Cindy Ishimoto

Mixing and Managing Generations in Dentistry

Ever wonder why you don’t understand the motivations of the other dental assistant or the younger dentist or how about “those people” in the front office? Do you feel confused because no matter how hard you try; you can’t seem to get your point across to the dentists or other team members? Guess what? You’re not the only one – they are also wondering how they can finally get their point across, to you.

It doesn’t matter if you are of the Boomer, Millennial or Gen-X or Z generation, you are now probably working with a few people who don’t have the same generational perspective, experience or expectations as you. And while this can create a few stumbling blocks, it also offers you an opportunity to expand your ability to utilize some new communication tools, which will benefit you personally and professionally.

When a practice learns to connect people across the five generations, they can actually start to find a way to bridge the so-called generational borders fostering work environments that enable all of the generations to teach and learn from each other connecting people on a human level.

Now that our workplaces are more generationally diverse than at any time in history, but at risk of conflict because of this, how do we all work together harmoniously?

Learn best practices for engaging both patients and team members across the generations. Gain actionable strategies and integrated tools that build rapport, camaraderie, and cooperation among team members. Capitalize on the strengths of the team to develop a care process that creates stronger relationships and opportunities for the best oral health outcomes for your patients.

Learning Objectives

• Learn how each generation differs in learning styles, values, perceptions, and preferences
• Explore strategies for improving multi-generational team performance
• Understand how and why to attract, retain and create relationships with each generation of patients to help them move forward with care
• Improve inter-generational communications and increase case acceptance by understanding differences and how to match preferences
• Develop verbal and relationship skills to manage generational differences that increase quality and productivity, reduces conflict, and maximizes the contributions of all team members
• Learn to focus on individual strengths, rather than on generational differences for greater workplace satisfaction and practice profitability

Suggested Format: Full or Half Day; Lecture, Workshop, Keynote
Suggested Attendees: Dentists, Office Managers, Full Team

The potential for the success of a practice is directly proportional to the effort put in by the team.

When the team is in a state of disharmony or dysfunction, everyone and everything is held back. When the team is coordinated, working cohesively toward a common set of goals, and they feel a sense of co-ownership, the practice can’t help but thrive. In this high energy, interactive workshop, Cindy Ishimoto shares strategies for creating workplace harmony and improved morale leading to greater practice productivity and profitability.

Join us and reignite your passion and joy for the profession. Learn strategies for working effectively with others, how to set goals and achieve them, how attitude plays a role in success and how to self-motivate to increase your potential for success.

Learning Objectives

• Learn enhanced effectiveness skills for accomplishing tasks by improving relationships with others
• Develop communication techniques for turning conflict into cooperation
• Understand the roles attitude, commitment, trust and respect play in success
• Explore how goal setting and problem solving skills increase efficiency
• Hone time management and delegation skills
• Illuminate the importance of job descriptions and growth conferences in creating peak performers

Suggested Format: Full or Partial Day; Lecture, Workshop, Keynote
Suggested Audience: Dentists and Teams

What if you could say the right things to the right people at the right time? Would having clear and compelling communications change your outcomes?

Every time you communicate, you’re trying to do something, change something, or move someone to action. You’re trying to make a point. But the only way to make a point is to have a point. And the surprising truth is, very few communicators know their points or even understand what a point is, rendering them pointless.

Sydney J. Harris said, that the two words: ‘information’ and ‘communication’ are often used interchangeably, but they signify quite different things. Information is giving out; communication is getting through.

In Dentistry we have historically weighted our communications with patients using the information telling and selling model. This has led us to believe that we have communicated well with each patient yet wonder why they never go forward with our recommendations for their dental health.

You can change your world by changing your words. Clear, concise, confident, effective communications lead to creating a community of patients getting healthier because they heard and understand your recommendations.

Learning Objectives

• Enhance what you say, how and when you say it: improving the effectiveness of communications
• Learn Communication Skills for Day to Day Success
• Improve your communications with difficult patients
• Enhance your communication skills for handling appointment changes and cancellations. Learn systematic approaches to helping patients keep their commitments.
• The Patient Service Cycle: learn effective techniques and communication skills for each phase of an appointment from the first contact through reappointing
• Learn Impactful Educational statements so patients understand the value and urgency of going forward with their care.y

Suggested Format: Full or Half Day; Lecture, Workshop, Keynote
Suggested Attendees: Dentists and Team

Successful practices incorporate specific strategies to deliver the highest level of service for every patient.

