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Navigating the Complexities of Hiring Associate Dentists

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

Release Date: 10/06/2025

Who’s More Important in a Dental Practice: Front Office or Clinical Team?

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

A Dentaltown post started a bigger conversation: A dentist wanted to bring back a former dental assistant, but a current front office employee didn’t want her back. Then someone argued that the assistant was more important because she directly contributed to production. So, who is more valuable to the practice? In this episode, Dana and Sandy talk about what really makes someone valuable to a dental practice, what to consider before bringing back a former employee, and why front office vs. back office conflict is often a symptom of a bigger issue. They also discuss why patients can feel...

Will AI & AEO Recommend Your Dental Practice?

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

AI is changing how patients search for dentists, but simply creating more content isn't enough. As AI-generated content floods the internet, credibility, expertise, and proof may matter more than ever. In this episode of Dental Drill Bits, Dana Pardue and Sandy Pardue welcome Grace Rizza, founder and CEO of Identity Dental Marketing, back to the show for a conversation about how AI is changing dental marketing, search visibility, content creation, and the way patients discover and evaluate dental practices. Grace explains why using AI effectively isn't as simple as asking ChatGPT to write a...

Should We Pay Employees to Show Up?

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

What if employees got a bonus simply for showing up? In this episode of Dental Drill Bits, Dana and Sandy tackle a surprisingly controversial question: Should reliable attendance be rewarded, or is showing up on time simply part of the job? Sandy shares an attendance incentive she has used in dental practices for years involving ping-pong balls, cash rewards, and one simple qualification: reliability. But the conversation goes much deeper than bonuses. Because an attendance incentive won't fix a practice that hasn't clearly defined its expectations. Dana and Sandy discuss the importance of...

The Right Patients, the Right Marketing | Grace Rizza

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

Getting more dental leads isn't always the answer. The real goal is attracting the right patients and giving them a reason to choose your practice. In this episode of Dental Drill Bits, Dana Pardue and Sandy Pardue welcome Grace Rizza, founder and CEO of Identity Dental Marketing, for a conversation about what dental marketing looks like as AI, automation, Google Ads, Meta advertising, and patient expectations continue to change. Grace explains why effective marketing can't be one-size-fits-all. A startup practice looking for patient volume needs a very different strategy than a...

The Employee Costing Your Dental Practice Its Best People

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

Every dental practice has probably had one. They’re great at their job. Patients love them. They’ve been there forever. Maybe they even make the doctor’s life easier. But behind the scenes, they gossip, intimidate coworkers, ignore rules, create drama, or make new employees feel like they’ll never quite belong. In this episode of Dental Drill Bits, Dana Pardue and Sandy Pardue tackle a difficult question: What is that “indispensable” employee actually costing your practice? Dana and Sandy discuss why practice owners often tolerate bad behavior from high performers, how resentment...

Part 3 of Systems. Staff. Training. | Your Team Isn’t the Problem. Your Training Might Be.

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

You hired good people. You gave them a job description. Maybe you even told them to “go sit next to Jessica” for a few days. But did you actually train them? In the final episode of our Systems. Staff. Training. series, Dana and Sandy tackle the training gap inside dental practices and why expecting employees to “just know” how to do their jobs can be an expensive mistake. Today’s dental team is expected to do far more than answer phones and schedule appointments. They’re handling insurance conversations, money, patient objections, unscheduled treatment, technology, scheduling,...

AI, Accountability & the Opportunities Hiding in Your Dental Practice | Cory Pinegar of REACH, Part 2

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

Technology can help your dental practice do more—but it shouldn’t replace the human experience that keeps patients coming back. In Part 2 of our conversation with Cory Pinegar, CEO of REACH, Dana Pardue and Sandy Pardue continue the discussion about the future of the dental team, beginning with the balance between automation, AI, and personal connection. Cory explains why technology should amplify good people rather than eliminate them and why some responsibilities are perfect candidates for automation while others still require empathy, communication, and human judgment. The conversation...

Rethinking Dental Staffing: People, Technology & Creating Capacity | Cory Pinegar of REACH, Part 1

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

What if your staffing problem isn’t simply about finding more people? In Part 1 of this special two-part Dental Drill Bits conversation, Dana Pardue and Sandy Pardue sit down with Cory Pinegar, CEO of REACH, to explore how dental practices can rethink staffing, training, technology, and the way work gets done. Cory shares the story behind REACH and explains why practices often have more than a hiring problem. Missed calls, inconsistent follow-up, turnover, limited training, and too many competing responsibilities at the front desk can all create bottlenecks that affect growth and...

Part 2B of Systems. Staff. Training. | What Is Your Staffing Problem Really Costing You?

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

What does your staff really cost your dental practice? The answer goes far beyond payroll. In the Staff portion of our Systems. Staff. Training. series, Sandy and Dana look at staffing as a business investment. Being understaffed can mean missed calls, unfinished follow-up, rushed patient interactions, neglected recall, and opportunities that quietly slip through the cracks. Sometimes what looks like a performance problem is really a capacity problem. This conversation digs into the real ROI of having enough of the right people, why dental experience shouldn't automatically determine who gets...

Part 2A of Systems. Staff. Training. | What Is Your Staffing Problem Really Costing You?

Dental Drill Bits with Sandy Pardue and Dana Pardue

More Episodes

Episode Summary:
In this episode, Dana Pardue Salisbury and Sandy Pardue unpack one of the most complex topics in dentistry: hiring an associate dentist. From knowing when your practice is truly ready to bring on another provider, to understanding why most associateships only last one to two years, this conversation blends humor, real-world stories, and practical numbers.

You’ll hear how culture, contracts, and communication can make or break the associate relationship—and how to avoid costly mistakes that so many practice owners make when expanding their teams.

💡 Key Takeaways

Don’t hire on a hunch. Use data—2,000+ active patients, 30+ new patients monthly—as your benchmark.
Always use a customized legal contract; handshake agreements and borrowed templates lead to disaster.
Culture and ethics matter as much as production.
Get clear on who supervises the associate: owner vs. manager roles.
Most associates leave within two years—alignment and transparency change that outcome.

🔊 Episode Sponsors:

Identity Dental Marketing
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👉 www.identitydental.com

Plan Forward
The #1 membership plan platform for dental practices—simple, secure, and patient-friendly.
👉 www.planforward.io

Mango Voice
VoIP that works for dental practices. Elevate your phone systems and never miss a patient call again.
👉 www.mangovoice.com

✨ Upcoming Event – Don’t Miss Out!
Want to take your front desk skills to the next level? Join Sandy Pardue and the Classic Practice team for Front Desk Pro in Las Vegas on Friday, November 7, 2025. This one-day seminar is packed with proven systems to reduce cancellations, boost treatment acceptance, and transform your patient experience.

💡 Key Takeaways

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