COOs serve a crucial role in aligning the clinical and operational needs at dental organizations.
Here are the COOs of nine of the largest DSOs in the U.S.:
Note: Names are listed in alphabetical order.
Michael Anderson. American Dental Partners (Wakefield, Mass.): Mr. Anderson joined American Dental Partners in 2017 as the senior vice president of operations and was appointed COO in 2018. He has more than 25 years of experience in the healthcare field, previously serving as director of operations at Denver, Colo.-based DaVita Kidney Care.
Gina Bruzzichesi. Aspen Dental (Chicago): Ms. Bruzzichesi supports the operations of Aspen's more than 1,000 locations nationwide. She joined Aspen in 2021 from Clear, a biometric security and identity verification platform.
Justin Carroll. MB2 Dental (Carrollton, Texas): Mr. Carroll joined MB2 Dental as COO in 2014. He previously served as director of private equity at Highland Capital Management.
Dale Hockel. Dental Care Alliance (Sarasota, Fla.): Mr. Hockel has served as COO of Dental Care Alliance since 2018. Before joining DCA, he served as the COO of Alliance HealthCare Services, a diagnostic imaging company in Newport Beach, Calif.
Will Johnson. Affordable Care (Morrisville, N.C.): Mr. Johnson joined Affordable Care in 2016 and served in various leadership positions before being appointed COO in 2020.
DeAnn McClain. Heartland Dental (Effingham, Ill.): Ms. McClain joined Heartland Dental in 1997 as an accountant and served in several roles with the company before being appointed COO and executive vice president in 2020.
Lorilee Schmidt and Christy Englehart. Smile Brands (Irvine, Calif.): Ms. Schmidt and Ms. Englehart each serve as COO of Smile Brand's Pacific West and Central Atlantic regions, respectively. Together, they oversee operations at the company's nearly 700 affiliated dental offices.
Preet Takkar. Western Dental & Orthodontics (Orange, Calif.): Mr. Takkar has been with Western Dental since 2015 and was appointed COO in 2020. His past experience includes leadership roles at several dental companies, including orthodontic practice management company OrthoSynetics and Coast Dental and Orthodontics, a DSO with more than 100 locations in Florida, Georgia and Texas.
Jon Thorne. Pacific Dental Services (Irvine, Calif.): Mr. Thorne has been with Pacific Dental Services since its establishment in 1994, serving in multiple operations roles through the company's growth to more than 850 practices in 26 states.