Coach Barrow

Ready to go, originally uploaded by coachbarrow.

Working with the Circle Orthodontics group at the Vineyard Church and Conference Centre in St Albans.

A year ago I predicted the emergence of producer groups in dentistry and here are 11 practices pooling their resources to purchase products and services (including me).

Day 3 - the patient journey.

Team training day

Originally uploaded by coachbarrow

Having an interesting day with Breathe clients here at Chandos House.

When I ask “who has visited a 5-star hotel/restaurant or business
class lounge, it’s mainly the dentists who raise their hands.

So how can you expect your team to deliver a service they have never
experienced?

Perhaps we would do better to walk down New Bond Street than sit here
listening to theory?

This comment on the blog this morning caught my eye:

“Yeh Chris, Go Chris, You’re the greatest Chris”

Whats the matter with all you saps? Don’t you realise Mr Barrow is now in competition with you!!

Thats right , he’s after your patients, your associates, your team and your profits.

And because all you mugs have been paying him to build up a nice little database over the years, he knows where the most profitable practices are situated.

Wise up fools, haven’t you learned anything from the thousands of pounds worth of business coaching?

Worthy of a reply - which I emailed this morning as follows:

Morning

Just a quickie to say thanks for the giggle this morning – your comment was authentic and entertaining.

For the record – I’m about making other people better off as well as myself – the people who know me , know that.

I can see how it would look to an outsider though – point taken.

I don’t think the dentists I have worked with over the years are “saps” though – they are open-minded, nice people who have appreciated the difference I have made in their lives.

Of course, I’m going into IDH to make some money – but an enquiry as to the nature of the proposition we are building would reveal the benefits to all concerned – patients, team and owners.

Best wishes.

cb

I thought I would share with you the opening of an article I wrote for Dentistry this morning - you’ll have to wait for the main article for the “ten tips” but the thoughts on the day were worth sharing.

I’ve pootled around my desk this morning, enjoyed 45 minutes on a cross trainer at the gym, soaked in the bath and had clam chowder on the beach - all good stuff.

Bad news is a 295 mile to London before the day ends.

I promised the Breathe team that I would complete certain obligations, so the next two days are team training events in the West End and St Albans, before the Independent Seminars gig with James Goolnik and Ian Scott on Friday - back to Falmouth late Friday night.

Hopefully just in time to see the Tall Ships sail away on Saturday (I’ll miss their visit - bugger).

A promise is a promise - and I’m looking forward to seeing some old friends.

Anyways, before I pack and go - here is the article start:

Ten Top Tips to make my demographic feel “special”

 

I’m writing this article on my 55th birthday and, as I lay in bed this morning, wondering what topic to focus on (how sad is that?), it seemed appropriate to indulge in a little selfishness, not just on my own part but on behalf of my beloved demographic – us “baby boomers”.

 

Those born between 1947 and 1957 – the single most important group in the developed consumer world.

 

I suppose it’s a sign of the times that the postman brought one solitary birthday card this morning – from my financial adviser! He is probably hedging his bets between investing my pension funds moneys , the sale proceeds of my business, or the life assurance claim check when I peg out.

 

But at least of all my professional advisers, he was the one who bothered to have a system – even bothered to hand-write the greeting.

 

So where are all my other birthday greetings? In order of volume, they are:

 

1. Email and links to web sites;

2. Text messages;

3. Facebook!

4. Comments to my blog;

5. A couple of phone calls;

6. A card in the mail.

 

So there is a big message about the future of print media as well as postal services. And possibly also a message about the “baby boomers” – that we are becoming a lot more “techie” than you may have imagined (as I sit here typing into my Sony Vaio, with 3G iphone by my side).

 

As far as the business of dentistry is concerned – you MUST be mindful of the “baby boomers” – because we account for over 40% of all retail spending in the UK and, I would suggest, account for the lions share of investment into higher-value dental treatment in these credit crunch times.

 

So keeping us happy has to be one of your most important customer service objectives going forwards.

