As the industry shifts and changes, seven established leaders shared advice for emerging dental leaders.
Jody Martin. CMO at Irvine, Calif.-based Smile Brands: Don't look back — look forward. This is especially important in light of the pandemic: We can't go back the way we came; we have to chart a new path.
Manu Chaudhry, DDS. President and dental director at Salem, Ore.-based Capitol Dental Care: Focus on the patient and their integrated health needs. Dentists need to acknowledge the full mind and body health of patients and how it connects to dental care. A multidisciplinary focus can help bridge the gap across health disparities.
Charles Bertolami, DDS. Dean of New York City-based NYU College of Dentistry: It's important to recognize that in the past, dentistry was a "mom and pop" operation — in fact, that's one of the things that would attract people to dentistry. People wanted to be their own boss, work in their own practice in their community, and that was great. But that's not a model that ends up having a lot of impact on national and international public health policy. That model isn't going to be invited to the White House to discuss what oral health policy should be. … We need more people to populate positions in organized dentistry who are willing to speak up. … My recommendation would be to try to prepare for the future and public health-oriented, would be to have public health orientation and be confident speaking in public forums.
Michael Cole. Vice president of insurance plan management at Sarasota, Fla.-based Dental Care Alliance: Have relationships. Be able to be candid with each other. ... If you have strong enough relationships, you'll be able to get through COVID-19 and anything else this industry faces.
Kim Marcus. Senior vice president of accounting and finance at Smile Brands: One of my favorite quotes, it's been repeated so much lately, but I think Winston Churchill said it first, is, "Never let a good crisis go to waste." This has been so important to Smile Brands. When we were first hit with COVID, we didn't sit back and cry about our fate and close our doors. … We stayed as open as we possibly could and took the opportunity to learn how to do business differently and operate in this new paradigm.
Shawn Wherry. Vice president of marketing at Dental Care Alliance: Being able to capitalize on or thrive in all economic climates is extremely important for leaders to be effective today. Nothing is static, especially in marketing — in my 15 years with DCA, I've had to change our marketing strategy many times. Having that ability to adapt and take action is extremely important. Identifying opportunities and being able to execute strategic solutions is essential. The execution part is often the most difficult. There's never a shortage of new ideas or opportunities, but our ability to prioritize and execute is where we can differentiate ourselves.
Jennifer Mallon. Vice president of business development at Orange, Calif.-based Western Dental: The dental industry is still a great business to be in. … The relationship with patients and staff is more important than ever. Focus on patient experience and how to make everyone feel safe and protected.