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Team Strength: What Drives Your Team to Do More? by Rhonda R. Savage, DDS

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At the California Dental Association meeting in Anaheim in 2012, my audience attendees talked about what motivates ahttp://www.towniecentral.com/Dentaltown/Admin.aspx?action=editArticle&id=4345#nd inspires them to do a good job.

Here are the staff comments:

  • "When my doctor hands me my paycheck, I say, "Thank you!" She says, "You're welcome!" I want her to say "Thank you!" because I feel I earned the paycheck, not that she just gave it to me. Help!
  • Another attendee asked, "How do you feel about anniversary recognition for five to 10, or 20 to 25 years?"
  • Another said, "I'd like validation from my dentist; positive feedback and appreciation."
  • "The doctor needs to appreciate the value of the team."
  • "Are there any incentives out there for staff who bust their butts for the practice?"
While presenting at a master track AGD meeting, I questioned doctors on their chief concerns within their practice. At the top of their list were attitude, motivation and commitment of their team members to the patient and the practice.

Here are the doctor's comments:
  • "How do I keep my staff motivated?"
  • "How do I change the attitude of 'it's just a job' to being an 'active part of the team'?
  • "During staff 'downtime,' how do I get them to be more proactive and not bolt to the lunchroom during downtime... without micro-managing"?
  • "I want staff excited to come to work and have them want to help the practice grow."
  • "How do I encourage staff to make changes and work as a team?"
What methods encourage, motivate and strengthen your team to do more and be more?

Let's start with the question of money. Do you think paying someone more money will motivate him or her to do a better job? I used to think this was true when I first became a dentist. I thought giving my employees a dollar an hour raise across the board was a good motivator and an incentive to work hard. Boy, was I wrong!

After making the blanket raise mistake, I looked back to my years as a dental assistant and eventually, as a front office person. I started in dentistry in 1976, trained on the job right after high school, in the little town of Ketchikan, Alaska. What mattered to me then is what matters to your employees now.

Here's what motivates employees, keeps them accountable and drives results.

Employee Motivation

1. Praise and Appreciation: Sincere, genuine, timely appreciation is so important. John Maxwell, in his small book titled Encouragement, said, "How do you know if someone needs praise and appreciation?" The answer was, "If they're breathing!" One dentist I know had such a hard time incorporating praise and appreciation into his work life that he put a plate of cotton pellets into the microwave, heated them up, passed them out at his team meeting and stated, "Here's your warm fuzzies and this is all you're going to get!"

The best praise and appreciation is timely, specific and genuine. Be sensitive that you base the praise on your employee needs, not yours. Not all employees will want public praise; they might be embarrassed. Use praise and rewards appropriately. It's also important to consider the needs of each staff person rather than singling out your favorites; favoritism will drive the morale of your practice down! Look for an accomplishment and recognize the success; team members need to know that their efforts made a difference.

If you have a reward program, open it up to all your staff. Be sure to reward exceptional performance, not just a job done well. Make sure the rewards are personal and individualized. Recognize significant anniversary dates of the team members with flowers, lunch or a personalized card with a gift card; make the gift fit the person's needs.

Doctors, you and your office administrator may put in more time and effort into your business, but if you don't acknowledge your employees' efforts, they'll notice and stop giving their full effort.

2. Involve Them in the Decision-making Process: They need to have their voice heard. Your team members want to be involved and to share their thoughts about decisions that affect them. While a dental practice is not a democracy and the final decision is up to the doctor, staff want to give their input and know you take their opinions seriously.

Employees don't like surprises. Involve them in your planning process. Let them know the direction you want your practice to head. Talk with them about purchasing new technology, so they clearly understand the benefit to the patient, the practice and the team. When you're talking with the staff, be sure to listen to all sides of the issue, then make the decision and stick with it. Many team members get frustrated and stop trying when the office has good ideas and discussion, but nothing happens. They also get frustrated when decisions change due to the manipulation of a team member.