 

I’m 55, I like an occasional afternoon nap, I love technology, I keep fit, I eat and drink well, I want to look good and feel good, I can afford it  and, in the words of business coach Dan Sullivan, “it seems the more tired I get, the more idiots I meet.”

Its time to start building the team at Newco (we don’t have a brand name yet - but assume that Newco is the Private Sector Division of IDH).

There is an existing team of 2 Acquisitions Managers, whose responsibilities are currently within the NHS Division of the business.

The company is now looking for 2 new full-time team members, one who would focus on NHS acquisitions and the other focused on working with me on private acquisitions.

We would, however, expect the individuals concerned to be flexible enough to cross between the divisions if necessary - after all, I already realise that there is no hard boundary between “NHS” and “private”.

I will reproduce the latest version of the job description at the end of this post - but for now, you need to know that I’m starting to search for the people who will grow Newco with me - what promises to be an adventure.

When Ernest Shackleton advertised for his infamous Antarctic expedition, he received 500 replies to:

“Men wanted for hazardous journey

Long hours of extreme cold and darkness

Safe return doubtful”

I genuinely believe that we are making a much more secure offer than that!

BUT - I also believe that the next 3-5 years will be the most exciting of my professional life and if you know someone who would be interested in sharing that adventure, then please let me know - we are interviewing in September.

Here’s the draft job description:

JOB DESCRIPTION 

JOB TITLE Acquisitions Manager   

REPORTS TO CEO   

DEPARTMENT Business Development/Acquisitions  

LOCATION Kearsley/Bolton/Home  

MAIN PURPOSE OF JOB

The Acquisitions Manager is responsible for generating leads and interest from Dentists wishing to sell their practices and subsequently acquiring practices on behalf of the company. 

JOB ACCOUNTABILITIES

Acquisitions

· Target new acquisition practices via cold calling, advertising in the BDJ/Dentistry, existing contacts and mailshots

· Liaise with practice principals as to current running costs of practices and any efficiencies IDH may be able to make

· Review profitability of target practices and build in any incremental post completion costs to the company

· Negotiate and Agree terms of sale with sellers of acquisition practices

· Liaise with legal team on terms of purchase through to completion of contracts

· Obtain financial and operational information from potential sellers (this may require travel to sellers premises/practices/homes/office)

· Analyse data 

· Produce financial due diligence reports for review and decision making

· Liaise with external accountants to facilitate financial due diligence reports on larger acquisitions

· Review and comment on external financial due diligence reports until the company is comfortable with the final report

Personal Profile

Personality

· Proactive, results orientated with a positive outlook

· Natural forward thinker/planner with a strong personality and the ability to effectively manage and build relationships

· Mature, credible individual who is capable of communicating at all levels within the organisation 

· Resilient and robust

· Approachable and open

· Team player

Personal situation

· Able to commute on a nationwide basis

· Able to work extended hours when required

· Able to spend nights away on business if required

Specific job skills

· Knowledge of Dentistry, NHS guidelines (PDS) and Performance targets (UDA’s) would be advantageous

· Strong understanding of key financial data

· Ability to write and review financial and management reports

· Management experience within a similar organisation

· Capable of operating to specified deadlines and under pressure

· Excellent communication and relationship building skills

· Business oriented, commercial and customer focused

Commercial skills

· Organised and effective time manager

· Effective communicator

Back on protein, originally uploaded by coachbarrow999.

Quite apart from the high risk ofcfood poisoning here with anything
that hasn’t been fried or boiled, I’ve noticed that my return to the
world of carbohydrates has not been a happy one.

Over the last three months, a simple regime of no potato, no pasta, no
rice and no bread produced a slimmer, less tired and less flatulent
version of me.

It’s also been noted that I was more irritable and irritating,
especially when enforcing a parrallel discipline of weekend-only wine.

So a few weeks ago I decided “bugger this” and switched the carbs back
on.

For a few days, the pizza flowed and friends remarked on my happy and
glowing disposition.

It wasn’t to last.

Now I’m tired and flatulent - and with three weeks (today) until my
annual pilgrimage to Vathi, my fat pants appeared out of the wardrobe
this morning.

Enough.

