Now, more than ever, is a critical time for dental practice owners and managers to plan how their business will look as the country exits the lockdown period; from operational issues through to the potential financial impact of reduced capacity and increased costs, taking a holistic view of the business and identifying the key areas to adapt or address will be key to success.
As UK dental care begins its recovery from the Covid-19 crisis, the questions for practice owners to ask themselves are:
- What am I doing to protect my practice's profitability now, whilst ensuring the safety of my staff and patients?
- How will I create value in the longer-term?
The options available during this period will be dependent upon the immediate and longer-term aspirations of the owner.
For short term operational management, owners may be looking to maintain or even improve current levels of profit and cash flow by monitoring operational efficiencies, whilst also managing health risk for staff and clients.
Maximising income in the context of current capacity constraints could prove challenging, so it is important to identify the key profit drivers of your practice and ways in which they can be protected and developed. Providing a welcoming and safe environment for patients, whilst delivering treatments in an efficient and effective way will be key to this.
If owners are taking a longer-term view and are considering developing their practice for succession or eventual exit, it is advisable to make a plan for how they want the practice to look in the future and what needs to be done to get there. For example, owners should consider whether the business is currently reliant on their knowledge or relationships with patients, clinicians and suppliers, or whether it could survive if they were to step away. Having the right advisers with experience of your industry who can identify other considerations and help you to achieve your ambitions when it comes to planning for succession and exit can prove to be invaluable.
The long-established Hazlewoods Dental team can help you. With 25 years’ experience, its dedicated team has the knowledge to advise you on the best course of action in these uncertain times. To find out more about the team and the services it provides, visit www.hazlewoods.co.uk/dental-accountants