Trust

There is a dental  practice I know in the north of England which has taken on a new team member.

Everything seems to be going well – I am hearing good things about this lady and then I receive a phone call.

In two weeks the trust of this team member has been lost.

The practice has a confidentialily agreement on pay. This lady has told one or two team members what she is earning and this has caused serious issues for the practice.

Morale has hit a low and the practice manager now feels that she cannot trust this team member. Before the practice says goodbye to this lady I advised the following:

1. Hold an investigatory meeting
2. Explain what has happened
3. Ask why this happened
4. Ask the person in question how they would now be feeling in they were the PM?
5. Ask the team member what should be done next.

We may know the answers but it is important to pass the questions over to the team member.

This practice doesnt keep team members for the sake of it.

One point I made straight away is that you have to sit down and discuss this with the team member rather than ending their trial contract immediately. You never know what has happened. This lady may have been tricked into discussing her pay, or someone may have seen a payslip. You never know.

As the trust the PM has in this team member has immediately vanished, it is important that if there is a valued reason for this breach, that the team member does not lose trust in her leaders if she is to continue to work there.

Trust is quickly lost but takes a long time to earn.

Laura

Do you incentivise your team?

I am often asked by clients for ways in which they can increase their teams pay packet.

This is wonderful – if a team is working hard and reaching the business goals then rewards should follow,  so it becomes a Win-Win as Stephen Covey states.

Practices generally do one of the following:

1. Pay their staff a set amount of money on top of their basic salary for reaching targets.
2. Or if targets are reached pay for special days out such as trips to Paris or Spa days - basically unforgetable team building experiences.

When you introduce someting like this decide what will work best in your practice and implement it. Every practice is different.

What I often find is that this is not good enough for some team members. They state they can not work harder than then do already, that they would prefer the money in their basic wage (who wouldn’t?) or would prefer the money in lieu of the experience and a day off instead of spending it with their team.

My advice? Do not give in. Set the rules and stick to them.

It is time that the dental world in the UK realised that we need be a business not a service provider. If you have team members that ague this point I would look into their motivating factors for working in your business in the first place. (This may point out the people who just want a 9-5 job and in those hours do as little as possible).

The only exception to this is if you are underpaying your staff.

How do you know if you are under paying them? Look on Gumtree and see what your staff could be offered elsewhere. Ask your dental friends if they think  you are paying a  decent wage. Sometimes staff are under paid and paying the average and introducing a target related incentive will boost the practice no end.

Laura

Threatened into giving a pay rise?

Do you have a member of staff that has told you that unless they have a payrise they will leave? Has this happened and did you give in?

Unless you are underpaying your staff do not give in without reason.

I feel that all pay rises should be performance related and that they do not have to be an anual event.

You should create a new system immediately and inform the entire team that pay rises from now on are performance related and you are scrapping the annual pay increase.

If a team member wants a payrise I would arrange a meeting and get them to explain to you why their performance related pay should be increased.

The team member in question might contribute signifiantly to the business and you may not see what they do day to day. This is a great oppurtunity to listen and learn about their role in detail (and if they deserve a rise you will give them one).

If a team member states that they cannot give reasons for a pay rise “they just need one” (and you are paying them fairly) ask them to come back to you to set  a date for a meeting when they have a clear idea of why their performance should be rewarded.

Managers and owners are always being threatened into giving pay rises on the basis that without one the team member in question will leave. If you pay them well, and treat them well, then do not give in. Stay in control of your business.

And if they leave?

They can always be replaced! (harsh but true).

Laura

The Cycle of the Dental Team

In the last two weeks I have visited a few wonderful dental practices to provide training.

In two of the practices I was informed that there had been a big change in the dental team and everybody needing training.

In one practice I delivered the Treatment Coordinator Programme and the other had my Patient Care and Communication Programme.

I thought I would write this blog because when a team changes there is a tendency to panic.

Staff will change every so often and I do not feel that it is strange for this to happen every 6-7 years.

Staff leave for many reasons - some of the reasons in these two practices were:

1. Travelling the world
2. Moving to another part of the country
3. Having a baby
4. Undertaking a course to study hygiene and therapy
5. Long term depression and illness
6. Parent / partner needs caring for

As you can see there was not one person who left because they were unhappy. Their life had changed.

As we go through the cycle of life our practices and businesses go through these cycles too. We must wish our staff luck and move forward.

The important thing to do when you have a staff change is:

1. Get all systems upto date
2. Focus on Patient Care
3. Invest in new training
4. Be proactive
5. Do not settle for an average team member, wait for the  right replacement they will be worth their weight in gold and provide you with a long term gain.

Every business that has this staff cycle occur will come to see it wasn’t as bad as they thought it would be, you can cope, and everything happens for a reason!

Laura