Webinar: “Returning To Your Practice”

person on computer with multiple screens

Every so often, Professional Transition Strategies (PTS) hosts a webinar for dental practices. On April 6, PTS President Kyle Francis hosted a webinar addressing the current state of affairs during the COVID-19 pandemic and how to return to your dental practice. Here are the key takeaways.

Stick to the facts

It’s easy to get carried away with predictions and speculations, but in trying times, it’s important to focus on what we know and how these situations compare to what we’ve already been through, such as the 2008 financial crisis and even natural disasters, as well as stay on top of news related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) and your practice’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA).

Stay in the now

It’s impossible to predict what will happen in a month, never mind next week. Make changes to your office and staff that will impact your practice in its current state, whether that means laying off, furloughing or reducing staff hours, as well as “winterizing” your office with cerac, vacuum protocol and shocking your lines.

Communicate, communicate, communicate

Information is king right now, so be sure to keep your team, patients and referral networks all in constant open and honest communication, as much as weekly. Deadlines are a moving target at this point for all those involved, so just communicate with your group as you would want to be informed.

Be opportunistic and strategic

Above all, spend time thinking about what you want when this is over, come up with a plan and figure out what you can do at the moment to put the gears in motion, perhaps by ordering a prospectus. Also, think about if you are in the location that is best suited for your practice. Is an associate or partner in your future? Now might also be a good time to leverage debt for growth.

What’s next?

Learn more about the dental transition process in an upcoming webinar, then contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to learn about the next steps.

4 Reasons Confidentiality Is Important During the Dental Practice Transition Process

dentist talking to patient

It’s only natural to want to share your news with the world as soon as you decide to purchase or sell a dental practice, but there are more pros than cons when it comes to keeping the details of your deal under wraps. Here’s how and why confidentiality is important during the dental practice transition process.

Relationships

As a business owner, you’ll want to make sure the deal is finalized before notifying your staff and patients alike. Just as staff can get nervous and even start job hunting at the thought of insecurity with a new boss, patients can likewise start looking for other doctors if they find out you’re hanging up the proverbial hat.

Bottom line

Any drastic changes to your practice during the sale process can result in a decline in value, whether based on a change in staff or patient demographics. A “warm handoff” that is properly executed and conveyed will account for significantly less attrition, not to realize good faith in knowing both staff and patients will be in good hands.

Competition

If word gets out that you’re working on selling your practice, that opens the door for competing dentists to up their marketing game and try to steal patients and staff. Even if your pending departure isn’t for another couple of years, sale details shared too soon can be used against you and your business.

Associate

If you are currently an associate in a practice but in the market to purchase your own, leaked details can get back to your employer and result in the termination of your employment contract. For this reason, it’s worth repeating that associateships are typically only 20% effective due to not everything being agreed upon from the outset and different expectations not being met by both parties.

What’s next?

Whether you’re looking to buy or sell, contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to start and finish the dental practice transition process the right way.

3 Reasons to Start Your Dental Practice Transition Early

dentist working on patient

Dental practice transitions don’t happen overnight. In fact, a well-laid plan can take as long as five years if done properly. Even if you aren’t ready to hang up the proverbial hat, it doesn’t hurt to take a few steps in the right direction. Here are some suggestions to make sure your dental practice lands in the right hands. 

More transition options

Once upon a time, the only options for transitioning out of a dental practice were to sell to another dentist or close its doors. But today, the options are seemingly endless. You can choose to sell your practice in whole or a portion to a partner for a longer-term transition plan, sell your practice but continue to work as an associate, merge with another successful dental practice, or affiliate with a dental service organization (DSO), among others.

More offers

Your options aren’t limited to the type of transition but also the offers you receive. If you wait until the last minute to transition out of your practice, you may be stuck in a situation where you have to take the first offer you receive. By starting early, you can be more discerning on offers that come in and truly only move forward with the one with which you feel most comfortable.

Increase value

The necessary step of valuating your dental practice not only helps determine which type of transition would be best, but also tells you what upgrades need to be made before selling your business. If the value of your practice isn’t enough to clear your debts, you can decide if you need a few more years to build up the value of your practice before taking that next step.

What’s next?

Learn more about your transition options with the e-book “Strategies for Transition,” then contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to begin the process.

Do I Need a Dental Practice Broker to Sell My Practice?

dentists working on patient

As a business owner, it may be instinctual to want to take the sale of your practice into your own hands rather than hiring a professional. But hiring a professional dental broker to handle the sale of your practice will help you get the most out of your transaction in the long run in terms of both time and money. After all, your job during this transition is to focus on keeping the value of your practice up in order to get the most out of your sale. Here’s how.

Future plans

Whether you’re planning to put your investments toward retirement or another investment, you’ll want to ensure a smooth and lucrative transition. Take advantage of a complimentary prospectus offered by a dental broker to know the true value of your practice and which options are available.

