Why good dental businesses still feel hard work I occasionally like to review a day’s conversations with clients, anonymously of course, and use that as a litmus test for what is really going on in dentistry. Not the conference version, not the social media version, and not the “everything’s fine” version, but the real version. The questions people ask, the worries they carry, the decisions they are delaying, and the standards they are trying to hold, tell you a great deal ab

I do most of my work with practice owners on the structural problems that seem to continually drain time, energy and good people from a business. Recruitment cycles that never end. Team members who can't quite seem to get there. Managers who are technically in charge but are still doing half the previous job. Owners who feel responsible for everything. Now of course there are dozens of moving parts in any practice, and dozens of plausible places to start fixing them. But if I

What last night’s local elections mean for independent dentistry: in a fractured Britain, the best practices will become anchors of stability Overnight’s local election results point to something bigger than a bad night for one party. They suggest a more fragmented, volatile political environment in which Labour has lost ground, Reform UK has made the sharpest gains, and the wider two-party grip continues to weaken, with other parties also picking up support. In plain English

In this episode, Chris sits down with Simon Reynolds of Patient Plan Direct and Andy Sloan of Agilio to explore one of the more significant developments in the dental business landscape, Agilio’s acquisition of Patient Plan Direct. What follows is a thoughtful conversation about consolidation, strategy and the future direction of UK dentistry. Simon reflects on his own journey into the sector, from Yorkshire and university life to becoming deeply involved in the growth of Pat

Independent private practices need to stop apologising for who they are. You are not the NHS. You are not a dental factory. You are not a private equity spreadsheet with surgeries attached. And that is exactly your advantage. In today’s market, there are four words that can differentiate an independent private practice more powerfully than any discount, finance offer or smile package ever will: Access. Hospitality. Experience. Ownership. Start with access. Millions of patient

There is no shortage of noise right now about AI, technology and the future of dentistry. Every week brings a new promise. A new platform. A new voice bot. A new “revolution” that claims it will transform patient communication, reduce admin, save time and somehow make everyone richer, calmer and more efficient by next week. Which is exactly why I’m looking forward to appearing on the panel session The tech-powered patient journey at the British Dental Conference & Dentistry S

Not every Bank Holiday needs a productivity score For once, my Bank Holiday weekend had no agenda, travel, socialising or anything else. Just a date night with Annie on Saturday at our favourite UK restaurant and a big note in my task management system to get my road bike ready for an upcoming cycling trip through Spain and France with Sheila Scott. The bike was second on the list - first was sleep - and plenty of it. It's hard for an ex-freelancer to walk away from the desk

There is a pattern I have seen for years, and it is the reason I have written The Date and the Number and made it available as a free download. Read the full article and download the new e-book in the Extreme Business May newsletter HERE.

You cannot afford a leaky ship Last night I had the pleasure of presenting a webinar for Practice Plan on a subject that is becoming more urgent with every passing month: how to stop silent profit leaks in the dental business. The timing matters. Independent practice owners are now operating in one of the most financially demanding periods we have seen for years. Rising payroll costs, higher utilities, increasing lab bills, more expensive materials, software subscriptions, co

I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself and falls on the other This line in Macbeth about “vaulting ambition” has stayed with me for years. What Shakespeare was actually using as a metaphor was that if you jump on a horse too quickly, you'll fall off the other side and look stupid. It is his way of describing the moment when desire outruns judgement. When someone wants something so badly that they stop asking the diff