The dental practice hiring playbook.
The whole hiring lifecycle for a dental practice, from defining the role to keeping the hygienist you just trained. Written for the practice where the person hiring is also running the schedule.
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Eight chapters, and every one ends with something to copy.
Written from what actually works in private practices and small groups. No case studies about hospital systems with a talent acquisition team.
Why dental hiring is different
What an empty operatory costs a week, and the four challenges that show up in every practice.
Understanding the roles
Dentist, hygienist, assistant and lab technician: scope, licensure and what each one actually needs from you.
Writing the job description
Title, responsibilities, schedule, pay and culture, with the structure that gets finished by a hygienist on her lunch break.
Sourcing candidates
Boards, social, dental schools and associations, referrals and the professional networks worth your time.
Screening and interviewing
Résumé screening, pre-screen calls, skills assessments, structured and behavioral questions, and reference checks.
Offer and onboarding
Presenting the offer, negotiating, the offer letter, first-day orientation, mentorship and a 30/60/90 roadmap.
Retaining dental talent
Recognition, work-life balance, competitive pay, open communication and the cross-training that keeps people.
Leveraging hiring software
Where AvaHR does the work: AI screening, team collaboration, analytics, and what to look for in any hiring tool.
The practice that calls first usually wins the hygienist. Almost everything else in this playbook is a way of making that easier.
From chapter fiveWritten for the person hiring between patients.
Practice owners
You are hiring between patients and there was never time to build a process.
Office managers
Hiring landed on your desk with insurance, payroll and the phones, and nobody handed you a playbook.
Growing groups
You are opening a second or third location and the hiring that worked for one office no longer scales.
“I printed it and gave it to my office manager. Half of it we were already doing badly, and the other half we had never thought of. The working-interview scorecard is on our wall.”