Timing

Selling a dental practice takes approximately 150 hours, time that could be better spent maintaining a successful business. A qualified broker will already have contracts in place rather than hiring an attorney to draft documents for you, saving thousands of dollars. The broker will also save you time by already having a list of potential buyers in the area or at least an active marketing approach. 

Maximum value

A qualified broker will present all possible options to you so that you can look at and compare all sides. This not only means selling to an individual, bringing on an associate or affiliating with a dental service organization (DSO), but also considering all options within each vertical. Considering various strategic approaches will help maximize the value of the transaction.

Process details

The work has only just begun after receiving a prospectus from a dental broker and presenting your practice to qualified buyers. 80% of the transaction includes the contracts, negotiations and final sale. A qualified broker guides the transition of ownership, from negotiating the sale and finding fair market value to providing the asset purchase or stock agreement and assisting with the real estate needs. 

Due diligence

Having the money to purchase your practice does not mean it’s the right dentist for the job. A dental broker will go through the due diligence process to find the best match for your practice, whether that’s an individual or a group, to help you, your staff and your patients feel comfortable with the transition. 

Confidentiality

Knowledge of a potential sale can hurt your business and increase your attrition rate significantly. What’s more, your staff may take the opportunity to look for employment elsewhere. Confidence is key with a professional dental broker so as to not impact the value of your practice. 

Emotional baggage

Starting and putting your own sweat equity into your dental practice can be an emotional process when the time comes to move on. Strong emotional ties to your practice can make it more difficult when it comes to making business decisions, which is why hiring a broker can help make the transaction more efficient and smoother. 

What’s next?

Professional Transition Strategies not only offers a free valuation at the beginning of the process with no signed contract in place, but also 30-day listing agreements where most other brokers require a yearlong contract with penalties. Contact the experts to start the seamless selling process.

You’ve Graduated from Dental School; Now What?

You’ve studied for the past eight years and now finally have that much-coveted dental degree in hand. Now what? Even if your dreams are to own your own dental practice, there are other options to consider and a few steps you might want to take first. Here, we break down some options for dental school graduates to add to their list of considerations.

Build an advisory team

Assembling a team of advisors to help guide you through every step of the process will ensure the success of your business is established from the beginning. As with any team, you’re only as strong as your weakest link, so it’s important to choose advisors who have experience in the dental industry, such as a consultant, technology advisor, real estate broker, equipment and supply representatives, certified public accountant (CPA), and attorney.

Consider location

Make sure that your lifestyle works with the location you are considering, whether in a metro or rural area. Also consider the old real estate adage of “location, location, location” also applies to your dental practice when examining a purchase. Evaluate whether you want to lease or buy, your timeframe and size requirements, as well as how much sweat equity you are willing to put in.

Acquire license

Arguably most importantly, get licensed in your desired area, if you are not already. If you are not currently licensed in the state in which you want to practice, learn the process. Do you need to take an exam? How much will it cost? Do you have the correct insurances? How long will it take?

Determine options

Purchasing a dental practice isn’t a cut-and-dry process. There are seemingly endless transition options, from buy-outs and buy-ins to associateships and affiliations, as well as options tailored specifically toward dental school graduates, such as establishing a startup or working for the military, school, or government.

What’s next?

Read more about the options for dental school graduates in the e-book “Recent Graduate,” then contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to get started on the right path.

Webinar: “10 Ways to Prep Your Practice for Transition”

Every so often, Professional Transition Strategies (PTS) hosts a webinar for sellers to learn more about the transition process. In April 2019, a webinar geared toward sellers detailed the steps and options when considering buying a dental practice. Here are the key takeaways.

Think about your strategy

A seller should begin with the end in mind. Think about your long-term needs, how much time is needed to implement the plan and what your ideal strategy looks like, including a buy-out, partnership or associateship, as well as whether you would consider selling to a dental service organization (DSO), private equity for extensive growth, or merger with another local practice.

Start or keep growing your practice

The biggest failure of owners is letting the practice start to decline when thinking of selling. In turn, the value of the practice drops significantly and can cause a bank to decide not to finance the acquisition. What’s more, it lowers the total options that a broker can deploy. It is worthwhile to market your practice right up until the point of transition to ensure the value won’t decline over the course of time.

Focus on core details

Other than financials, it’s important to take a wholesale look at your practice to assess what has made your practice successful. Do you provide certain treatments that set you apart? What niches do you work in? Do you serve a certain community very well? Are you engrained in the business sector? Is your management style unique in that it allows you to keep employees for a long time?

Run an equipment evaluation

Most practices are valued using a weighted system that takes into account how old the equipment is. If time allows, it may make sense to purchase upgraded equipment, use that equipment, depreciate it over five years, and achieve a much higher sales price, even though you won’t get a 100% return on your investment. Consider going digital if you haven’t already, then upgrade cone beam computed tomography, digital impressions, computer-aided design and manufacturing system, and new chairs and units.

