by Jane Collins in the January issue of T+D (Training & Development) magazine, about knowledge transfer in the workplace. Dentists and Office Managers, how many times have you asked someone “How do you know that?” only to have them point to their head and say “It’s All Up Here?”

If you do not have your key systems fully documented, you don’t have key systems, you have key employees. When those key employees are out sick, on vacation, retired or if they opt out of your practice, you will be in a tough spot. If this is resonating with you, don’t wait another minute to start the conversation and the planning for how you will identify which key systems are not fully documented. I believe this is mission-critical and would strongly recommend that you set a schedule and a timeline along with identifying the teams who will be handling each key area of the practice. Remember, these documents should be active and kept up-to-date. This is not a once and done project.

December 13, 2010

Truer Words Were Never Spoken!

Filed under: Practice Leadership — admin @ 10:13 am

“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
- George Bernard Shaw

I highly recommend that before you begin an important conversation with a colleague, take a few minutes to write down your comments and/or your questions. I’m willing to bet that as you begin to write you will change a few words, rethink a position or have a great new idea to add to your original thoughts. You’ll most likely choose your words more carefully too. You will also be much more in tune during the actual conversation since you are very well prepared. The end result will be a much improved interaction and a simpler path to the results you’re trying to achieve. Try it for yourself. It’s a solid candidate for a new best practice.

November 16, 2010

Critical Distinction

Filed under: Practice Leadership — admin @ 11:29 am

“Leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders.” – Tom Peters

October 8, 2010

Agile Development

Filed under: Practice Leadership — admin @ 2:08 pm

Great advice from Ed Scanlan , from Total Attorneys, in Chicago “If we focus on communication and transparency, we can control the chaos.” Looks like attorneys have a lot in common with dental practices. Here are his five steps for Agile Development:
1. Build cross-functional teams
2. Break large projects into small tasks
3. Set short deadlines
4. Hold daily meetings
5. Invite customers into the design process

August 23, 2010

Urgent, Urgent

Filed under: Practice Leadership — admin @ 10:23 pm

Accenture poll indicates that tough times tend to provide a sense of urgency that can serve to facilitate change initiatives and motivate innovative problem solving.

I firmly believe that once you begin using forces outside of your control to explain poor or disappointing performance, you begin to rationalize that performance and you help the team become more comfortable with it. Here’s one instance where a reaction to outside forces may work to your advantage. An appropriate sense of urgency is critical to your success. According to John Kotter “At the very beginning of any effort to make changes of any magnitude, if a sense of urgency is not high enough and complacency is not low enough, everything else becomes so much more difficult.” Considering that 70% of change initiatives fail, let’s use every advantage we have to move our teams forward.

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