Is your dental practice busy, but not as profitable as it should be? Are you constantly putting out fires and feeling like everything falls on your shoulders? You’re not alone, and today’s guest has the clarity and solutions you’ve been looking for.

In this episode of Growing Your Dental Business, host Jacquelyn Hurley welcomes dental business strategist and coach Melinda Heryford, founder of The Practice Implementers. With over 30 years of experience and an MBA from UC Davis, Melinda shares how she helps overwhelmed dentists and their teams move from chaos to clarity by focusing on the vital 20% of actions that generate 80% of the results.

From leadership systems and team accountability to schedule control and profitability leaks, this episode is packed with insights you can implement right away to take back your time and boost your practice’s bottom line.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why so many dentists feel stuck in reactive mode and how to lead more proactively
• What it takes to create team alignment, consistency, and follow-through
• How to hold your team accountable (without micromanaging!)
• The systems every practice should have in place to calm the chaos and increase efficiency.
• Why your schedule may be the most significant profit leak, and how to fix it
• What it means to have a leadership team and how even small practices can build one
• The one wildly important goal your team should be focused on every week

Featured Guest:

Melinda Heryford, MBA

Founder of The Practice Implementers

Email: melinda@melindaheryford.com

Website: melindaheryford.com

Melinda is offering listeners a complimentary Practice Health Assessment, a $1,000 value, to help you identify where your practice is leaking profits and where your best opportunities for growth lie.

You’ll also get an invitation to her next Practice Masterclass, which will be held September 10, 2025, titled “Road to Detection for Clinical Teams,” where she’ll dive deeper into actionable strategies to increase clarity, team performance, and profitability.

To schedule your assessment or learn more, email melinda@melindaheryford.com.

What if the success you’re striving for in your practice isn’t about working harder, but about uncovering what’s holding you back? In this powerful episode of the Growing Your Dental Business podcast, host Jacquelyn Hurley welcomes Sandy Baird, MBA, dental practice advisor and industry veteran with over 40 years of real-world experience.

Sandy shares practical strategies for overcoming the inefficiencies that quietly eat away at your profits and morale. From financial leaks to front desk inefficiencies, to outdated systems and gaps in patient communication, Sandy breaks down what matters most when running a business-minded dental practice. You’ll walk away inspired and ready to take ownership of your systems, your team, and your bottom line.

Want to take your practice to the next level? Visit bairdconcepts.com and mention this podcast to receive 30% off Sandy’s Comprehensive Practice Evaluation or a Team Development Day.

And don’t forget—if your practice is ready to outsource dental billing to a trusted partner, head over to dentalbilling.com to learn how eAssist Dental Solutions can help you collect 100% of what you’re rightfully owed.



Reach out to Sandy at sbaird@bairdconcepts.com

Hiring an associate should make your life easier, not harder. Yet, a staggering 75% of associate hires in dentistry fail, often within the first year. In this eye-opening and solution-driven episode, Bryton Nield joins us to unpack why that number is so high - and what private practice owners can do to get it right.

As the CEO of Dentist Partner Pros, Bryton brings a proven system for hiring, onboarding, and retaining high-performing associates. Whether you're already in the hiring process or just starting to wonder if your practice is ready, this episode delivers a practical blueprint for success.

Key Takeaways:

• The two critical factors every practice owner must assess before hiring
• Four pillars of practice readiness: patient load, production, space, and financials
• Why most associate relationships feel like "just trying it out" - and how to avoid that trap
• What it really costs to hire the wrong person
• How to create a hiring process that leads to long-term synergy
• Tips for onboarding that actually build loyalty and reduce turnover

Take the Free Associate Readiness Quiz

Find out if your practice is truly ready for an associate:

https://dentistpartnerpros.com/associate-readiness-quiz

Discuss your unique situation one-on-one with Bryton.

Email: bryton@dentistpartnerpros.com

Website: www.dentistpartnerpros.com

In this episode, Jacquelyn Hurley welcomes Tiffany Wuebben, RDH, a powerhouse hygienist, entrepreneur, speaker, and founder of The Hygienepreneur, who’s on a mission to bring sparkle, strategy, and sustainability to dental hygiene departments across the country.

From her Ritz-Carlton-inspired approach to patient experience to the systems she’s developed for boosting hygiene production without burnout, Tiffany shares her heart and hustle. You’ll walk away with practical ideas for creating a hospitality-driven culture, strengthening your team’s connection, and turning your hygiene department into a true growth engine.

