The Backstage Pass Podcast: Dentistry’s Playbook for Scaling Private Practices & DSOs

What if your practice stopped chasing discounts and started leading with heart? We sit down with Dr. Anissa, a dentist-turned-builder who shows how human storytelling and smart systems can fill chairs, lift case acceptance, and bring back the joy of serving patients. Her path from clinical care to coaching to founding Digital Floss reveals a simple truth: people don’t choose procedures, they choos...

What if the missing piece in your career isn’t another script or a new marketing tactic, but the courage to let your highest self lead? We sit down with Dr. Jiveh “Dr. J” Farokh—cosmetic dentist, photographer, and storyteller—to unpack how presence, intention, and craft can transform a practice from transactional to deeply trusted. We start with identity: who are you beyond your role? Dr. J shares...

Ready to trade guesswork for growth that actually serves patients? We bring you a candid, fast-moving conversation with strategist and fractional CRO Ian Miller, whose career spans a massive apparel business, a Guinness World Record charity marathon, stand-up comedy, and now a portfolio of dental innovations that blend rigor with heart. Ian shares how he helps founder-led dental companies move fro...

What if your front desk never had to choose between greeting a patient and dialing five overdue reactivations? We sit down with Danielle Kramer, the force behind Schedule Squad, to unpack how trained, US-based coordinators keep chairs full while your in-office team focuses on care. Danielle’s story runs through nearly every seat in a practice—front office, assisting, management, and coaching—which...

What if your lab made you look like a hero every single time? That’s the promise we put under the microscope with guest Rick Cromar, who shares how a dentist-first lab model can protect chair time, elevate patient satisfaction, and simplify your team’s day. Rick’s journey started in airway care—learning pneumopedics, traveling with leaders, and seeing how dentists change lives beyond the tooth. Th...

What if fewer clinical days could unlock steadier production, happier teams, and patients who actually respect your time? We sit down with dental entrepreneur Kirk Teachout to unpack how a creative brain from the music world helped his dentist wife overhaul their practice during the COVID shutdown—cutting to three and a half clinical days while lifting collections by 57%. The big surprise isn’t a...

Growth sounds exciting until the phones melt, schedules slip, and your best people burn out. We sat down with Erica Benavente—the fractional COO many top dentists quietly rely on—to unpack how a practice moves from a handful of ops to a thriving super practice without losing its heart. Erica’s journey from chairside assistant to operational leader gives her a rare, ground-level lens. She breaks do...

Want out of the grind without hanging up the handpiece? We sit down with dental entrepreneur and master connector Elijah Desmond to rethink what “exit” really means for practice owners. Instead of a cold stop, Elijah maps a path where you sell high, keep a strong paycheck, and drop the admin headaches that drain your time and energy. We get practical with numbers. Elijah breaks down EBITDA in plai...

The day your drill dies mid-prep is the day everything else falls apart—production, schedule, and patient trust. That’s why we sat down with Dickie Ball, founder of Summit Hand Piece Express, to unpack exactly how to keep high-speed and electric handpieces running longer with less drama. This isn’t sales fluff; it’s the hard-won, owner-level playbook from a family business that answers its own pho...

The most profitable room in your practice might be the hygiene operatory—if you treat it like a clinical and business engine. Dr. Joy joins us to share how starting at the front desk shaped her uncommon view of dentistry: production only matters when it becomes collection, and great clinical work deserves systems that support it. From early mentors who demanded top-tier infection control to the re...

Think your practice is too small to attract hackers? The dark web says otherwise. We sit with Anthony, a 25-year IT veteran turned dental cybersecurity leader, to map out how attackers actually operate and what it takes to keep charts, imaging, and schedules safe without blowing up your day. We start with the uncomfortable truth: many dental networks were built by generalists who never applied ent...

Thinking about selling your dental practice but unsure where to start? We sit down with Austin, a former DSO buy-side operator turned dentist advocate, to unpack a clear, values-first roadmap that protects your legacy while maximizing your exit. He pulls back the curtain on timelines, deal structures, and the “speed dating” phase with DSOs, explaining how to avoid red flags and why cultural fit of...

