Reducing associateship failure rate

An associateship is a mentor relationship created to allow a new dentist to work with a senior dentist for a period of time as the senior dentist transitions out of the practice, and the new dentist learns the business of the practice.

So… based on the best feedback I have received… there is at least a 70% failure rate in dental associateships… Many people say much higher (85% keeps being brought up).

Why???

Why does the dental community accept this as a business-as-usual fact…  A cost of doing business?  This kind of failure rate ought to be the subject of doctoral dissertations.  There ought to be countless studies done to find the reasons of such epic failure!  Dentists all over America should be marching in the street shaking their fists angrily, demanding action from Congress!!

OK, maybe that is a bit too much.  Maybe all that is needed is someone to examine the causes and illuminate people on the causes.  hmmm… That can’t be the case, because the causes seem easily identifiable.   It took me only a few months research to gather the causes from some of the most experienced hands in dentistry.

Maybe just knowing the causes isn’t enough.

If only 50% of marriages end in divorce, why should associateships be so much higher in their failure rate?  Associateships are not life-long commitments.  Again, associateships are short term relationships while the senior dentist mentors the new dentist so the practice transition can take place.

hmmm… maybe a few senior dentists are using the definition too loosely… and really just looking for junior employees while calling it an associateship?  The definition needs to be clear.  If a new dentist is joining an associateship, it must not be just an employee relationship.  It is false advertising to do so.  Please… if you are looking for an employee… just say so.

Addressing the failure rate of real associateships

This is and has been a problem for some time, right?  It should be addressed, correct?

I’ve read several books discuss ways that seemingly intractable problems can be fixed.  Most books suggest looking at the positive outliers for clues about how the majority could be more successful.  They suggest identifying and replicating successful practices or behaviors.

What exactly are behaviors of the 15-30% successful associateships that create success?  Can those successful behaviors and practices be repeated?  If so, should any new dentist ever  join an associateship without following the behavior of successful associates?  The cost to new dentists can be staggering… counting the time lost and time value of money.  If it is true that most new dentists join three associateships before buying a practice (as I have heard to be the case), then on average maybe six to eight years are lost before buying a practice.

What about the senior dentists?  If they are looking for associates to take over the practice, shouldn’t they want to follow the most successful behaviors too?  How much does a failed associateship cost a senior dentist?  My friend Dr. Jones (not his real name) hired an associate that he thought he knew very well to take over his practice.  For a couple months the two of them worked together.

Dr. Jones was a pillar in the community. As part of his retirement income and because of bank requirements, Dr. Jones had carried back a chunk of the purchase price.  For three months, the two of them worked together, then Dr. Jones packed his bags for a retirement full of service and hobbies.  Four months later, he found that the new dentist had destroyed his practice.  The new dentist lost his license through his reckless behaviors.  The bank asked Dr. Jones to come back to pick up the pieces of his practice.  He had to work for another two years to build the practice back up to where it could be sold again.  That was costly… two years of his retirement taken away.

The associateship failure rate is not a cost of doing business.  What can you do in your area of dentistry to reduce this failure rate?  I know I will be doing all I can to do my part.