Episode 780: Know When to Let Go: Hiring Your Next Office Manager

Experienced office managers are not just looking for a paycheck. Many are leaving positions because
they felt disrespected, unsupported, or set up to fail at other offices.
So your posting should speak directly to them. Things like, this role has clear authority and
expectations. This doctor values leadership and communication. This practice is organized,
growth-focused, and patient-centered. When you do that, you naturally repel the wrong candidates
and attract the right ones.
Welcome to Austin, Texas, and welcome to the Phil Klein Dental Podcast. If you're enjoying these
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Today, we're going to be talking about a topic that most dental practice owners don't enjoy
thinking about. but almost all of them face at some point. How do you know when it's time to let go
of your office manager and start looking for a replacement? Because here's the reality. Most
doctors don't wake up one morning and say, today feels like a great day to fire my office manager.
That's not how this usually happens. Instead, it's a slow buildup. Little things that don't feel
big enough to act on at first. Small frustrations you brush off. Conversations you tell yourself
you'll have later. And then one day you realize the practice just feels heavier than it should.
I can't tell you how many times I've had this exact conversation with a dentist. It usually starts
with something like, we just hired an office manager and it's not working out. Or we know we need a
new office manager, but we're honestly dreading the process. So let me ask you, are you dealing
with concerns right now? Or do you have that feeling in the back of your mind that something just
isn't right? If so, this episode is for you. Because today we're going to be talking about two
critical things. First, the red flags that tell you it may be time to make a change. And second,
how to make sure you don't repeat the same mistake when you hire the next office manager. Before we
get into the details of hiring, which includes screening candidates, online and in-person
interviews, which we'll be covering today, we have to talk honestly about when staying the course
with your existing office manager is doing more harm than good. And I want to be clear,
this is not about personality differences. It's not about expecting perfection. And it's not about
making a snap decision. This is more about patterns, consistent behaviors that tell you the role is
no longer being filled at the level your practice needs. One of the earliest red flags is chronic
defensiveness. When you bring up a concern, whether it's scheduling, collections, team performance,
or patient complaints, And the response is always an excuse, blame,
or immediate pushback. That's a problem. Strong office managers don't take feedback personally.
They see it as information. If every conversation turns into, that's how we've always done it.
Or the team doesn't listen. Or something like, the patients are just difficult.
If you're hearing that, you're not dealing with leadership. You're dealing with resistance. Another
major red flag is lack of ownership. When something goes wrong, does your office manager step in
and say, that one's on me. Here's how we'll fix it. Or do they step back and point fingers?
That difference matters more than almost anything else. Next is poor communication, especially
upward. Your office manager should be your eyes and ears. If you're constantly surprised by
problems you should have known about earlier, things like staff conflict, billing issues,
unhappy patients, that's not bad luck. That's a breakdown in communication. Another big red flag,
a big one, is declining team morale. If you're seeing increased tension,
gossip, disengagement, or turnover for that matter, and especially if team members are coming
directly to you instead of going to the office manager, that's a red flag you should not ignore.
Then there's control without leadership. Some office managers keep things organized through fear,
micromanagement, or withholding information. On paper, things look fine, but underneath,
the team is disengaged. Compliance is not the same thing as leadership. And here's another red
flag, inconsistent systems. If no one could clearly explain how scheduling works,
or billing, or patient flow, that chaos eventually lands on you. And let's be honest,
if you're doing their job for them, that's a sign, that's a red flag. So if you're constantly
fixing schedules, chasing insurance, mediating staff issues, or managing daily operations yourself,
ask why. Finally, this is often the hardest one. You don't trust them anymore.
You're double-checking numbers. You feel uneasy. There's tension instead of partnership.
Trust is foundational. Without it, the relationship can't function. Now here's the key point.
Recognizing red flags doesn't automatically mean termination. It means honest conversations.
clear expectations, and documented opportunities to improve. But if those conversations have
happened, if expectations were clear and the patterns haven't changed, making a change isn't
failure, it's leadership. And that brings us to the second critical part, hiring a new office
manager. And here's a very important point to keep in mind. Your office manager is often the face
of your practice. In many offices, they're the first voice a patient hears when they call. They set
the tone for the team. They're the person who takes what you want for the practice and turns it
into what actually happens every single day. And when the wrong person is in that role, everyone
feels it. Patients feel it. The team feels it. And the doctor absolutely feels it.
What I see all the time, and you might recognize this, is practices rushing the process, hiring on
gut instinct, or being impressed by a resume that looks great on paper, but doesn't always
translate into strong leadership once that person is actually in the role. So today we're going to
slow this down and talk through how to do this the right way. We'll be addressing how to attract
experienced, high-quality office manager candidates, how to narrow down applicants before you even
interview them, how to conduct an effective online interview, and then how to run a meaningful in
-person interview. What questions to ask at each stage. and when and how to discuss salary and
benefits. So let's begin with attracting the right office manager candidates. If you want
experienced, high-quality office managers, you have to understand something important. Great
candidates are interviewing you, too. Now, most dental job ads are written like this.
Busy dental office looking for a motivated team player. Competitive pay. And then the doctor
wonders why they're buried in resumes from people who clearly aren't qualified. Your job posting
should not be a flyer. It should be a filter. If you're looking for an experienced office manager,
someone who can lead, manage systems, and be the face of the practice, your posting needs to
reflect that. That means clearly stating the level of experience required, the software systems
your practice uses, the leadership responsibilities involved, and the culture of your practice.
Experienced office managers are not just looking for a paycheck. Many are leaving positions because
they felt disrespected, unsupported, or set up to fail at other offices.