Consider the real estate

If you don’t own the building, notify your landlord that a transition will happen. If possible, sign a new lease or an addendum that allows the lease to be assignable to a dentist who qualifies for bank financing. If you do own the building, which can be sold as an asset to help pay for retirement, start paying yourself market rent. Alternatively, consider relocating your practice to a more desirable location, which can raise your practice valuation by as much as 5%.

Clean up your books

In addition to charging yourself market rent if you own the building, if you employ your spouse, consider replacing them or at least start paying them what market value for the position would be. What’s more, don’t stop writing off items through your practice; keep track of personal travel, depreciation, etcetera.

Know your “why”

One of the biggest worries for a buyer is that they will have to compete with you over time so it’s important to be able to articulate a real and communicable reason to a buyer at least a broker so that they can tell the story for you.

Build an advisory team

Assembling a team of advisors to help guide you through every step of the process will ensure the success of your business is established from the beginning. As with any team, you’re only as strong as your weakest link, so it’s important to choose advisors who have experience in the dental industry, such as a consultant, technology advisor, real estate broker, equipment and supply representatives, certified public accountant (CPA), and attorney.

Know your practice’s worth

Creating a practice prospectus that breaks down the profitability of the practice helps to understand the value of the practice and can help determine the best strategy to use, as well as give you a roadmap for what you need to do before the sale occurs, which could alter your expectations in terms of horizons. Factors such as revenue, net income, seller’s discretionary earnings and value of hard assets will all be taken into consideration.

Execute strategy

After determining which strategy to implement and how long it will take to get there, you can start getting the work done that needs to happen before the transition takes place. Now is the time to start working with an advisor to take the next steps toward implementing your strategy over the set period of time.

What’s next?

Learn more about the dental transition process in an upcoming webinar, then contact the experts at PTS to learn about the next steps.

Transition Timeframes and Factors that Contribute to Them

dentists working on patient

One of the contributing factors and most commonly asked questions when it comes to dental practice transitions is “How long will this take?” As with any business transaction, the answers are not cut-and-dry. Here are some transition timeframes and the factors that contribute to them to help guide your decision.

Buy-out: 0–365 days

A buy-out is the quickest and most predictable transaction with the search being dependent upon marketability and location of practice. In a buy-out, the senior doctor is looking for someone to take over the entirety of their practice but can choose to stay on as a long-term associate, contributing to the transition period. Once a buyer is found, the success rate is close to 100%.

Buy-in: 1–4 years

A buy-in is essentially a short-term and defined associateship period that is approached from an owner’s time set, not employee’s. While the majority of the time is spent finding the right fit, the buy-in should occur within one year after the getting-to-know-you period. A roadmap is established upfront with all the material facts about the transition to make the process more predictable and the time horizon to be more defined.

Merger: > 2 years

The longest part of this transition is finding two clinicians who are not only compatible, but also have a similar timeframe and geographic location, both in terms of real estate. Though not always the case, in most mergers, one facility is kept while the other is relocated. However, the operational side can be as quick as a buy-in as only purchase documentation and operational agreements are required.

Affiliation: < 3 years

Similar to a merger, with an affiliation, the doctor will most likely stay on for a period of time with the buying dental service organization (DSO) or group, depending on the practice type and location. Also similar to the search process of a buy-out, the operational process for an affiliation can be even quicker even though there is more due diligence as they are familiar with the process, compared to a first-time individual buyer.

Associate: 5 years

On paper, taking on an associate is normally the fastest route as there are often a lot of prospects; however, with a one-in-five success rate, timing can be unpredictable finding the best match for your dental practice. While the search can be the quickest part at about one month, the operational part of having that person buy in can take up to a year and ultimately might not work out in the end.

Private equity investments: > 5 years

The underlying goal of this transition is to make sure the practice is big enough that a private equity group would be interested in funding it. Private equity groups are constantly searching for the right practice and can close as fast as any DSO or individual once the correct partner with a solid platform is found. However, the majority of the time is spent because the doctor would need to stay on board for at least five years since it is the business they are looking to take over.

What’s next?

Read up on the different options for dental practice transitions in the e-book “Strategies for Transition,” then contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to start the conversation.

5 Considerations when Sharing a Dental Office Space

dentists working on patient

Transitions aside, an often-overlooked option is to share an office space. Renting out under- or unutilized office space can come with its financial advantages if done correctly. In locations that are more densely populated and with greater competitive saturation, just by joining forces, consolidating operations, minimizing facility costs, bundling overall expenses and maximizing production, an additional 14% can be made on the bottom line. However, like with any leasing agreement, there are factors to consider to ensure you aren’t costing your dental practice money or goodwill. Here are some considerations to take into account before signing any agreements.

