Heather Driscoll: Hello everybody and welcome to this week’s edition of Spark’s Strategic Thinker. I’m super excited because I’m here today with my fantastic colleague, Melissa Thomas. How are you doing, Melissa?

Melissa Thomas: I’m good, good morning Heather.

Heather Driscoll: Good morning. So, I’m always excited to be able to have time with Melissa, and especially about today’s topic, because I often times think that people have maybe a little bit of a specific skill set that they’re really, really fantastic at, and Melissa, you encompass a whole bunch of really awesome skill sets that are very unique usually to one person. And, you’re this dynamic package where you have all these great attributes rolled up into one human being, and I love that about you.

Melissa Thomas: Thank you.

Heather Driscoll: So, we’re going to get started today in our traditional fashion talking about elements of the Dental Enterprise Value Matrix. So, we like to focus on elements that drive value in dental practices, and we do this really by sticking to our quadrants that we have found to really be proven to ultimately influence overall performance and ultimately value. So, when I was talking about Melissa and her awesome skill sets, she - whether she likes to admit it or not - she’s very, very good at both the process segments of our quadrants and also the personnel segments. And, usually people... those aren’t their 1 and 2, but Melissa they are for you. And so, I think today’s topic is really timely because it fits really wonderfully with your experience and it’s very much needed for the dental world, and that is performance management. So Melissa, do you want to take just a minute and talk to us a little bit about why you think performance management is so important and some of the experiences you’ve had in your career around this.

Melissa Thomas: Sure, and I think even sometimes what we call it, we call it performance management, it can sound scarier than it is. And I think that really it’s just a way to make sure that people know what’s expected of them and there’s some way for you to check in with them so that they can do what they’re supposed to be doing. And, it’s so beneficial on the leader side and the personnel side, because the leader’s learning through that conversation, and then the team members really are helping to make sure they’re doing what they want to do, or what they need to do. Because, really at the end of the day, you know we throw around the term accountability, but people want to be held accountable, they just don’t like that scary word. And, they don’t want it to feel harsh or infrequent or all those things that we know aren’t the best in our performance management program.

Heather Driscoll: Absolutely, and I love the fact that you really, truly stated that the leader learns just as much, right? Because, I do agree, I think when I look back over my career, I think probably when I’ve grown most as a leader was really during times where maybe I’ve been challenged by someone I was responsible for leading. And so, performance management, while it’s in theory intended to help really create a consistent development path for our teams, the teacher learns the most, right? And so, it’s kind of a two-fold gift. So, we’re going to touch on a few elements that we found to make performance management a success. And Melissa, I’m going to let you get us started, because you’ve already alluded to the benefit of clarity.

Melissa Thomas: You know, I think that to know - there’s a job description, just about every role in the dental office, there’s a job description - but, often times it’s one thing that they may or may not sign when they’re hired and that’s the end of it. And so, throughout the day even in a dental practice, there’s opportunity for people to miss expectations or achieve those expectations. And, really just kind of knowing on a day-to-day basis what’s expected of me. Did I do it the right way? And if I didn’t do it the right way, who’s going to help show me the right way or help explain it to me? I think that’s the foundation of performance management is setting the expectations and then being able to measure the team member against them. And, it’s not always bad, right? I think that there’s a stigma with performance management that it’s only the time that you talk about the bad stuff, the place where they’re not meeting expectations. And I know that’s a point we’ll probably get to here in a minute too, but I think the clarity for both. I remember vaguely one of my earlier performance management conversations when I first became a leader and I was trying to coach a team member in letting them know that they weren’t achieving the expectation. And, I’ll never forget the response of that team member going, “I didn’t know I was supposed to be doing that.” And like you said, that moment where you’re like, “Oh, I don’t know what to do from here.” And so, I learned okay let’s go back to setting the expectation and that being the beginning of that conversation.

