The Naked Dentist: A Billy Beane in your office

Baseball's World Series kicks off next week and will be the final event of another great season. Baseball wouldn't be baseball without the statistics that go along with it. There are stats for teams, players, and even their mascots. Stats help tell the fans about what has been happening during the game, during the season, and during a career. Stats also play a huge role in how a team is put together. Statistical analysis can make or break a game, season, or career

Baseball and Dr. Missouri

Curtis Marshall is the vice president of marketing at Dental Intel.

I am the Naked Dentist. No, I am not a dentist, I am not always naked, nor do my clients practice dentistry naked. I have a powerful analytic tool that strips a dental office of all its clothes, makeup, and accessories to reveal the true problem areas. At that point we can maintain dental performance or systematically improve performance to reach forecasted goals. Play ball!

One of my clients, Dr. Missouri, is big into baseball. He has season tickets to the Kansas City Royals and never misses a game. He played baseball all through high school and some of college, he watches every baseball movie, and in his downtime he likes to watch more baseball. The guy is a baseball fan.

Dr. Missouri came to me for the dashboard that I was offering to show the statistics of his offices in real-time. His practice is 5 years old, but Dr. Missouri hasn't been seeing the take-home pay that he was expecting.

I set Dr. Missouri up with his dashboard and linked it straight into his practice management software. We were going over set up and I was showing him how it worked when I heard a big sigh come from the other end of the phone.

"What's up Dr. Missouri? You seem frustrated."

"I have a confession," Dr. Missouri said. "This dashboard is supercool, and I love being able to see all of my numbers." He paused and let out another sigh.

"I confess I don't know what some of these numbers are, and I don't know how any of the numbers have anything to do with helping my practice. I didn't go to school for this. I went to school to work on teeth." He let out another sigh and said, "I need Billy Beane!"

Billy Beane in your office

Did you ever see the movie "Moneyball"? The movie was made from a book written in 2003 by Michael Lewis that is based on how the Oakland Athletics and its general manager Billy Beane used statistical analysis to find undervalued players. Beane was a professional baseball player turned scout, general manager, and now executive vice president for the A's. He is known for using statistical analysis to evaluate players. Basically, the A's front office can take all of the statistics on players and the game and come up with a plan to work with.

When Dr. Missouri told me he needed Billy Beane, he was simply saying that he needed someone who could look at all of these numbers on the dashboard and help come up with a strategy for his office. Some of the stats that Dr. Missouri was looking at he knew, but some were unfamiliar. He was feeling the stress of not knowing how to use his new software.

"No problem," I told him. "I have the perfect Billy Beane for your office."

Stats and metrics can be overwhelming and sometimes confusing. Just like Dr. Missouri, you may know what some of your numbers mean, but how do stats and metrics help you improve? That is where our trained analytics team comes into place.

Let's hit it out of the park

I introduced Dr. Missouri to one of my analysts. This analyst was the best analyst for Goldman Sachs and now works with dentists all over the U.S. His job is to look at the stats and metrics, and help practice owners come up with a game plan to help them achieve their goals. He is always able to meet with Dr. Missouri and other clients whenever they need help.

After several months with the dashboard and the analyst on his team, I called Dr. Missouri to see how it was going. Dr. Missouri told me that the analyst helped him set up a game plan, and he was always willing to help educate him and his staff about the stats and metrics in his office. Dr. Missouri is thrilled to have his own Billy Beane on his team.

"Our office has hit it out of the park now with the analyst on our team."

Stats and metrics happen even if you aren't tracking them.

Analytics is the future of baseball and dentistry. Lead your practice by numbers, and hire an analyst on your team to help your staff have a good game or season -- and a phenomenal career.

Let's get naked together.

Click here for a video from the analyst featured in this column.

Curtis Marshall serves as the vice president of marketing at Dental Intel. If you would like your practice to be in the next Naked Dentist column and have your practice undressed, contact him at [email protected] or 801-380-7070.

The comments and observations expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the opinions of DrBicuspid.com, nor should they be construed as an endorsement or admonishment of any particular idea, vendor, or organization.