Back to proteins.

Grrrrrrrrr……

Watch out clients, I’m feeling mean with lean to follow shortly.

A late night finish, originally uploaded by coachbarrow999.

It’s 10.30 pm on Thursday night and the end of a day that began with a
4.45am alarm call in Manchester and a dawn drive to Leeds.

My first hour at the Leeds Radisson was absorbed with emails.

At 8.00am I was hi-jacked by the events manager of The Royal
Armouries, who I thought was inviting me to speak at a dental
conference - but who really wanted me to sell tickets to a heathrow-
based Michael Gerber conference in October, which is itself a front to
attract dentists earning ￡250k or more to a tax-shelter sales pitch.

I detest a disingenuous sales pitch - almost as much as I resent an
accountant who evaporates 30 minutes of my life with a verbal
brochure. If he had just stopped to ask me any questions, he would
have discovered that I know more about EBT’s than he does. No such luck.

It’s a shame that celebrity dentists will get sucked into this by
their peers.

Caveat emptor.

The rest of the day in the real world with clients - thank goodness -
and some tough coaching that stretches me.

I leave Leeds at 5 and drive 240 miles to write this post.

Last day of coaching tomorrow and then back to Cornwall for the first
time in 12 days.

Today I learned that telling a client the truth can be very hard on
all concerned sometimes. And that’s what we get paid for.

I am blessed to work with wonderful clients, putting half-assed sales
pitches in stark relief.

And so to bed.

Journey Ambassador?, originally uploaded by coachbarrow999.

I’m all for 21st Century customer service - but I do think the Hilton at
Manchester Airport are going a little “over the top” with their description
on the concierge desk.

Having said that, we are encouraging clients to appoint:

1. The concierge nurse;
2. The care nurse
3. The treatment co-ordinator

And to offer direct dial facilities to, and a special relationship with,
such an individual as a benefit of membership.

As a customer, I expect to get the red carpet wherever I choose to spend my
money in these “credit crunch” times.

So what are you dong to make your customers feel special?

Boys will be boys…., originally uploaded by coachbarrow999.

The market town of Altrincham, Cheshire is understandably proud of it’s
Royal Charter, granted in 1290 and allowing the good citizens to meet weekly
and exchange goods and services - which they still do after all that time.

Civic pride is so great that a new statue was erected and dedicated just
last month to commemorate the famous stall-keepers and their diligent
service over the centuries.

However, Saturday night is Saturday night in any English town - so walking
across the marketplace on Sunday morning I was one of the first to see this
amusing reminder of the silliness that must have taken place after closing
time at the pub.

This is harmless fun - and much better than graffiti or vandalism - so I
hope the town council doesn’t get too hot under the collar and install a
fence or some other over-kill gesture.

There was a time….., originally uploaded by coachbarrow999.

When travel by rail was THE most popular form of public transport - and this
original mosaic at Manchester’s Victoria Station demonstrates the potential
routes available over 100 years ago when “Cottonopolis” was the wealthiest
city in the developed world.

Nowadays, of course, we choose to express our individuality with our choice
of motor vehicle - the modern-day horse.

I took my youngest daughter Ellie into Manchester on Saturday for some minor
(sic) retail therapy and also to see “Hancock” (don’t bother - its absolute
rubbish).

Three impressions from the day:

1. The sheer number of people who were in the city - maybe its because
I’m a Cornwall dweller, but I felt overwhelmed as we fought our way around
the Arndale Centre and the Apple store;
2. Surprise that some well-known retailers had stores that either were
closed, were closing down or had notices on the doors announcing
receivership. I’ve never noticed that in Manchester before, or anywhere else
for that matter. Credit crunch is here;
3. Massive building development of apartments all around the city -
although the “to let” and “for sale” signs were a forest.

The emptiest stores were clothes, white goods, home media and home
furnishing.

The busiest stores were books, DVD’s, music, games and electronics.

If that means something I don’t know what.

Maybe it’s the holiday season and folks want entertainment but at the lowest
price possible?

It’s a far cry from the Manchester that train-travellers would have arrived
into in 1908.