The economic and industry challenges faced by the dental leaders of today — including emerging technology and the influence of private equity— are helping to shape the leaders of tomorrow.
Here are three dentists' insights on what they expect and hope to see from the next generation of dental professionals:
Editor's note: Responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Trevor Lines, DDS, of Dentists of Chandler (Ariz.): The [baby boomers] were about wealth accumulation and growing. Gen Xers are about achievement. The millennials, the way I see it, are about having a balanced life. The Gen Zers want to solve the problems and really help us get to a more equitable society. So what I'm really excited about is to watch those leaders grow in their capacity to affect change in the world and thereby make things better for everyone across the board.
There is a steeply diminishing return on how much money is coming into your life. After basic needs are met, people do continue to get happier with the more money they make, but it's less and less. I think that the younger generation is going to find that sweet spot where they have enough for themselves, but they also want to raise the standard of living for everyone.
I'm excited to see what they do with Web3 technology, particularly because there are different ways to structure the economic engines and the businesses that will return value to all of the stakeholders rather than just the shareholders of the talk.
Matt Carlston, DMD. Vice President of Marketing and Partner Recruitment at Comfort Dental: The next generation of dental leaders must be bold and not afraid to stand up to private equity groups and those who might put financial gain in front of the professional development of new dentists. I would also like dental schools to expand to teach more of the business side of dentistry. We have found that most young dentists have such a limited scope of business knowledge that they are unprepared to tackle the business side of dentistry.
Mladen Kralj, DMD. ORA Dental Studio (Chicago): This is without a doubt the most exciting time in dentistry. Dentistry is becoming more consumer driven than ever before; patients have options and are looking for an overall better dental experience. I want the next generation of dental leaders to understand dentistry is no longer about what procedures we provide, but rather how we provide those procedures. Improving the dental experience depends on four key components: beautiful design, cutting-edge technology, minimally invasive philosophy and memorable service. Dentists are no longer just oral healthcare professionals; we are also in the business of hospitality.