Heather Driscoll: Yeah, that’s a great point. So often we hear people discussing maybe a team member, or a team even, that’s falling short of what they believe they should be doing only to find out that the leader hasn’t maybe clearly defined what success looks like, and beyond that, hasn’t communicated it to anybody. So, I think you’re spot on there. And, also I love the fact that you talked about it being a conversation, right? So, it’s really an ongoing discussion because whether you’re new to dentistry as a career, or you’re new to an organization, or you’re trying to continue to grow and evolve as a long-standing team member, it’s really about an ongoing discussion. And, if it is an ongoing discussion, it does exactly what you alluded to, which is take the scariness out of it, right? So, if you have a process in place that really opens up the door for this ongoing discussion, it helps you to have to avoid any kind of a sit down, either positive or negative. So, a lot of times people will say, “Well, I don’t really like performance management because when I check in with my team, they think it’s the time of year that they’re going to get a raise.” Well, if it’s only done once a year, then it very well could be perceived as being the compensation conversation as opposed to a development discussion. And, on the flip side of that, if these conversations don’t happen as a regular part of day-to-day activity, then when something maybe does go awry, it does come across as the big sit down, where it is a bit more negative and disciplinary in nature. And so, just building in a process where you’re doing check-ins and depending on the skill set and the size of your team, maybe these are quarterly conversations, maybe they happen every other month, maybe they happen monthly to get started. And, certainly with newer team members, probably more frequently than others. But, really coming from a place of an ongoing discussion and really just the extension of a conversation makes it so much less scary.

Melissa Thomas: And I think, you touched on the ongoing nature and, whether it be quarterly, monthly, maybe weekly for brand new team members, one of the things that I learned early on to is that often times I thought I was checking in with my team members because I had talked to them today, or I had a conversation with them in the hallway. Or, yeah they did pop into my office and asked a question, so I checked in with them. But really, and it doesn’t have to be formal, but it has to be protected, almost sacred time that this is our time to check in. This is our time with one another where I’m going to listen to you, so you can bring your list of items for me. I’m going to check in with you and we’re going to have that dialogue. And, that kind of leads up to the big, I guess annual, more compensation conversation.

Heather Driscoll: Yes. I love it. And also, you talked about your list of items. So, one of the things that we’ve used over the years is truly a check-in form, right? And so, it doesn’t have to be overly elaborate but it really creates a framework so that these conversations are most valuable. And, one of the tips that we found to be really effective was having both the leader and the team member complete those forms ahead of time, and they both have the same form, right? You know, what’s working, what opportunities exist, those kinds of things which we’ll talk more about here in just a moment. But, if both parties come with these forms already filled out and then the discussion really just is around what perceptions are similar and where do we differ, quite frankly. That really just naturally creates a conversation. And so, I’ll never forget a couple of times sitting down with my team members only to have them say, “Well, that’s really interesting that you have that on your celebrations list because I don’t necessarily think I do that very well.” Or, the flip side of that, something that I have on my opportunities list, that they actually have on their celebrations list. It’s such a non-threatening way to just start a conversation about what I see and what you see and where we can maybe get closer to middle ground. And so, the preparation for these meetings doesn’t have to be this great big, elaborate, weighted-down feeling, it really can be just a short little list of what’s working, what could be improved, and where do we want to go from here kind of thing. But, that intention and that invitation to really, truly have it be both parties is really what’s key. So Melissa, let’s talk a little bit about doctors and whether or not they should be included in performance management discussions, and what has your experience been in this area?

Melissa Thomas: I think that overall it’s been tough to... it seems like doctors have been excluded from this performance management conversation when really they need to be included, but there is a perception that if you’re not a clinical leader, you can’t coach a doctor. And, I just don’t think that’s true, right? You can’t coach them on the clinical matters, but you may be able to give them feedback on ways that they can help bring team camaraderie, help bring the team together or ways that maybe their attitude or behavior shows up differently in the morning huddle, or things that you really need from them to help lead your team. And so, I love that you say it’s an all-team sport, because it is. And, I think that it just may look different for a doctor or a hygienist from a provider perspective than say it does for a front desk team member.

