Australasian Dentist Magazine May June 2021

Category 104 Australasian Dentist O wning your own dental practice is clearly on the career trajectory for many dentists. After investing so much time, effort and money into becoming a dentist in the first place and due to the length of most dental careers, building a valuable and tangible asset has always made perfect sense. However, it is not quite as easy as it once was. Today, the sector is highly competitive, with a national Population to Dentist Ratio of just 1,085 people for every registered dentist. This is down from 2,500 at the turn of the century and in many desirable suburbs and areas this number can very often drop to just a few hundred, making it tremendously difficult to get established and build a profitable and rewarding business. Furthermore, it is not going to get any easier as the number of graduates continues to rise, population growth flattens and many dentists choosing to retire later and work into their 70’s. You may not feel any sympathy for them, but the dental corporations don’t have it easy either as they find it hard to retain good dentists for very long. The new graduate will use the corporations to gain valuable experience, but as soon as they have an entrepreneurial seizure, as Michael Gerber calls it in his book “The E Myth Dentist”, they leave and set-up in competition. The corporation suffers because the patient experience is significantly compromised due to the revolving door of dentists and the young dentist setting up their first practice suffers as they don’t have the business skills needed to succeed in such a competitive marketplace. Other professional businesses, such as the legal and accounting sectors faced similar problems and addressed this by providing career paths that lead to partnership and equity opportunities for their better employees. This hybrid of the best of private practice together with the business strengths of a professional back office is proving highly successful and rewarding for the dentists and key personnel who have chosen to join Kikada Lane Dental. Established in 2017 and now operating across four states, the Kikada Lane model brings together the very best of private practice and the professional services needed for success, a larger organisation can provide. Practices are not rebranded, the original team is retained and equity opportunities are offered to those who desire long-term careers with wealth creation strategies in place. Not only does the blend of a great private practice, supported by an exceedingly well run back office, create successful dental practices, but it creates highly enjoyable workplaces as everyone throughout the business is concentrating on what they do best and with the best patient outcomes at the core of every function. This professional approach starts long before a new practice joins Kikada Lane, as a great deal of market research is undertaken first which also bolsters the chances of success. This has led to a number of practices joining Kikada Lane in low competition regional areas and has created sensational career opportunities for ambitious dentists to grow, become practice owners and all without the risk and debt of starting a practice. If you would like to know about the Kikada Lane career advancement opportunities, feel free to make a time to have a private and confidential discussion with myself and if you are attending the ADX this year, pop over to Booth 64 and say G’day. We currently have career and equity opportunities in Northern Queensland, Sydney, Adelaide, Mid-NSW Coast, the Gold Coast and Brisbane. u Kelli Hughes can be contacted on: hr@kikadalane.com.au Ph: 03 9691 3500 M: 0417 770 955 Making practice ownership accessible By Kelli Hughes REGIONAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER OPPORTUNITY - NSW  New role due to expansion  Excellent Salary Package  Managing a minimum of 10 dental practices in NSW  Career position with a Dental Company experiencing rapid growth For more information contact Kelli Hughes  hr@kikadalane.com.au  03 9691 3500  0417 770 955  www.kikadalane.com.au KIKADA LANE DENTAL acquisitions