For patients to make an emotional commitment and a financial investment, practitioners must adopt skills which put the patient’s needs first instead of just selling the treatment plan. Securing treatment acceptance requires three key elements: communicating and listening carefully, encouraging active participation by the patient, and ensuring that everything you do addresses their issues.

In this high energy, interactive seminar, Cindy Ishimoto shares proven solutions and dynamic tools to enhance quality of care by improving the patient treatment cycle through the use of new technology, improved clinical strategies and excellent communication skills. Learn tips and techniques to help you better manage practice systems and your actions to decrease the stress and chaos around you.

Learn how to embrace self-directed leadership characteristics and watch both your personal joy and the practice flourish.

Learning Objectives

• Increase practice productivity and profitability by learning to effectively manage systems
• Identify methods for utilizing technology fully to boost service and improve efficiency
• Enhance what you say, how and when you say it: improving the effectiveness of communications
• Learn the best system to keep the backbone of your practice (continuing care) strong
• Understand strategic planning: organizing and taking your vision into reality

Take the Learning Deeper!
Choose Course Emphasis from these Practice Mastery Pathways:

What You Don’t Know WILL Hurt You – How can you tell if your practice is financially healthy? What do the numbers mean? Which statistics are important, and how do you know which are good and which need help? We’ll explore the good, the bad and the ugly and provide tools to help you monitor your own statistical data and implement the needed changes.

Learning Objectives

• Discover what your data indicates and what it means for the practice
• Evaluate which management systems to refine to boost your results
• Gain the missing piece: strategies for enhancing systems to enable the next level of success

Broken Appointments: The Black Holes of Scheduling Success – A leading reason patients leave a practice is because they are not seen on time. Similarly, nothing stresses a practitioner more than running behind schedule. Management of the appointment system affects the productivity, profitability, and stress control of every procedure and day. This course provides participants with strategies, techniques and communication skills to increase efficiency and effectiveness in the schedule while decreasing broken appointments. Protect your practice from fallout and follow up.

Learning Objectives

• Learn patient communication techniques that decrease open time and broken appointments
• Understand the role technology plays in improving the scheduling system and how to integrate it into your practice
• Identify the team’s role in scheduling to increase success, decrease stress and achieve production goals

Collecting Your Due – Frustration and stress are clear indicators of management system shortfalls, but nothing screams “crisis” louder than a practice that is struggling financially. If your accounts receivable are growing, it is costing you more and more to collect each dollar. This course covers what to do/say and when/how to effectively collect from your patients and insurance companies. Practical, simplified, easy to implement methods will be shared to assist practices in ending the ostrich approach of managing the entire collections system.

Learning Objectives

• Learn the benchmarks for measuring the health of your financial system
• Learn strategies and communication techniques for reducing accounts receivable, making effective financial arrangements and managing insurance
• Identify solid financial guidelines that help patients say “Yes” to treatment

Suggested Format: Full or Partial Day; Lecture, Workshop, Keynote
Suggested Audience: Dentists and Teams

There is no one who cares more about the success of the practice than the spouse.

He/she likely owns half of the business. However, there are certain things to do and not do in order for this very unique situation to be constructive rather than destructive.

Learn to navigate the challenges with techniques and strategies to work in harmony with the team, the doctor and the patients. You can be the spouse and an employee. Learn procedures to help you ensure success including outlines of jobs, tasks, and responsibilities. Discover a leadership model for success that helps you avoid the pitfalls and become the glue that holds the team together

Learning Objectives

• Understand how to create a spouse job description that is essential for the well-being of the practice
• Learn critical principles for becoming a master of leadership and communication skills
• Explore how behavior affects communication success and perceptions of who we are
• Discover what your practice monitors indicate and strategies for enhancing management systems
• Learn how to run the dental practice as business partners, and how to plan the business with intention

Suggested Format: Partial Day; Lecture, Workshop, Keynote
Suggested Attendees: Dental Spouses