Heather Driscoll: Yes, I’ll never forget that day when I was asked to start doing performance management check-ins with our doctors. And, I had the same feeling, I was like, “Well I’m not a doctor, I’m not really sure what this should look like.” But, what I found was that they’re a really important part of the team, and sometimes we exclude them in a way that really makes it harder for them to really step into that leadership role along with you. And we always say that doctors are leaders whether they like it or not, right? It just comes in the nature of their title. And, for me also on the flip side, certainly these discussion were very much about the practice and the doctor or team member’s contribution to the practice, but I also found that they evolved into me better understanding them as individuals and some of what they hoped for themselves outside the practice. And so, I can think back to early on in my career, one of my younger doctors, hadn’t been out of dental school for too terribly long, just sharing with me some of his financial goals and it was really refreshing for me because I thought, “Well now that I know what he’s trying to accomplish personally, I know exactly what I could do to help align what was happening in the practice with what he wanted to happen outside of the practice.” And so, I think again doctors play this really important role in every dental practice, whether they’re an owner-doctor or not, and when we include them in these really valuable processes like performance management, there’s so much value that can come from it. And, just their perception alone, they want to be part of the excitement as well, so I would definitely advocate for bringing them into the fold.

Melissa Thomas: And, I think they’re more anxious for feedback often times than we assume, right? I remember doing some observations of patient experiences and the doctors being the first one in the hallway going, “How’d I do? What could I have done better?” And you’re like, “Oh, I didn’t think you would want that feedback!” And so, that’s always a good thing to feel and see too. But, we say doctors included, but I think that also means on the opposite side, being included in the feedback for other team members too. I think that the way that I’ve seen it historically is maybe the leader in the practice, the practice manager or office manager, will do most of the performance management or check-ins with their team members. And if we negate or forget to include the doctor’s feedback as well, that’s so powerful, especially with the clinical team, and just making sure the doctor feels included in being able to provide that feedback along with the practice manager. Ideally, they would sit down in these check-ins regularly with them, but we know that their clinical time is often a little bit busy, so...

Heather Driscoll: Yes, definitely. I think that we also tend to think that it has to be all or nothing, so even if your doctor can’t be included every time, a couple of times a year it’s so valuable for the doctor’s input to be heard. And I always felt a little bit awkward if I was doing a check-in with a dental assistant, well how in the world am I supposed to know how they’re progressing in making individual temporaries or whatever it might be, it just felt a little disjointed sometimes to be extending feedback that actually didn’t originate with me. So, I agree with that. So, let’s talk about the fact that both parties should really be driving the conversation. And so, we’ve already touched on the fact that sometimes it’s a bit easier when there’s the construct of some kind of platform that makes it a little bit easier for everybody to be prepared. And so, some of the areas we found that make sense to focus on really are certainly they’re role-specific skill sets. How are they evolving in the things they’re responsible for as a dental assistant or a business assistant or a hygienist or a doctor? And, it’s interesting a lot of times even something as specific as a skill set can have very diverse perceptions, right? And so, the way we communicate with patients or the way we stay on time or the way we prioritize tasks, whatever it might be, that can be left up for interpretation in a lot of ways, and so really just creating that space to have those discussions. Some other things that we found beneficial to talk about are really making sure that each team member understands the goals of the practice and how they actually contribute to the success or shortfall of those goals. And then probably most important, even though it’s at the end of the list, is really how that team member is living up to the values and vision of the organization. So, are they a good teammate? Are they really living up to who we say we are and the specific behaviors we’ve identified that support the values of our company? And so, that’s a really great place to start. What are some of the other things Melissa that you’ve seen as topics of conversation for these ongoing discussions?

Melissa Thomas: I love that you said values really shouldn’t necessarily be last, and I think that it’s a great opportunity. So many times we get questions from our practice managers in coaching sessions where we would really help coach them on how to coach their team members is, “Well how do I bring up a discussion about their attitude or their negativity or their eye rolling or their lack of being polite to their team members, if you will?” And so, it was so much easier to frame those conversations into the values. How are you being supportive by building relationships? Well, you’re not if you’re doing this and this and this. So, I love that keeping that in mind that that’s a great way to tie back some of that maybe more constructive coaching. But, really kind of flipping from that constructive side to celebrating the successes, I love that it’s an opportunity to reiterate to your team members how great of a job their doing in so many ways they might be oblivious to, right? And so, I think that one of the things that I think is a good tip, if you will, is that anything that happens in a coaching conversation, a performance management conversation, it likely shouldn’t be the first time that the team member is hearing about it. So, don’t wait until your formal sit-down or your once a week check-in to say, “You did a great job on that temporary.” Or, “You did a great job greeting that patient.” Whatever it is, celebrate but then also keep that on kind of a running total list, if you will. I used to keep a little list, because I was very particular about specific, because specifics matter when you’re celebrating and when you’re giving opportunities. If you can’t explain to the team member the exact scenario and maybe how you would have done it differently, it just sort of falls flat, right? And the same with, “Great job yesterday!” Well, what did I do yesterday that was so great? And so, I think even just keeping a running list for team members on the successes that you want to make sure and celebrate is great.

