10 Steps You Can Take to Grow Your Practice

Here are 10 proven steps – in a nutshell – that will benefit almost every practice. Applying even one of them can produce a positive change in your practice.

1. Hire the right people. The quality of your team can make or break your practice. Personnel issues can also cause you more stress than any other aspect of practice. If they're not the right people, replace them. The post-COVID hiring markets are opening back up. There are good people out there looking for work. You just have to know how to find them.

2. Train your team the right way. They may have job experience from other practices, but don't assume that they know how to do the job the way that you want it done in your practice. Having written job descriptions and protocols so that they know how you want things done, are all valuable parts of this process.

3. Give your team thought-out, achievable goals based on practice resources. This involves having a sound practice growth strategy in place.

4. Manage your team objectively. Know on a daily basis whether they're on-track to hit their monthly targets. Know when they need help and advice and when they're doing well. If they're doing a good job, let them know.

5. Always focus your team on working toward the optimum patient experience in your practice, and never waver from this. No detail is too small when it comes to the quality of patient experience.

The product of a healthcare practice isn't just health; it's a patient who is so impressed with the quality of care and the level of service that they've received that they will actively recommend the practice to friends and family.

6. Keep employees who contribute value to the practice, and reward them, and get rid of those who don't. Give them a chance; work with them; but if they don't improve, cut them loose. One of the biggest mistakes made by practice owners is keeping staff too long because they are afraid of the possible repercussions of firing them, or they are afraid that they won't be able to find a replacement. It's worse for the practice, for the rest of your team and for your stress level to keep them if they shouldn't be there.

7. Performance reviews are the hidden rudder of the organization. Using regular performance reviews will help you keep things on track in your practice and help to nip problems in the bud before they become worse. They are also an excellent way to validate good performance. Be sure to let your team know that there's a difference between a performance review and a compensation review so that they're not thinking that each performance review is the time to ask you for a raise.

8. Motivate your staff – validate good performance in public. Correct poor performance in private with advice and training. The right bonus system will also help to motivate your staff and encourage them to work together as a team and reward them for their individual efforts on behalf of the practice.

9. Monitor your online reviews to get feedback on patient perception of your practice. Not all online reviews are valid. Learn how to maximize the positive influence of good reviews and how to minimize the influence of negative reviews.

10. Don’t try and do it alone. If you need help, hire a good consultant for insight and assistance. Business is not something that you were taught in school. Bringing an experienced specialist on board to help you with your practice and educate you so that you can learn how to do it yourself is never a bad idea.

It's human nature that sometimes the most difficult part of solving problems is asking for help. However, sometimes it's also exactly what's needed.

Have a listen directly from an ExecTech Consultant to learn more about being in control of your practice and reaching your goals…

Wishing you success,

Mike Graves

Senior Consultant

ExecTech