A Great Place to Work

  Posted by: Dental Design      1st March 2020

In order to obtain the highest standards of clinical care, a dental provider must ensure that its professional teams have all the necessary skills and abilities. It is just as important to motivate individuals to do the very best job they can every day. It is the combination of these two elements that ensures excellent patient care.

At Colosseum Dental, both aspects are incorporated within the group’s core ethos. Not only are all members of the dental team given access to various training and educational opportunities, but the provider is also striving to create ideal working environments. This involves updating the physical premises and facilities, as well as offering other benefits that staff value.

Nikki Bebbington, Senior HRBP at Colosseum Dental, shares the results of a recent survey conducted among professionals within the group.

“Becoming an Employer of Choice is important to the group,” she says. “We care about quality patient care so we want to work with those professionals who share our passion. As such, we understand that we need to create an environment in which they want to remain for the long-term.

“One of the tools we use to gain insight into what our practice teams think is the Great Place to Work framework. This involves a comprehensive survey, asking staff about all aspects of working within the group.

“The last full survey was conducted last year, but the business has had a complete overhaul since then. We are essentially now a brand new dental provider. We therefore decided to see where we stood with our practice teams so far, demonstrating our current ethos for ensuring that the results we strive for translate on a practical level. We also wished to ensure that our on-going priorities aligned with those of our clinicians and practice staff. As such, we recently sent out a short re-survey to all.

“We were delighted that the responses confirmed the dramatic improvements that have been made in the last few months. The level of participation was an indicator of enhanced engagement in itself, increasing from about 37% to 61%. The percentage of respondents that would recommend Colosseum Dental as a Great Place To Work also almost doubled. This has provided reassurance that we are moving in the right direction and we will continue to implement the necessary systems to encourage job satisfaction and opportunities for all our professionals.

“The next full survey will be sent out in December 2019. At this time, the Great Place to Work will conduct a similar survey on a much larger scale, which will provide a benchmark from which to compare ourselves. The insight we gain will further support our development as we strive to become the best employer we possibly can.”

Talking more about the approach Colosseum Dental has taken in order to become the business it is today, Nikki adds:

“We have an all-new leadership team, a new HR team and new supporting infrastructure. A direct result of the current leadership has brought with it a change in personality and approach to communication. Philip Buergin, Chief Executive Officer, has an open-door policy and people can contact him directly when they need to. We are also very focused on the human element and so aim to communicate personal achievements and announcements among our dentists and practice colleagues, as well as any business updates and news. We have seen the benefits of this with increased engagement among staff who seem to really care about practice performance and being actively involved in improvements for the benefit of patients. We have also listened to requests and made changes as per staff preferences, for example, on what day of the month wages go through.

“In addition, we have renewed our efforts in terms of training and education, having already rolled out dedicated programmes for practice managers and reception staff. Great feedback has been received for these and we are looking to develop the training further for next year.

“Finally, we have refurbished nearly all of our practices to ensure that our teams have the equipment and tools they need to deliver excellent clinical care to patients.” 

Looking ahead, Colosseum Dental plans to continue adapting in order to further ensure that it provides a great place to work for its associates and practice teams. In response to requests, it is looking to launch a new, more comfortable and better fitting uniform in 2020, which practice team members had an opportunity to see and provide feedback on at the recent Colosseum Dental Conference. The Evolve 2 training programme designed specifically for practice managers to develop their skills and confidence will roll-out next year. Training is also being provided to reception staff so that they too can improve the patient experience in the practice. A new reward and recognition scheme will offer pay increases to members of the clinical team who have gone above and beyond for their patients and their colleagues. What’s more, big plans are in motion for dental nurses, who can look forward to greater flexibility, remuneration, training and opportunities in the future.

Colosseum Dental understands that its people are at the heart of its ability to deliver clinical excellence. By striving to become a great place to work, it offers dentists, clinical teams and non-clinical teams the opportunity to be the very best they can be.

For more information about Colosseum Dental, please visit www.colosseumdental.co.uk

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