a premium for? Interestingly, the answers to these questions cross over to provide ideas for building a successful practice, long before you think about selling it. In this two-part article, I will be dis-cussing some practice value parameters and calculation methods that will assist you in buying a practice, or getting the most for yours when you’re ready to sell it. I will begin discussing certain ele-ments that can influence the value of a chiropractic practice. I hope you will dis-cover that in developing a practice that will sell at a premium, you will also be developing a practice that is fruitful for you while you are its owner. comfort of where we have been, and how we did things before the economic downturn. Perhaps it’s time to reorganize and see your practice and lifestyle in a somewhat altered perspective. The result might not only be that your practice turns around, but also that it pays divi-dends, later on, when the time comes for you to sell it. staff on their toes, and teach and inspire them to act like the first-class ambassa-dors they can be. LET’S BEGIN WITH YOU, THE DC Quite enough has been written about the failure of governments, and so forth, to account for the stumbling economy in which we find ourselves. I have no inten-tion to fan the flames. However, you may be feeling the pinch and, so, the question is, what should you do? WHERE DOES STAFF FIT IN? When we valuate a practice, we put a premium on first-class, continually and well-trained staff who are accustomed to regular weekly staff meetings. If you are buying a practice, and know the staff are good communicators, are personable, and have extraordinary service skills that they deliver to you and to your patients/ clients – and are regular chiropractic pa-tients, themselves – you would be willing to pay more for that practice. Yes or yes? Many chiropractors are too short-sighted when it comes to staff training, even failing to hold weekly staff meetings Stop for a moment and think: what would it take for you personally to pay a premium f o r a p r a c t i c e , i f y o u w e r e i n t h e b u y e r ’s s h o e s ? Frankly, most of us know what to do. However, fear and disappointment in weak economic times, and the uncertain early years of practice often “mess with our heads” and contribute to zapping our enthusiasm. For many of us, getting out of “a funk” may require a psychological taser – some-thing to jolt us out of a blue mindset. If you have found any book, speaker, audio recording, author, prayer or meditation that has helped you in the past, this is a time to reach out once again. Alterna-tively, collaboration with another DC, or kindred soul, or working with a profes-sional practice coach, may be time and money investments that make the differ-ence between struggling and revitalizing your practice. As well, treating yourself to continuing education opportunities may not only refresh your knowledge and ensure that you remain an astute and effective chiropractor, but also may open your eyes to new ideas to enhance your practice and the care you provide. It’s really a matter of drawing on our courage to move away from the relative 38 • CANADIAN CHIROPRACTOR | APRIL 2011 as a system of quality control. Further-more, the number 1 gripe among chi-ropractic assistants is that they have not been well trained. In fact, it’s the biggest reason they quit or get fired. Thomas Peters ( In Search of Excellence ) had it right when he said: “Staff is the chief cause of our success.” I can’t make it much clearer than that. Does Peters’s description apply to your staff? If not, you may be due for a little housecleaning, and this means it may be time, to make some tough decisions. First, try to salvage the staff you have by having a little heart-to-heart and send-ing them out for training. Follow this up by developing exacting and consistent of-fice procedures; perhaps you require a new office discipline, with tighter procedures and quality control methods. Put a manual together that explains exactly what you, and they, actually do, from the first phone call to discharge. (Remember to set a good example by following your own directives and the procedures you develop.) Finally, in-house, targeted seminar training sessions are essential to keep the WHY SYSTEMS CAN SAVE YOUR PRACTICE Most chiropractors who have been around more than a year or two have some practice management notes stuffed in a bottom drawer, somewhere, begging to be put into action in some systematic manner. The average chiropractic office is usually not very well organized, because it usually lacks “systems” that help the office to run like a well-oiled machine. Systems can help with your staff train-ing and enhance their efficiency as well as furnish channels through which to carry out quality assurance and intro-duce improvement measures. Systems can provide ongoing optimal provision for business equipment, clinical tools and the most efficient software. Systems free up your creativity, as well as that of your staff, because your proce-dures are then on autopilot and you don’t get fazed by the many little mundane (an-noying) decisions that seem to be part of a disorganized office routine. This allows you to pay more attention to your pa-tients, which, after all, is the reason you are there in the first place. When you are taking good care of your patients, the rest – inspiration, fulfilment, success, lifestyle, and optimal selling value for your practice – will just happen. It’s a win all around. A lack of systems in your practice saps your energy and has the effect of reduc-ing the overall value of that practice. You could start by picking up a cou-ple of copies of The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber. Get a copy for everyone in the office. This could be the spark that lights a fire under your practice. Make sure you get a copy for yourself as well. Once everyone reads it, make it the basis of your office meeting agenda. Use this as a watershed time for the changes you need to bring you and your crew to a higher level of efficiency. And make sure everyone in the office is on a regular chiropractic adjustment schedule. How can they be expected to sell it if they don’t own it? • In Part 2, Dr. Whitney will discuss the best way to drastically reduce overhead, the importance of marketing, bringing other DCs into your practice, and methods for valuating your practice. www.canadianchiropractor.ca
Chiropractic + Naturopathic Doctor April 2011: Page 38
