Australasian Dentist Issue 93

24 AUSTRALASIAN DENTIST PROFILE SLS and Microplastics Free .... CURAPROX CURAPROX AUSTRALIA | www.curaprox.com.au | 08 7079 3779 PEACH + APRICOT Peach banner.indd 1 8/02/2022 3:38:53 PM E very journey starts with deciding where you want to go. As a practice owner, thinking of your business goals as a quest is helpful to identify your practice vision. This idea of a quest, a shared purpose, helps you set holistic, achievable goals with your practice manager, so they and your team can realise that vision. But first, you need to know the direction yourself. However, time-consuming, inefficient practice management tasks can take your energy away from setting your goals and direction. An online practice management platform such as PracticeHub helps with the ‘doing’ in your organisation, saving you time and effort, so you can focus on the bigger picture. Know your practice’s vision and goals To set your direction, it’s worth spending time exploring questions such as: u What are my vision and goals? These inspire your team, motivating them to improve their performance and providing job satisfaction. u Why do I want to do it? What’s the payoff? Is it important enough to give your energy to and get your team’s buy in to achieve it? u Where am I going? As a leader, you have to inspire your team. They want to be led, with direction and effective communication. u How am I going to do it? Work backwards, incrementally towards the goal you want to achieve. Have the end in mind. This tells you how to do it. How do you get better staff performance? Take them on a journey u What kind of workplace do I want to create? Yes, you can create the environment you want! And as a leader, it’s your responsibility. Documenting your answers to these questions in PracticeHub gives you a centralised record that’s easy to share with your team so they feel part of the quest, and you can update it as your journey evolves. With your vision in place, you can create policies and procedures aligned with it, such as your code of conduct and privacy policies, so staff know what’s expected of them. Getting your team on board Now the quest begins with getting buy-in from your team. Practice managers are key to upholding your vision and implementing your goals, throughknowingwhatmotivates your staff to inspire their best performance and ownership of their roles. Take time to regularly engage with the team to discover how their individual purpose aligns with your practice vision: are they motivated by money, a sense of belonging, or to learn and be challenged? Knowing these drivers shows you how to communicate with each team member, and how to reward great performance. Creating a positively energetic work- place also matters. If your team is disinter- ested, disconnected and demotivated, it impacts your patients’ experience of your practice – and that’s not good for business. Focus on these three aspects to create a workplace culture that aligns with your vision: u Wellbeing – of your team and your organisation u Fostering authentic communication u Maximising engagement.