3. Develop a Close-knit Team: Do activities outside of work as well as in the office. Don't limit your conversations to workplace issues. Get to know your people as people. They want to know you're interested in their hobbies, families, career and educational desires. Your team members know other people who have left a place of employment because they didn't fit in well or didn't feel like they were part of the team. Ask your team to create a list of fun and/or educational activities they would like to do, then schedule these based on everyone's time availability and your budget.

4. Responsibility and Accountability Matter: Everyone needs responsibility and they need to know how what they do matters to the health of the patient and the practice. Clearly communicate your expectations and schedule regular follow-ups. Develop an accountability-tracking tracking sheet. Across the top, list all of your employees. Down the side, list every job or task that your group performs. Review your tracking sheet monthly during your follow- up sessions with your employees.

Staff Accountability

If you're on board with the needs of the team, the next step is a system of Up-front Accountability. Usually, you and your team members will say, "Oh no, accountability!" That's a dirty word! Actually, quite the opposite! With up-front accountability, you'll get more from your team, increase efficiency and decrease overhead.

Here's the system:
  1. One person is in charge. Others should help and their help is a clearly defined expectation.
  2. There are clearly defined expectations and training. Clarifying questions are asked to be certain everyone is on the same page.
  3. There are time frames to work on the duties.
  4. There is a definitive due date for every task. This due date may be monthly, weekly or daily due dates, but the team has identified specific due date times and days.
  5. There's a specific time identified for follow up. The follow up helps provide praise and appreciation, but also coaching on what needs to be done.

A Values-driven Job Description

If you're interested in growing your team, have you discussed your values? A "values-driven" exercise is an incredibly motivational experience for your team. It's foundational to all you do. Values are like the boulders in a fast-moving river. They're solid and never change. You can base everything you do on your values.

Doctors, first determine the words that matter to you. What do you value? But don't share them with your team. You don't want to prejudice your team. Write down the words and think about them. At your next team meeting, ask your team to do the same. Then pair people up and talk about what the words mean to them. (Mix up the team so they don't talk to someone they know really well.) Then come back and create a common list of values.

Delegate the list-making to a team member. Have this person tick off the words that are used frequently. Then, every decision that's made is based upon the values, the doctor's values are key in this process. Talk about what they mean. While values are the boulders in the river, which never change, the goals of the practice are the smaller rocks and pebbles. They shift and change based upon the needs of the practice, but they're based on the practice's values. Doctors: This isn't a "fluff " exercise. Involve your team and you'll be amazed at the growth. Everything comes back to values.

Once you've done all of this:
  1. Met the needs of your team
  2. Developed an accountability system
  3. Discussed and created a values-driven list
For a copy of my article titled "That's Not My Job," email me at rhonda@milesglobal.net.

Staff Bonus

The topic of "To Bonus or Not to Bonus" can be controversial, and I'd like to present both sides of the issues. Let's begin by saying that I never recommend a bonus be put into place without clearly understanding the health of the practice. The next article I write in Dentaltown Magazine will be titled, "To Bonus or Not to Bonus." In it, I'll include some samples of bonus structure. I'll see you there!

Author's Bio
Dr. Rhonda Savage, a former dental assistant and front office staff, graduated with a B.S. in Biology, Cum Laude, Seattle University in 1985. She then graduated from the University of Washington, School of Dentistry in 1989, with numerous honors. She served on active duty as a dental officer in the U.S. Navy during Desert Shield/Desert Storm; awarded the Navy Achievement Medal, the National Defense Medal and an Expert Pistol Medal. Dr. Savage was in private practice for 16 years. She has authored many peer-reviewed articles and has lectured internationally. She is a past president of the Washington State Dental Association and is an affiliate faculty member of the University of Washington, School of Dentistry. Dr. Savage is the CEO for Miles Global, an internationally known consulting business. A member of the National Speakers Association and the Institute of Management Consultants, Dr. Savage is a noted speaker on practice management, women's health issues and zoo dentistry. To speak with Dr. Savage about your practice concerns or to schedule her to speak at your dental society or study club, please e-mail rhonda@milesglobal.net, or call 877-343-0909 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 877-343-0909 FREE  end_of_the_skype_highlighting.

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September 2025
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