Chris Barrow’s Blog

I couldn’t resist this shot of the “boys toys” as I arrived in Devon yesterday for a strategy meeting with Simon and Ernie.

Just in case any clients are out there thinking “I supposed I paid for that” – the answer is “yes you did” and “thank you”.

Personally, I would want a business coach who arrived in a quality car and not something boring or cheap – that’s just how I am wired – and we attract the type of clients who are wired the same way.

Cheapskate clients attract cheapskate professional advisors, suppliers – and dentists! – have you ever noticed that?

Although Ernie did ask:

how many exhausts do you boys need between you?

 The answer is 8.

Moving on to the business in hand.

The purpose of our meeting was to reflect upon our progress in the first 57 days of Breathe Business.

What have we got right?

What have we got wrong?

What are we enjoying?

What’s making us unhappy?

Most importantly – what are we going to do about it?

An important conclusion from our meeting is that just about everybody in the Breathe Team is in what I would describe as “transactional overload” – let’s call that TO.

TO = you are good at what you do but you just have too much to do.

The effect of TO can be that, in an attempt to carry on being good at everything – you make mistakes.

And we have made our fair share of mistakes in these early days – simple stuff – but the kind of stuff that can irritate clients and unnerve the team.

Guilty as charged – all of us.

The good news is that, 57 days in, we recognise that – have listened to the constructive feedback from our clients and prospects – and we are taking action.

Perhaps no surprise to find that the action will be about:

1. more financial capital to fund
2. more people to do
3. more things
4. more effectively

So we have set the finance team a target – to have started work on a revised cash flow, business plan and funding requirement – to be presented at our next board meeting a week on Friday.

We have to go deeper into the “J” curve if the business is to keep it’s promises and realise it’s potential.

We cannot afford to run it on a shoe-string.

We will end up with a cheapskate business.

And as you can see.

That’s not our style.

Monthly management meeting yesterday – held, as often is the case, at the beautiful home of our Finance Director Mike Hutchinson in Flushing, looking across Penryn River towards Falmouth harbour.

Mike’s catering is legendary and the first hour of our meeting occurs in the kitchen, where we all enjoy frothy coffees and catch up with personal and professional news as it’s been a while since we were all together in the same place.

Mike chairs the meeting and begins with a quick round-robin of what’s “good and bad” in the minds of those attending.

In the corner of the room, Simon and Ernie’s son, Harry, is comfortably propped up on the sofa – even at his early age he is learning to play quietly whilst we all pontificate about business – in fact we are using the time to train him as a future member of the team as you can see from the photo.

In answer to Mike’s question we take turns to mention our hopes and fears for Breathe Business.

Then it’s Bonnie’s turn.

“Well the good news is that I’m expecting a baby.”

The intake of breath (!) around the room is so tangible that the walls seem to lean inwards – even Harry puts down his keyboard and stares.

In a single moment, we contextualise the rest of the day.

What matters most is people, relationships and unconditional love.

Money, power, possessions, ego, assets - all trivial really.

People caring for people.

What else is there?

We are all thrilled and delighted.

And Harry will soon have somebody to play with at management meetings!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/02/17/ccdentists117.xml

 Have a good weekend.

That’s right – doomed.

Doomed to exctinction.

Why?

1. Dental corporates overwhelming the NHS market and competing for UDA’s on terms that cannot be matched;
2. Virgin Healthcare hoovering up your best team members and offering families “points making prizes” on affordable private care;
3. The GDC introducing a raft of new regulation and legislation to constrict and control the activities of the troublesome independent;
4. Marks and Spencer announcing that there will be a recession later this year – so discretionary spending on cosmetic dentistry will dry up.

So, frankly, if I were you I would give up – sell out, pay off the loans, retire early, take on a Tupperware party franchise or just buy a boat and sail away.

You are all screwed.

OK?

Have they gone?

The miserable ones.

Have they left?

Good.

Right.

For those who are still there?

UK independent dentists are going to make a fortune!

The 1000 independent practices that survive the next 5 years?

You are going to make a fortune with

1. patients over 50
2. patients aged 25-35
3. ortho and
4. families

who want an alternative to faceless disinterested corporates and insincerely positive idiots.

Now that all the miserable moaning defeatist buggers have buggered off.

Let’s get to work and help you build a 5-star practice that will be a joy to work in and will create income and wealth for you.

Ready?

I’m beginning to see the emergence of three distinct business models in private and independent UK dentistry:

1. the traditional PRIVATE PRACTICE – where a dentist combines with other dentists and therapists/hygienists to provide general or specialised dentistry;
2. the PRIVATE MINI-DENTAL HOSPITAL – where the principal has created a team of specialists and generalists and
3. the PRIVATE POLY-CLINIC – where the prinicipal has created a team of specialists and experts in a variety of health-care and well-being services.