Share the load

A space may be underutilized if there are multiple unused operatories or the current doctor only works a few days a week, leaving the office closed for many days. Renting out space to another doctor will also provide emergency patient coverage while one doctor is away.

Save on costs

Taking on a tenant to help reduce overhead will only help increase income, not to mention the ability to upgrade equipment through a shared cost with the lessee, while also offering additional networking and business opportunities for both parties.

Provide a test-run

A lessee is afforded the opportunity to save on business expenses in terms of equipment and office space until they build up their own practice. Along the same lines, the leasing doctor is able to test out success rates in specific geographical areas before opening their own practice doors.

Draw the line

Just because you are sharing space, does not mean that you are also sharing patients. It is important to know the difference between a spaced share versus an associateship or partnership as it can be harder to sell your practice if you already have a space share in place.

Crunch the numbers

Have an attorney with health care law experience draw up a legal contract before the commitment is made, including duration of and terms of lease, termination and renewal terms, conflict resolution, insurances accepted, outline of equipment sharing and maintenance costs, any shared staff or office number, and schedule for the shared space.

What’s next?

Contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to learn more about different space-sharing opportunities to find out if this option makes sense for your dental practice.

How to Manage Your Dental Student Loans

While dentistry will most certainly be a lucrative career in the long run if you play your cards right, the harsh reality is that the average dental school debt is approximately $260K. Add to that an average of $220K in lost earnings plus interest, and a graduate can count on expending $570K toward dental school. Don’t be discouraged that dentistry is the number one job in America for debt; your investment is typically paid back within eight years of practice. Here are some points to consider along the way.

Buy a practice

Rather than starting as an associate or even working for a dental service organization (DSO), after graduating with a negative net worth, the fastest way to make dentistry worth it is through practice ownership, most notably in an area where there is demand. Though counterintuitive, taking on more debt will pay off.

Grow your practice

Consider the population-to-dentist ratio in your practice area, then hire consultants to grow your practice and stand out above the rest. Working with intelligent financial planners and certified public accountants (CPAs) throughout the process will keep you headed in the right direction.

Shop insurance providers

The leading cause of a lower income is the lower fees associated with PPO insurance plans. Shopping insurance providers will be financially beneficial not only as a business owner, but also to your patients.

Ask the right questions

What are my debt repayment options? Can I pay down my student debt? Can I limit my student debt? Should I repay my debt? And perhaps most importantly, will practicing dentistry make me happy?

What’s next?

Read up on other options in the e-book “Recent Graduates,” then contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to help guide you on the right path.

How to Manage Multiple Dental Practice Locations

You’ve been bitten by the entrepreneurship bug and have started to wonder if purchasing additional dental practices is your next move. But first, you’ll need to understand what’s involved in owning multiple locations. Here’s how to get your gears moving.

Ask the right questions

Start thinking: Do you have an admin who will oversee and manage the business aspects of each location? Will you work at both locations? If so, how will your time be split up? Are you going to bring on an associate or partner (understanding that associateships are only successful 20% of the time, while partnerships see a 60% success rate)? What are the costs associated with improvements to keep both locations upgraded?

Crunch the numbers

The first consideration that should be made is the amount of operating capital you would need and to make sure you have a good banking partner. From there, you’ll need to clarify options about keeping the two practices completely separate versus centralizing the front office functions, including billing, accounting and scheduling. Determine how you will increase effective cash flow, by focusing on new patients, efficient equipment, better technology and software, and minimize outflow. Additionally, don’t forget the additional cost of advertising and having an online presence.

Assess the location

The success of a second location hinges on just that: its location. Assess the area growth and population, as well as the competition around you. By placing an additional location in a separate socioeconomic area other than that of your primary practice, you may see that while one practice is slow, the other is booming.

Staff accordingly

Simply put, you can’t run two or more offices by yourself, even if you plan to practice at multiple locations. The staff can travel with you, but depending on your growth plan, it may make more sense to have certain staff members exclusively at the different locations, such as admin personnel, other dentists, hygienists and dental assistants.

Count your inventory

Creating an inventory system that keeps all office supplies in one location and extra medical supplies in another will only make everyone’s lives easier. What’s more, investing in technology at the same time will ensure you can manage multiple locations from a central location or database. Consider automating your billing and digital staff scheduling systems at the same time so everyone is on the same page.

Consider all options

Starting from scratch isn’t the only way to grow your practice. Consider strategies that involve either an acquisition or de novo startup, both of which have their perks, but understanding the consequences of either will ensure more pros than cons. Alternatively, consider merging your practice with an existing practice to get an influx of patients without the overhead of another office.

What’s next?

Ready to take the next steps? Contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies to figure out which path is right for you.