Dr. J. Gary Maynard, Jr., DDS, answers questions about the process he followed to hire an associate for his periodontal practice...

What to Do After Graduation Day
HIRING AN ASSOCIATE

Dr. J. Gary Maynard, Jr., DDS, answers questions about the process he followed to hire an associate for his periodontal practice.
J. Gary Maynard, Jr., D.D.S., is a private practitioner in Richmond, VA and has been a member of The American Academy of Periodontology for 35 years. He served as president of the AAP in 1991 and chairman of the American Board of Periodontology in 1998. He received his certificate in periodontics from the University of Kentucky.

What made you decide to seek an associate?

Age was a factor. The consideration was to bring in someone who would eventually buy out one half of the practice, and I would practice with that person until I was ready to retire.

Did you meet with a consultant, lawyer or accountant to determine the feasibility before you began the process?

I met with accountants, lawyers and a practice appraiser.

Where did you begin looking for an associate?

Our graduate program at MCV/VCU, other graduate programs in surrounding states, and conversations with numerous graduate directors.

How did skill and personality play into your decision making process?

I wanted to find someone from the Southeastern part of the United States who would have similar values and desires and with a compatible treatment philosophy. Skill level is a difficult quality to measure without input from graduate directors which may be biased. No graduate director is going to say that a former student had inadequate or marginal skills. Personality is important, but it is often difficult to read and ascertain with brief visits. Only time with an individual will let you fully understand the personality. These factors and traits are important, but it is difficult to get a true reading before an associate joins one's practice. That is why a year or two of an associateship is so important – it provides time for both owner and buyer to get to know each other's skills, personality, and other characteristics which make for a good relationship.

What type of bonus package were you willing to offer in terms of patients, production, and overhead to take the financial pressure off of the associate?

A guaranteed salary plus a bonus was offered. The associate told me what he needed annually, and it was up to me to either grant that request or deny it. The practice appraiser who was hired to work out an agreement, I think, was fair, and tried to be representative of each person. This worked well during the early stages of the contract, but went astray during the sale and buy-in because of outside attorneys representing the buyer, and eventually, the seller's attorney who had to protect the interests of the seller. In hindsight, we would both have been better off if we had let Roger Hill & Associates, now Blair, McGill & Hill handle the entire purchase sale.

Were you willing to have the associate take over a specific area of your practice that might not have been your focus (i.e., cosmetic surgery, dental implants)?

During the time of the associateship, I was able to introduce the associate to my referring dentists through letters, cocktail parties, and encouraging him to see these dentists one on one in their office for lunch dates, etc. A key way to get to know the referring dentist is to see recall/maintenance patients under supervision, or monitor the hygienist. This is a direct contact with the referral source. By these patients coming back to the dentist and saying favorable things about the associate, as well as communicating with the referring dentist after seeing their maintenance patients. After becoming a partner, I stopped doing implants, which permitted him to build this aspect of his practice more rapidly.

Please explain your financial compensation arrangement using real or fictitious figures.

Dr. Chris Richardson developed a monthly budget and presented it to me. I agreed and put together a compensation package. This package gave him a guaranteed salary with a bonus option attainable on a quarterly basis. The bonus was paid as follows: 40% of all collections over $50,000 per quarter. He was also given an annual continuing education expense account of $3,000 as well as coverage of a portion of his health care insurance. All of his malpractice insurance, assistant salary and normal social security and employment taxes applicable to any employee were also paid.

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