So you’ve just hired a new employee. Now what? You and your team spend hours training them on every little task. Then they begin working on their own as you periodically review their progress. They seem to be performing great and working well alongside your team. Then one day, they put in their two weeks and leave you wondering why. What could make a hard-working employee want to leave?

Retaining current employees may seem difficult. Hiring and training a new team member requires a lot of time from you and your team and increases overhead fees. Furthermore, some studies show any time a company replaces a salaried employee, it costs about six to nine months worth of the employee’s salary. 

Creating a strong team culture where everyone works cohesively and has a sense of belonging will keep employees on board. But building a great team culture doesn’t happen overnight. Constant and concerted efforts must be put in not only by you, but by each member of your team.

Zach Shelley, Office Manager at Satellite Family Dentistry in Florida, has built a culture within his team where everyone feels like family. Their culture allows them to not only celebrate successes together but also have hard conversations with each other when issues arise.

Shelley originally went to school to become an emergency responder. That path eventually led him to dentistry where he landed a job as a lab technician specializing in implants. After thirteen years working in the lab, Shelley decided it was time for a career change and has since led Satellite Family Dentistry over the last couple of years. Shelley’s experience in the dental industry has helped him build a great team that is growing in size and success.

Make personal connections by investing in your team

Building meaningful relationships with your team can be as simple as asking them about their family and home life, celebrating their birthday, and congratulating them when they accomplish a task.

“Take the time to be intentional,” Shelley said. “Intentionality is one of the biggest things you can use to build that family culture.

Shelley points out that when he talks to team members, he makes sure there is a purpose. Whether it be to learn more about their life outside the office or follow up on a task. He also spends these moments checking in to see where he can help his team members. For example, when speaking with a new team member, he likes to follow up on their training progress and then offer to teach them more where needed.

He believes that team members are more likely to perform well when they know he cares — not only about their performance but also what is going on in their day-to-day life.

Theodore Roosevelt once said, “People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Be engaged with your team by caring about them from their personal to professional development.

Choose to devote attention to your team by spending time throughout the day with them. Connect with them in a way that acknowledges that they’re more than just an employee. By investing in your team, you will be able to establish lasting relationships and provide stronger connections.

Be available and present

It may feel like there isn’t time to connect with and listen to your team as you are busy seeing each patient back-to-back. But according to Shelley, investing that time is worth it.

“Don’t be too busy to hear a concern or suggestion,” he said. “Staff members’ voices need to be heard.”

A significant part of Satellite Dentistry’s success comes from conscious efforts to spend time listening to their team members. They’re aware of what’s happening in their office. They listen to concerns and address any issues that need to be resolved. Shelley and his team are willing to listen to opposing opinions and are ready to adapt when necessary. That mentality ensures every single person on the team plays a valuable part in the success of the practice.

Foster accountability

Make your team meetings and morning huddles effective by building a foundation that centers on accountability.

“One big change for us was when we started using Dental Intelligence,” Shelley said. “Dental Intelligence was huge in giving us the ability to have a snapshot every day of what we needed to be looking at.”

Before using Dental Intelligence, morning huddles seemed ineffective and redundant to Shelley. His team simply reviewed the schedule, often seeing they didn’t have any openings. He mentions that that didn’t tell them much useful information.

Shelley and his team now use the Dental Intelligence Morning Huddle daily to see what they need to review. This includes incoming patients with unscheduled treatment or family members as well as those with past-due balances. In addition to seeing these uncompleted tasks, they can use Morning Huddle as a guide to assign tasks to team members to complete.

The Morning Huddle feature helps Shelley hold each of his team members accountable to their part in providing a great patient experience. By using the Morning Huddle, Shelley and his office have become more efficient even before patients walk through the door.

Provide solutions to issues

 When problems do arise within the team, Shelley believes it’s best to handle them directly, yet conscientiously.

“Attack the problem, not each other,” Shelley said. “Figure out how to solve the problem because what we are doing really matters for our patients.”

He makes sure to keep staff meetings focused and informative by reviewing any necessary issues and changes as a team.

“Staff meeting issues should be team issues. Direct issues to those employees that need to improve.”

Recently, Shelley realized that their patient handoff experience needed improvement. He addressed the issue with his team and used the Perfect Handoff Checklist to train them on how to make this a better experience for the patient.

Shelley handles office issues by finding solutions that will provide a greater team culture and patient experience.

Celebrate success

You may have a new team member onboard that feels overwhelmed with trying to feel up to speed. They may feel like they are making mistakes and are having to be corrected. What better way to make them feel welcomed and included than by praising them for their accomplishments?

Shelley makes a concerted effort to recognize when employees have accomplished a task whether they be experienced or new to their team. He mentions it only takes moments to do so and the benefits of doing so pay off.

Shelley also likes to make things fun during their staff meetings when celebrating team members. Recently, he put gift cards under everyone’s desk and did a big reveal Oprah style. Little gestures like this help build a sense of belonging amongst team members.

Growing your team culture

Shelley has watched his team grow, not only in size but in skill and knowledge. Their team culture includes making everyone feel like family, and they mean it when they say it. Shelley has developed a tight-knit culture by forming connections and staying present with his team.. What can you do to build a greater team culture and foster a feeling of inclusion?

With the tools Dental Intelligence offers, you can easily track team members’ performance and improve your team communication. Equally important, you can allow each team member to see their data, so they can see how they are being a team player in helping your practice achieve its goals.

For more tips on building a top-notch team culture, check out our eBook “7 Ways to Keep Your Best Team Members,” with one-on-one checklists for every role in the practice.