What if growth didn’t mean losing your soul? We sit down with Colin Barbaro, a second-generation dentist who, alongside his brother, built a ten-practice group on one simple idea: we don’t treat teeth, we treat people. From late-night cleanups in a newly acquired office to building centralized systems that actually work, this is a candid look at how real scaling happens without turning patients or...

What if you could open one platform and instantly see the few levers that will unlock real growth across your group? That’s the promise Vincent “Vinny” Cardillo brings to the table: unify practice management, phones, HR, and financials into a practice performance platform that turns scattered reports into confident action. No fluff—just clean data, clear priorities, and measurable progress that ow...

If two to four percent of your collections are disappearing into card fees, you’re paying for dentistry’s most expensive habit. We sat down with Nelson Martin from Aligned Payments to unpack a smarter way to run money through your practice: integrated merchant services designed specifically for dental teams, not generic retail. The result is a leaner checkout, clearer books, and a real shot at cut...

Selling a practice shouldn’t feel like gambling with your life’s work. Trevor from Integrity Practice Sales joins us to pull back the curtain on how values, pre-diligence, and buyer education turn a stressful exit into a confident transition. We talk frankly about inflated valuations, unclear timelines, and why so many deals fall apart late—and how a kinder, more rigorous approach protects your pr...

The smoothest dental practice transitions are built long before anyone signs—and they live or die on details most people skip. We sit down with attorney Cecilia Cohen to unpack the real risks in buying or selling a practice and the practical steps that protect your money, your peace of mind, and the goodwill that keeps patients coming back. Cecilia brings the rare blend of legal precision and owne...

What if the biggest threat to your wealth isn’t the market, but the way your advice is organized? We sit down with Tim McNeely—“the dental wealth guy,” married to a practicing dentist—to unpack why fragmented guidance from multiple advisors can quietly erode 20 to 30 percent of your net worth over time. Tim shares how coordinating tax, retirement plan design, investment strategy, and legal plannin...

What if your practice didn’t need more leads, but better handoffs? We sit with Andy Klepner, CEO of Brighter Idea Marketing, to unpack why the real growth lever in dentistry is a tight operating system—aligned teams, clear communication, and smart automations that make patient journeys feel human and effortless. Andy shares a powerful orthodontic transition story where revenue climbed not through...

Busy doesn’t always mean productive. We bring on Gabriel Hofmann—founder of the Dental Efficiency Guy and VP for DSOs and Groups at Dental Robot—to explore how practices stuck in constant motion can reclaim time, reduce chaos, and convert effort into real margin and a better patient experience. Gabe shares what he’s learned across 20+ years in operations: the front desk is juggling too much, chair...

What happens when an engineer leaves Intel, dives into a struggling dental practice, and discovers a better way to grow? Cory Roletto built WEO Media on a simple pledge—We Over Me—and it shows up in the way he sets expectations, measures success, and partners with teams to turn marketing into measurable outcomes. No hype, no magic bullets, just data-driven work that moves from clicks to calls, to...

The conversation opens with spark and honesty: how do you build a full-arch program that actually works for patients, teams, and the bottom line? We invited CEO and founder Greg Essenmacher to share the story behind GNA Consult, and he brought a rare mix of operational precision and human depth. From his manufacturing roots with Neodent to training every touchpoint of the patient journey, Greg exp...

Money talk makes many dentists flinch, but what if collecting was calm, kind, and baked into every visit? We sit with Monica Cappelli, founder of Revv Systems, to unpack how a practice can stop sending bills, get paid before anesthesia, and still deliver a five‑star patient experience. Her journey begins with a front‑desk meltdown, a snowy drive home from Mexico, and years of trial and error that...

A childhood escape over dark mountains taught Dar one lesson he couldn’t forget: sleep can be a matter of survival. Years later, a crash caused by undiagnosed sleep apnea turned that lesson into a mission. We sit down with Dr. Dar Radfar to unpack how he transformed personal adversity into a repeatable playbook that helps dentists deliver better sleep, stronger health outcomes, and real lifestyle...

What if your practice stopped chasing clicks and started owning demand? We sit down with dental marketing veteran Shannon Mackie to unpack how she evolved from hand-coding clean, fashion-inspired websites in 1999 to building omnipresence engines that turn attention into qualified new patients. Shannon’s story starts with small-business grit and moves into a decades-long focus on dentistry, where s...