Investment Grade Practice™ News – May 2025
Dear Doctor,
What if I told you that you could increase your annual production by $153,000 on average with just one adjustment?
This month, we dive into one of the most overlooked drivers of case acceptance, retention, and practice growth.
It’s not upping your clinical skills or your systems.
It’s your team.
When your entire team shares the same diagnostic standard, trust soars and patients say yes to the care they deserve. From your hygienists to your front desk to your assistants, everyone plays a vital role in delivering consistent value and a remarkable experience.
This newsletter has resources to help you build the team that makes all the difference:
- Tools to align your team with the Clinical Calibration™ Institute
- Strategies to navigate team compensation with confidence
- Cybersecurity tips every team member should know
- How to improve leadership to build a better team
Your team isn’t broken; they just need to calibrate to your standard of excellence.
To Your Success,
Dr. Bruce B. Baird
Co-founder, Productive Dentist Academy
Honored Fellow of the AAID
Diplomate of the ICOI
Fellow of the AGD
Author of Legendary Leadership
Podcast host of The Productive Dentist Podcast
Clinical Calibration: Case Acceptance’s Missing Link
You’ve delivered a great diagnosis, but when the patient turns to your team to ask, “Do I really need this?” …something’s off. It’s not your skills. It’s misalignment.
Case acceptance isn’t about having the perfect script. It’s about a shared belief.
When your hygienist, assistant, and front desk aren’t on the same page, patients feel the disconnect and hesitate. That’s where the Clinical Calibration™ Institute (CCI) comes in.
Click HERE to learn more about how CCI trains your team to see, communicate, and support treatment through the same clinical lens.
Building Value Together
Compensation Strategies for Dentists and Hygienists
Understanding compensation is crucial for every dental practice team member. This month, PDA Co-founder Dr. Bruce B. Baird, and PDA Business Development Consultant Jodie Heimbach, RDH, BS, tackle this topic from two angles to help dentists build motivated teams and hygienists gain the tools to navigate raises and respect.
In “More Than a Paycheck: the Key to Retaining a Loyal, High-performing Team,” PDA Co-founder Dr. Bruce B. Baird shares hard-earned wisdom from four decades of dental practice ownership.
This candid article challenges conventional thinking around team compensation and dives into what really drives retention: trust, transparency, shared success, and genuine care.
Discover why annual reviews often fall flat, how “time and grade” raises can tank motivation, and what it means to lead a team that’s invested in your practice’s success.
In “Advocating for Change: How to Ask for Raises, Resources, and Respect,” PDA Business Development Consultant Jodie Heimbach, RDH, BS, draws on her 30-year hygiene career to empower hygienists to confidently speak up for what they deserve.
From the nervous initial ask to establishing ongoing reviews, Jodie lays out a practical, step-by-step guide to navigating those sometimes awkward but essential conversations about pay, professional development, and workplace resources.
Learn why preparing your case with concrete production numbers, patient impact and market research is key, and how understanding your full compensation package can reveal hidden value beyond just your hourly rate.
Cybersecurity is a True Team Sport
In “Protect Your Practice: A Dentist’s Guide to Cybersecurity Resilience” PDA Information Security Officer/SysAdmin Robert Niles outlines simple steps you and your entire dental team can take to safeguard sensitive patient data and keep your systems running.
From password protocols to staff training and vendor oversight, this guide shows that cybersecurity isn’t just an IT issue – it’s a team effort.
The following article can help you ensure that your practice is prepared for the threats you hope never arrive. (And even if they do, you’ll be ready!)
Introducing Foreversites™ by Phoenix Dental Agency
Phoenix Dental Agency, powered by Productive Dentist Academy, helps dentists say goodbye to outdated, cookie-cutter practice websites.
Foreversites are built to reflect your authentic voice. Backed with real-time data, HIPAA-compliant tools, and ongoing expert support, you can get a website that helps your practice stand out, build trust, and attract traffic that turns into loyal patients.
2nd Annual Dentist Advisors Money Summit
Join PDA Co-founder & CEO Victoria Peterson, Phoenix Dental Agency Sr. Marketing Consultant Sara Hansen, and PDA VP of Client Services Angela Golden at the 2nd Annual Dentist Money Summit, hosted by Dentist Advisors, taking place June 20-21, 2025, at the Grand Summit Lodge Park City Canyons Village in Park City, Utah.
Grace in the Grind: Rediscovering the Soul of Work
This month DeW Life published “Grace in the Grind: Rediscovering the Soul of Work” by PDA Co-founder & CEO Victoria Peterson, S.s.D. In this blog post, Victoria reflects on her journey to integrate spirituality with business, advocating for a model she calls Sacred Commerce, where work becomes a practice of purpose, presence, and soul. She argues that true leadership doesn’t come from escaping the grind but from embodying grace, integrity, and compassion within it.
Fix Your Team Issues by Fixing Yourself (E.246)
Dentists often complain about bad teams. But the hard truth? It’s usually a leadership gap. In this straightforward and practical episode, Dr. Bruce Baird shares decades of wisdom on how to stop blaming the team and start building a thriving practice by improving leadership.
You’ll learn:
- Why Clinical Calibration™ is the missing link in fixing team productivity for good
- Why team frustration often stems from your leadership blind spots
- How to create structured onboarding and clear job expectations that eliminate chaos
- Why a “good” team member out of alignment is worse than having a vacancy
- How to have tough but necessary conversations to protect your culture
- Why Clinical Calibration™ is the missing link in fixing team productivity for good
Who Really Owns Your Dental Data? (E.288)
“What if your software vendor is holding your patient records hostage—and you didn’t even know it?” ~Dr. Bryan Laskin
In this explosive episode, Regan Robertson, Dr. Maggie Augustyn, and Dr. Chad Johnson sit down with tech visionary and dentist Dr. Bryan Laskin to unpack one of dentistry’s most urgent but ignored threats: data access, ownership, and abuse.
What starts as a conversation on HIPAA quickly escalates into a systemic unraveling of how most practice management systems violate the spirit of patient rights—and what that means for the future of dentistry.
You’ll learn:
- How the CURES Act changed the game (but most dentists don’t even know it)
- The legal difference between a tooth scan and a crown design
- What “information blocking” means—and how your practice might be doing it illegally
- How vendors use access fees and obfuscation to profit off your patient relationships
- The dangers of staying silent—and the movement that’s fighting back
Choose the glidewell.io™ In-Office Solution and mill BruxZir® crowns and bridges in just one appointment, with no oven time required. Give your patients convenience, efficiency, and immediate results. Includes ongoing training and support.
Have a great experience with PDA recently?
Download PDA Doctor Case Studies
Drs. Clint & Kelly Euse
PDA Members Since 2008
Advanced Dentistry by Design
Carson City, NV