Special Gift for Listeners:

Get Tiffany’s book Hygienepreneur absolutely FREE!

This digital download is available for a limited time to podcast listeners.

Click here to access your free copy.

Prefer a physical copy? You can grab both Hygienepreneur and Culture Catalyst on Amazon.

Stay Connected with Tiffany:

• Website: www.thehygienepreneur.com
• Culture Training: www.culturecatalystbook.com
• Email: tiffany@thehygienepreneur.com
• YouTube: The Hygienepreneur

Are patient past-due accounts slowing down your dental practice? In this episode, we sit down with Ron Cash of Transworld Systems Inc. (TSI) to explore how automation can help your practice recover more from your patients, faster, and at the lowest possible cost.

Discover proven methods to:

✅ Resolve past-due patient accounts efficiently

✅ Improve cash flow & reduce bad debt

✅ Seamlessly integrate collections with your existing dental software

✅ Leverage TSI’s partnership with the Michigan Dental Association for exclusive discounts

Don’t let outstanding accounts impact your bottom line—tune in now to learn how to streamline your collections process!



You can connect with Ron by calling 877-RON-CASH—it’s that easy!

Hiring and training the right dental team members is one of the biggest challenges dental practices face. Host Jacquelyn Hurley welcomes Jennifer Paxton and Dr. Sten Ericson of Pathway Dental Solutions to share their innovative approach to building efficient, high-performing teams.

Jennifer, a dental industry leader with over 25 years of experience, and Dr. Ericson, co-founder of Pathway Dental Group, reveal how their First 400 Program streamlines hiring and training, ensuring new team members become productive quickly, whether they have dental experience or not.

They also discuss:

• How to hire for willingness to learn over experience
• Strategies to systematize training and avoid the "unicorn hire" trap
• The mindset shifts that help doctors become $1M+ producers
• Why transparency and accountability create stronger, more efficient teams

If you're looking for a proven framework to optimize your dental team and grow your practice, this episode is packed with actionable insights!

Connect with Jennifer & Dr. Sten at PathwayDentalSolutions.com or email connect@pathwaydentalsolutions.com.

Sponsored by eAssist Dental Solutions – helping practices collect 100% of what’s rightfully owed. Learn more at DentalBilling.com.



Tune in now and take your dental practice to the next level!

Managing a dental practice is more than delivering excellent patient care, it's about building and maintaining a strong, engaged team. However, with changing employment laws, high turnover, and workplace culture challenges, HR can quickly become overwhelming for dentists and office managers.

In this episode of Growing Your Dental Business, I sit down with Alan Twigg, co-owner of Bent Erickson & Associates, which has helped thousands of dentists navigate the complexities of HR and employment compliance.

Alan shares insights on:

• The biggest HR challenges dental practices will face in 2025
• How changing labor laws impact your team and compliance
• Strategies for attracting and retaining top dental talent
• The importance of an up-to-date employee handbook
• Training resources like People Power to empower dental leaders

HR doesn’t have to be a headache. Learn how to create a stress-free, legally compliant, and thriving workplace with expert guidance.

Listen now and take the first step toward a stronger dental team!

In this episode of Growing Your Dental Business, we explore how Virtual Assistants (VAs) can lighten the load for dental teams, improve efficiency, and help practices run more smoothly, without hiring more in-office staff.

Join us as we chat with Rebecca Herring, a seasoned dental coach and expert in practice optimization, who shares how Virtual Assistants can reduce burnout, improve patient experience, and maximize profitability.

Key Takeaways:

- Boosting Efficiency & Reducing Burnout - Virtual assistants handle administrative tasks such as scheduling, insurance verification, and patient follow-ups, allowing in-office teams to focus on patient care.

- Cost-Effective Support – Many virtual assistants operate offshore and provide high-quality service at a lower cost ($11-$15/hour).

- Implementation Success – Rebecca’s practice strategically assigned VAs to specific "lanes" such as insurance verification and scheduling, optimizing workflow across three locations.

- Signs that Your Practice Needs Help – If your team is overwhelmed, calls are missed, or administrative tasks are piling up, it might be time to consider virtual assistants.

Want to explore virtual assistants for your practice?



Rebecca is offering a complimentary consultation - contact her at rebecca@yourtdcoach.com.