On July 18th to the 20th at the Dallas Omni Hotel, the DSO law firm Dykema hosted its 5th annual Definitive Conference for Dental Service Organizations.
The event set an attendance record with over 500 attendees and host representatives from 125 organizations supporting DSO’s.
- The primary agenda focused on a survey of the current DSO marketplace, as well as investment opportunities
- Leadership and strategies for navigating the evolving business of dentistry
- Private equity investments in the DSO space
- Lending and finance for DSOs
- Best practices to effectively grow a dental practices
- Oracles of the Middle East
Bill Walton, a college basketball and NBA legend was invited as the keynote speaker. Rated as one of the NBA’s all-time greatest players, Bill shared inspiring lessons learned throughout his career, his focus on teamwork, and his ability to overcome adversity.
The sessions held on Wednesday, July 18th included a networking event, attendee registration and a welcome reception for all attendees.
Sessions held on Thursday, July 19th included:
- Positioning Your Organization in the Evolving DSO Landscape with Brian Colao, Director, Dykema DSO Industry Group
- Observations on Leadership and Strategies for Navigating the Evolving Business of Dentistry with Stanley Bergman, CEO of Henry Schein, interviewed by Brian Colao
- Private Equity Investments in the DSO Space — A Buyer’s and Seller’s Perspective with Paul Murphy of Sentinel Capital, Dr. Chris Villanueva of MB2, Pay Haynes of The Thurston Group, Ruth Whitehurst of Austin Oral Surgery, and was moderated by Eric White, a Dykema Member
- A message and lunch sponsored by Dental Care Alliance
- Breakout sessions that included Crossfire: Evaluating Interest from Private Equity with Preston Brice of MBF Healthcare Partners, Kasey Van Daley of Dental Transition Group, moderated by Craig Woods, a Dykema Member, Group Practice and DSO Accounting Issues (including the Effect of Tax Reform on DSOs) with Michael White or Michael White and Associates, Brian Tortolano of Rosen & Associates, LLP, Steven Mizrach of Dorfman Mizrach & Thaler, LLP, moderated by Zachary Hoard, a Dykema Member, Group Practice and DSO Brand Protection Strategies by Victor Johnson, a Dykema Member, and Lending for Finance and DSOs with Gareth Petsch of Citibank Healthcare Division
- A panel discussion entitled Best Practices to Effectively Grow Your Practice with Heidi Arndt of Enhanced Practices, Dr. Mike Panahi, Kevin Webb of KL&D Consulting, LLC and moderated by Zachary Hoard, a Dykema Member
- Game Changing Alternative DSO Models by Dr. Jeffrey Sulitzer of SmileDirectClub, Trevor Maurer of Smile Source, David Lopez of Dental White and moderated by Craig Woods, a Dykema Member.
- Keynote Address by Bill Walton
Sessions held on Friday, July 20th included:
- Great Entrepreneurs and Pioneers of the DSO Space with Dr. Don Miloni, Founder of Great Dental Entrepreneur and Founder of ReNew 1-Day Dentures, as interviewed by Brian Colao.
- Oracles of the Middle East Panel Discussion with Dr. Mark Costes of the Dental Success Institute, Dr. Ken Tralongo or Dental Whale, Jacob Puhl of DEO and moderated by Brian Colao
- Effective Marketing Strategies for Group Practices and DSOs with Holly Nielsen or ReNew 1-Day Dentures and Grace Rizza of Identity Dental. It was moderated by Craig Woods, a Dykema Member.
- Effective Strategies for Associate Compensation, a panel discussion with Scott Singer of Dimensional Data, Dr. Rodney Alles of Deca Dental, Margaret McGuckin of i3 Ignite and moderated by Eric White, a Dykema Member.
- Breakout sessions that included Trends and Solutions in Dental Staffing with Joe Buckley or DVP Delivery, Staffcare, an AMN Healthcare Company, Patient Financing Options for DSOs with Erin Fonte, Member, Dykema, and Kyle Owens, Senior Counsel at Dykema, Fuel Patient Loyalty & Revenue with an In-House Discount Plan with Lou Mauras, Assistant Vice President of Network Sales and Lauren Kelly, Assistant Director of Sales, and Work Differently with Dental Laboratories to Improve Clinical Outcomes and Unlock Additional Profit with David Lesh of LabTek Solutions.
