Finding the time to complete all your daily tasks can be challenging when managing a dental practice. Still, you need to make time for routine dental staff meetings to address office concerns and keep the wheels of your business turning. Without proper planning, your next team meeting could result in a waste of productive work hours. Get the most out of your meetings by following these five helpful tips. 

1. Set an Agenda with a Purpose

You should always create a meaningful agenda before meeting with your staff. Many dental practices only call meetings during emergencies or when disgruntled employees need to air their grievances. However, on-the-fly meetings rarely yield solutions and can distract the entire staff from their responsibilities.

Plan your meetings to address one or more goals you want your staff to accomplish within a specific time frame. Making an agenda beforehand lets you present action items quickly, so you aren’t wasting time trying to remember points during the meeting.

A good agenda may include updates on company policies, group training, or a briefing on what to expect during the upcoming week. 

If you don’t have substantive information to share with the group, it may not be worth calling a meeting in the first place. The last thing your employees want to do before finishing their coffee is to sit through a tiring morning huddle with information that could have fit in an email.

2. Find an Appropriate Time to Call Your Meeting

Some employees can not afford to attend a dental staff meeting during the middle of the day.

For some practices, it's best to hold morning sessions before patients arrive. Others prefer to hold end-of-week meetings after the office closes. 

It may also be practical to ask your employees what time works best for them. This method is not always the most efficient for you as a planner. However, it can optimize workflow efficiency during the week and gives your employees more flexibility. 

3. Support Your Meetings with Technology

Always prepare for your meetings with reports, PowerPoint presentations, or other relevant documents. These resources keep employees engaged with the orders of business and provide helpful visuals. 

For example, you can increase dental production with Dental Intelligence Morning Huddle. These analytic tools allow you to review practice goals and present patient data with easy-to-read charts.

You can also upload your meeting itinerary or presentation to your practice’s shared network before everyone gathers. This method allows employees to review action items ahead of time and come prepared with questions or comments.

4. Focus on the Items at Hand

It can be easy for individuals to derail staff meetings with complaints, gossip, or other disturbances. However, these gatherings are not the place for this kind of behavior. Dental staff meetings are only suitable for discussing concerns that impact the workflow and performance of the entire team.

Encourage your employees to focus on the items at hand and engage professionally and respectfully at all times.

Some of your employees may have valid concerns about behavior or actions taking place in the office. In this case, it’s best to plan a separate meeting with relevant parties or direct them to Human Resources.

5. Remember to Acknowledge Your Employees’ Time

Whether your meeting lasts ten minutes or two hours, you should acknowledge that your employees are taking time out of their day to attend. Remind them that they provide an important service to their community and that their hard work is evident in their accomplishments.

The end of your meeting may also be an appropriate time to recognize individual employees for the value they bring to your dental team. These small moments can give your office staff the motivation they need to get through the rest of the day.

Resource Management Tools That Improve Your Productivity

Many dental practices waste hours of their week on unproductive meetings that could be time spent with patients. When you plan your next meeting, remember to include material that will help your staff optimize their workflow or better understand their responsibilities as dental professionals.

If you need to come up with new dental staff meeting ideas, explore how our team at Dental Intelligence can help. We provide unmatched tools to help your practice stay up-to-date with Metrics & Reporting. 

Schedule a demo today to learn more about how your dental practice can accomplish its goals.

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