Heather Driscoll: I think that’s so important, and I love your commitment to the specificity, because you’re exactly right. So many we think dentistry, and performance in dentistry, just happens, “Well, that just happened to be a good day.” Or, “Oh, that wasn’t such a great day, let’s try to avoid that moving forward.” But, if you don’t know what made it great, or if you aren’t really sure what led to the less-than-great performance, really hard to figure out how to repeat it or how to avoid it. And again, going back to point #1, people perform best with clarity. And so, when they’re really clear about what you think is working well or what could be done just a little bit better, well then they have so much more ability to really figure out what they need to do even more of what’s going well, or a little bit less of what isn’t. So, I think that‘s exactly right. And, once you’re able to distill all of those items down into specifics, you can create a plan. This time of performance management really is the roadmap for their ongoing development and success as a team member or future growth opportunities. And so, it’s important to celebrate success, identify opportunities, but probably what people crave even beyond that is really just understanding what their future looks like. And so, even if their goal is to truly just be the best dental assistant they can be for the next 5 years of their career, that’s okay, but to have clarity of that plan is really important because as a leader it helps you to identify the support they’re going to need from you or from their colleagues or opportunities outside the organization. I think we sometimes underestimate the excitement that opportunity brings to people’s lives. And so, whether it’s the opportunity to take on a separate little initiative in the practice or something as simple as planning a holiday party. Whatever it is, really just identifying ways to keep your team engaged, I think that’s where the magic starts to happen. And as we know, everything starts at the top. Everything is leadership. And so, as an ongoing really exceptional leader Melissa, what final strategies or tips would you give everybody from a leadership perspective to really ensure performance management is a success?

Melissa Thomas: I think the final word would have to be just commit to doing it. And, if you’re the type of person that needs to put a note on your calendar every week, or if you want to do every morning, maybe it’s determining what works best with your team members. Because we know it’s challenging, especially when you get into the practice. You may have 10/15 team members and all the dental assistants are very busy, all the BAs are very busy, so maybe it’s not a set time that is every week. It’s, “When your schedule opens up today, let’s sit down for 15 minutes and just check in.” Just commit to doing it and you’ll find that those conversations add so much value to your team and yourself and really the results in your practice.

Heather Driscoll: Absolutely. That whole saying about good and done is better than perfect and undone, right? And so, I do think that people get busy and then they recognize, “Oh, I haven’t done a check-in for 2 months, well now it seems awkward to do it.” Well no, it’s okay. It’s okay if it’s been 2 weeks, 2 months, 2 years, or never. There’s really no time like the present. And, if I could really go back and give my younger leadership version advice, it really would be just exactly what you said Melissa, committing to staying connected to my team in that way. I think when I look at times where things weren’t running as smoothly as I like, usually it was because of lack of clarity, lack of communication, lack of expectations. And, when those things are missing, our confidence drops and no one performs well when their confidence is low. So, just the opportunity to create that clarity and have that discussion that doesn’t typically take place during the course of a busy day really just fills everybody’s bucket. So, I think that’s wonderful. Alright so, with that I’m going to wrap us up and thank you so much Melissa, always enjoy our time together talking about people and processes. And for everybody else, we look forward to seeing you again on the next session of Spark’s Strategic Thinker, just conversations to keep your mind moving and really spark the way you think about things you’re already doing or things you maybe haven’t done and maybe should start doing moving forward, ultimately all to improve patient experience and team member experience and drive value in our dental practices. So, thanks Melissa and we’ll see you guys again soon.

Melissa Thomas: Bye!

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