How to Improve Job Satisfaction and Team Performance in Your Dental Startup
As you prepare to open your dental practice, your thoughts are probably consumed by location, equipment, and finances. But let me point out one often-overlooked lever for your long-term success: job satisfaction—for your team, and yes, even for you.
Because when your team is truly engaged, your startup doesn’t just run—it thrives.
So here’s the big question I want to explore with you: What really motivates dental team members to do their best work?
And better yet, how can you build that culture into your startup from Day One?
The Staff Management Tool I Always Recommend
In my years helping dentists launch successful startups, I’ve seen one tool stand above the rest for understanding team dynamics and boosting staff performance. I use it. Jayme uses it. And once you try it, you’ll probably wonder how you ever managed hiring without it.
I’m talking about the Kolbe Index—a powerful (and refreshingly accurate) tool that helps you understand how each team member instinctively takes action.
This is the tool that gives practice owners clarity on:
How each person solves problems
When and why staff members are most productive
Which tasks energize or drain different team members
Where misunderstandings between teammates are likely to happen
How to structure your team for better results without more stress
What This Has to Do with Hiring—and Driving Past a Wide Load Truck
In one of our podcast episodes, Jayme compares using the Kolbe to navigating a highway next to a wide load truck—sometimes, you just need more clarity (and space!) to avoid collisions.
Hiring blindly—without understanding how someone works best—can lead to some of the most frustrating and expensive mistakes in practice ownership. But with the right tool, you don’t just get “good employees.” You build a team that supports your mission and helps you stay focused on patient care.
Here’s What You’ll Learn in the Podcast Episode
If you’re building your team—or preparing to—this episode is packed with actionable takeaways, including:
How to identify the natural ways people take action (before they join your team)
When your team members are likely to be most productive—and why
How to increase effectiveness without micro-managing
What your role is in supporting a high-functioning staff culture
Four “action modes” that unlock better creative problem solving
Want to Build a Team That Loves Showing Up to Work?
We’ve seen firsthand that great practice cultures don’t happen by accident. They’re built with intentional tools, strategies, and systems—just like everything else in a successful startup.
When you’re ready to explore how to align your team, vision, and systems from Day One, here are three next steps:
Take the first step with the Startup Practice Blueprint
Talk through your startup strategy on a Consultation Call
Follow Ideal Practices on Facebook for behind-the-scenes stories, insights, and inspiration: facebook.com/idealpractices
The tools you use to build your practice culture will shape your experience as an owner—for better or worse.
Let’s make sure it’s the better.
– Stephen Trutter