So your posting should speak directly to them. Things like, this role has clear authority and
expectations. This doctor values leadership and communication. This practice is organized,
growth-focused, and patient-centered. When you do that, you naturally repel the wrong candidates
and attract the right candidates. Now let's talk about narrowing the field before you ever get on a
call, because here's the truth. If you're interviewing everyone who applies, you're wasting a ton
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You're not just looking at job titles, you're looking at patterns. Patterns include things like
longevity, growth and responsibility, and experience managing people,
not just tasks. If someone has worked at five practices in five years, that doesn't automatically
disqualify them, but it does require explanation. Next, I strongly recommend a short...
pre-interview questionnaire, either by email or through your hiring platform. This is one of the
most effective filters you can use. Ask questions like, what systems have you been responsible for
managing in a dental practice? How many team members have you directly supervised? What KPIs do you
believe define a successful dental office? Why are you leaving your current role? What are you
looking for in your next position? You'd be surprised. You'll learn a lot from how they answer, not
just what they say, but how they answer. Strong candidates are clear, thoughtful,
and specific. Weak candidates tend to be vague or overly focused on what they don't like.
Only after reviewing the results of the pre-interview questionnaire should you move into the
interview phase. Now let's get into the next step, which is the online interview. The online
interview is your first live filter, and it's a critical one. And it's not about selling the job
yet. It's about confirming the candidate's communication skills, professional presence,
leadership mindset, and alignment with your expectations. And typically, the online interview takes
about 30 to 45 minutes. Now, you want to start that interview by briefly introducing the practice
and the role, and then move quickly into questions. Now, the best way to do this is to organize
your questions into groups where each group has a specific objective. For instance,
to learn about the applicant's leadership skills and experience, you can ask these three questions.
Susan, walk me through your role at your current or most recent practice. What decisions were you
empowered to make independently? How did you hold team members accountable?
Now, to get into their culture and communication skills, you can ask something like this. Susan,
how do you handle conflict between staff members? Tell me about a time you had to communicate
concerns or recommendations to a dentist in a respectful and productive way. How do you communicate
changes that people may not want to hear? And then to learn more about systems and operations,
you can ask this. Susan, how do you manage scheduling to maximize production? What is your role in
billing and accounts receivable? What reports do you review regularly? And then there's this,
patient experience. And here's a couple of questions related to patient experience. What does it
mean to you, Susan, to be the face of a dental practice? How do you train staff to handle patients
that are upset? On this online interview, you're not expecting perfect answers, but what matters
most is ownership, clarity, and confidence. And then to wrap up your online interview,
you can ask something like this. Susan, based on what we've discussed, does this role sound like
what you're looking for professionally? If the answer isn't a clear yes, don't move forward.
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.dental. Now let's move into the in-person interview, which is the next step. The in-person
interview is where most hiring decisions should be made. This is not just another Q&A session.
This is about presence, emotional intelligence, and fit. This interview should include a deeper
conversation, a tour of the practice, and ideally some interaction with your team members.
You want to ask questions that reveal how they think, not just what they've done. Questions like,
What would your first 90 days in this role look like? What systems would you evaluate first?
How do you define success for yourself as an office manager? And then you want to talk about
accountability. You can ask these kinds of questions. Tell me about a time you had to discipline or
terminate a team member. How do you handle underperformance? And then you want to bring up the
doctor-manager relationship. What do you need from a doctor to be successful? How do you prefer
feedback? And when you give them a tour of the office and introduce them to some of your staff
members, pay close attention to how they interact with your staff. Do they listen?
Do they make eye contact? Do they naturally take on a leadership presence?
And your team's feedback matters here. So once you've reached the point where you know this
candidate is really good and you really are interested in having this candidate as part of your
team, The salary and benefits conversation should feel very different from earlier interviews.
This is no longer a screening discussion. It's an alignment conversation. The biggest mistake
practices make here is jumping straight to a number without context. At the in-person interview,
I recommend setting this up clearly, something as simple as, at this point, Susan, we're really
excited about you, and we'd like to talk through compensation and expectations to make sure we're
aligned. This approach immediately changes the tone. It tells the candidate this is serious and
respectful. Start by outlining the role again. Not the job title, but the responsibility.
Talk through leadership expectations, decision-making authority, and what success in this role
actually looks like. Compensation only makes sense when it's tied to responsibility.
Then share your compensation structure. Is it a salary? Is it hourly? What's the bonus potential?
Are there incentives tied to performance? Be transparent about all of this. Experienced office
managers appreciate clarity far more than hype. After that, take a pause and ask the candidate
where they're coming from. A question like, are you comfortable with our compensation package? This
question opens the door. without creating pressure. Listen carefully, not just to the salary number
that they were hoping for, but how they justify it. That tells you a lot about how they view their
value. Now, benefits are a big part of this. Health insurance, paid time off,
continued education, and flexibility often carry just as much weight as salary.
Make sure you're not assuming what matters. Ask the candidate directly what matters most to them.
And finally, talk about growth. Ask where they want to be in two to three years and explain how
compensation can evolve as the practice grows. This conversation shouldn't feel uncomfortable.
When done right, it builds trust, sets clear expectations, and lays the foundation for a long-term
relationship before the offer is ever made. Clarity at this stage prevents turnover later.
So as we wrap up this episode, hiring an office manager is not about filling a position.
It's about hiring a leader. a culture carrier, someone who represents your practice when you're not
in the room. If you slow down the process, ask better questions, and focus on leadership,
not just experience, you dramatically increase your chances of making the right hire. Because when
you get this role right, everything in the practice gets easier. Thank you for listening, everyone.
And if you want to support the show, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. It really does help, and
we do appreciate it. I'm Dr. Phil Klein. See you next time.