Needless to say, in the third model, the principal and founder is rarely engaging in clinical production or delivery – they are becoming true entreprenuers.

They are few and far between – but beginning to emerge.

Yesterday, I met with my second UK dentist ever who has an MBA.

A few dentists are beginning to think and act like business owners.

Working with the Birmingham Breathe Business Club this week.

We facilitated an “imagineering” session yesterday afternoon, asking the delegates to choose a date for the “finish line” of this phase of their professional lives – and then to sketch in what their business will look like at the line.

Responses ranged from “sell for £4m in 5 years time” to “create sufficient profit (for investment) to allow me to retire at 55 rather than 60″.

Who has the best vision?

Nobody.

Vision isn’t measured in quantity, it’s measured in quality.

I’ve worked with plenty of miserable rich people – they are usually chasing money and power.

I’ve worked with lots of happy people – they are usually allowing a quality of life to appear around themselves.

What Thomas Leonard described as “attraction”.

I’d love £4m right now – but I’d rather be happy.

The challenge is to achieve both.

Friday – working at Ashley Latter’s Head Office with Ash and Simon Tucker from Medenta.

All three of us were invited by the Dental Laboratories Association to present a full-day on “Working smarter not harder”.

I was up there first, with a 90-minute session on marketing, including a review of where the UK market for dentistry is right now.

Ashley then presented two gigs either side of lunch – covering ethical selling and communication skills.

Simon (poor lad) ended the day with the ins and outs of patient finance but included some very good points on marketing and communication himself.

I’ve worked with labs since 1987 and feel very familiar with the issues they face – and I have been a critic over the years of the rather slap-dash approach that mant technicians take to the business of running a business.

It was encouraging on Friday to work with a switched-on and attentive audience – I was impressed with them – and motivated to discuss more strategic alliance activities with the DLA.

Best treat of the day was an impromptu tour of the inner sanctum at Old Trafford -as a fitting prelude to us tonking the Arsenal on Saturday.

How I love to see Arsene Wenger looking miserable – childish I know – but that’s the beautiful game.

Thanks DLA – and thanks Ash and Simon for making a truly enjoyable event.

Well I think it is anyway.

The news that Merrill Lynch have purchased 51% of Integrated Dental Holdings for £300 million may have raised the eyebrows of many in dentistry – but a bigger impact will be the effect on the City.

Although the pundits are predicting recession, your pension fund managers are awash with cash and under pressure to perform – so they are always looking for growth sectors in the economy.

You can take it from me that the IDH news has already caused frantic phone calls around the Square Mile from investment managers asking each other “why the heck aren’t we in dentistry then?” – and that will be quickly followed by the high street banks asking their commercial managers “why aren’t you lending to dentists then?”

Expect a proliferation of new players in the funding market – institutions and private equity looking to take part in the phenomenal expansion of dentistry UK.

I’m happy to leave Integrated to battle it out with Oasis and others for NHS market share. To compete on cut-price UDA’s with faceless PCT managers.

I’m even happy for Virgin to invest millions in advertising the benefits of private dental care later this year.

Competition and visibility create demand.

I will continue to champion the cause of the small independent – looking to all of this “hype” as opportunity – to provide concierge class dentistry and customer service to the discerning client.

And if somebody comes along with a few million to invest into private dentistry – I’m ready to dance.

The cats can sleep if they like – I’m wide awake.

A great day on Tuesday in Magherafelt, Northern Ireland with Robert Wallace and his team. You can see practice photographs here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=30331&l=d69bb&id=770882237

Robert is a quiet leader – very unassuming but determined – and he has attracted a wonderful team of ladies.

They moved to new premises just a year ago – its a lovely place.

Unexpectedly, there is still an NHS committment which is serviced by zoning the diary – but it will come as no surprise to find that the wind of change is blowing and I suspect that the patients will all be offered private service standards soon enough.

Robert has a well developed social conscience but some of the local folk are taking advantage of that.

Our day was about financial monitoring, marketing for new patients and selling treatment.

My “best bit” was witnessing the team members volunteering for project management leadership in all the areas of practice development that we discussed.

From the moment I walked through the door to be greeted by attractive smiling faces, to my departure at 5.00pm, leaving a shell shocked Robert to take a week’s vacation, the day was a pleasure and a testament to the skill of the practice founder and the enthusiasm and ability of the people around him.

Arrived back at Bristol Airport at 9.00pm last night and broke all records by driving back to Falmouth in 2 hours 15 minutes (keep that a secret please because it may be legally impossible). I love my car.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=8541833437