Does your practice have job descriptions?
Better yet . . . does your practice have job descriptions that are written out, defined, and shared with the team? Or are they all still up in your head?
One of the biggest problems we see with the practices we work with is not having roles clearly defined into job descriptions. This leads to inconsistent expectations between staff and managers, can lead to higher turnout, and ultimately a difficult working environment.
Top Reasons Why People DON’T Do Job Descriptions:
- Won’t Take The Time: Most people simply procrastinate on making job descriptions. They see the daily needs of a dental practice taking up too much valuable time. The truth is, though, that you can’t afford to ignore this and it is worth every minute of your time to map out job descriptions.
- Don’t Know What To Put: Another big hurdle is that managers and doctors don’t know what needs to be in a job description. They don’t know what to do and that paralyzes them. Instead of researching, asking other doctors for ideas, or creating an initial draft, they ignore the problem and hope it will work out. (Most times it comes back to bite you!)
- Afraid to Offend. Some people we’ve talked to don’t like to make job descriptions because they are afraid of making the working environment too “corporate,” and fear they will lose the family feel they have with their staff.
So, why are job descriptions so vital for your practice? There are SO many reasons, but here are just a few:
- Saves you time: Many think of writing job descriptions as taking too much time, but it’s a practice you invest some time in up front, but can use time and time again. Once you have job descriptions written, you can do slight edits if you need to, but you can use those same job descriptions for years with any new staff you bring in.
- Sets expectations: Job descriptions make it easy to set expectations with your staff so that they know exactly what their role is. They don’t have to guess if they are doing the right tasks or not, and YOU know exactly what you’re looking for from them.
- Solves conflicts with less conflict. It’s much easier to have a conversation with an employee about performance when you have a written set of guidelines you can point back to. When staff aren’t meeting the job description, it’s much easier to refer to that list in the conversation. It makes hard conversations more objective and allows you to keep emotions out of the mix.
- Makes hiring easier. When you’re hiring for temp staff or permanent staff, having job descriptions can make the onboarding process much easier. It saves everyone time, including your office manager, other staff, the temp/new staff, and you. Simply share the written information with the staff member before they come in or at the beginning of the day and then allow them a chance to ask questions.
- Focus on culture. Job descriptions may feel more formal, but they actually free you up to be more interactive and engaging with your staff and patients. Instead of dealing with excessive drama or underperforming staff, you can focus on learning personality styles, providing better care, and having fun with your team. You can focus on the culture and let the job description simply be the foundation you build upon.
Job descriptions are a vital piece to any successful practice. They’re helpful for both employees AND managers in almost any working environment, but even more in such a tight-knit group like a dental team. As you build your dental team, we’re here to help!
