Next Level Executive

Whenever I’m asked how to transition from a clinician to a CEO, I reply with the simple answer, “Just give yourself the title and be done with it.” You and I both know that never works…even though it hasn’t stopped many of your colleagues from doing simply that.
The role of begins and ends with you, so you’ve got to learn to think differently. If you don’t think there’s much to “thinking differently,” then go ahead and skip this episode and the next two.
On the other hand, if you’re ready for an audio masterclass in the practical application of an incredibly important theory, then “push play.”
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3:42 Drawing parallels between Thompson Dental Company and Your Dentist Company
7:50 A leadership team of one
10:45 An Effective Executive can lead any business

14:45 Creating time and space to sit and think
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
1 Today's Clinicians are Tomorrow's Executives
15 Becoming an Effective Executive
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Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide at: www.GroupPractice.Coach
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | www.TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

I’m constantly asked the question, “How do I build a group dental practice that runs without me?” It’s easier said than done, but a major component of it is to ensure that your team executes on the strategies that you put before them.
While there are hundreds of mistakes you can make along the way, there are 4 I see people making most often – and repeatedly.
I can all but promise you that you’ll see yourself in at least one of these. If you’re ready to face the music, then “push play,”
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1:37 When excitement turns to frustration
7:10 An event or a process?
8:50 The relentless pursuit of more
11:00 Clarity, urgency and…fear?
13:15 12 months or 90 days?
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
15 Effective Executive: Professional Inflection Points and Key Decisions to Make (part 1)
17 Effective Executive: Personal Inflection Points and Key Decisions to Make (part 2)
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Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide at: www.GroupPractice.Coach
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | www.TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

Everyone I’ve worked with has the desire to transition from a Clinician to a CEO for one common reason: they’re burned out on clinical services and they want to focus on strategy. But what exactly is ”strategy?” If you can’t draw the distinction between vision, goals, strategy, tactics and execution, then chances are they all means the same thing in your organization – and they’re surely not.
Part of being an effective executive is creating clarity, especially when it translates into results. If your group dental practice is failing to deliver on the results you had intended, then time to “push play.”
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3:05 The problem at hand: strategy and tactics are not the same thing
5:50 Connecting Vision, Goals, Strategy, Tactics and Operational Execution
9:50 Some specific examples from my 15 years at Patterson
18:50 Your After Action Items to work on
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
9 Is Yours an “Execution Business”?
56 Preparing for Growth and Sizing Up Risk
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Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide at www.GroupPractice.Coach
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | www.TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

In December of 2025, Park Dental Partners, a doctor-owned and debt funded group of close to 100 practices in Minneapolis, went public. They’re not going to be the last. If you’re leading an emerging group practice, competing with publicly traded DSOs will dramatically change the landscape in every aspect: M&A, recruiting, technology, etc. It is inevitable that several more PE-backed DSOs will go public before the end of 2027. If you want to know why…“push play.”
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CHAPTERS:
The success of PARK
Why they did it and what it means
Four reasons why a handful of PE-backed DSOs must go public
I’ve lived on both sides of private versus public
Your marching orders
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
5 Effective Executive: Leading from the Front
56 Preparing for Growth & Sizing Up Risk
…
Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide HERE.
...
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

A few months ago, I dropped an episode on “The Era of the Zombie DSO” where I shared my view on the 50 to 70 PE-backed DSOs that couldn’t get a recap done. Their incompetence is your opportunity, but it’s up to you to get a return on that.
If you’re looking to become a better leader of your own practice or group, a lot of that will begin and end with the people you bring into the organization. Tune in to hear how you should prepare ahead of time.
Want to know how it’s going to play out? Time to “push play”
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CHAPTERS:
Jim Collins’s concept of “Return on Luck”
Who – Not How
How a DSO can quickly create more EBITDA
A haul of talent entering the market
Don’t forget about Associates
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
3 The Era of the Zombie DSOs
15 Effective Executive: Professional Inflection Points & Key Decisions to Make (part 1)
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Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide HERE.
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

In a world still focused on “10X’ing your business” and “Scale for Sale,” there’s only one problem with all of that: this growth strategy is completely wrong. The reason that it’s only creating chaos for so many of your colleagues is very simple. It’s backwards.
If you want to learn the right way to build a group practice…then “push play.”
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CHAPTERS:
My frustration with our industry
A group practice or a group OF practices?
What your new growth strategy should be
Example of greatness number one: Dr. James
Example of greatness number two: Dr. Todd
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
5 Effective Executive: Leading from the Front
56 Preparing for Growth & Sizing Up Risk
…
Want to talk about your own journey? Email me directly: [email protected]
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide HERE.
...
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

I created a component of my Next Level Executive program called “Entrepreneurial Leadership” for a reason: because I truly believe that you and I can create a successful business that is congruent with the lifestyle we want to lead. In short, I believe our business can be a complement to our life – not compete with it.
Business ownership is a full-contact sport – even in a healthcare services environment. And it has to be built to win. Wanna know what winning sounds like? I’ll let two of my friends tell you…time to “push play”
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CHAPTERS:
Two Entrepreneurs who happen to own clinical services businesses
Overcoming the fear of making investments in your business
Impact and Fulfillment is the ultimate outcome as a business owner
Leading a nimble business in an ever-changing environment
Abundance and optimism with your hands firmly on the steering wheel
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
36 Success vs Fulfillment
55 Ceilings of Complexity and Inflection Points
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Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Book a Call to Discuss the Executive Program
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide HERE.
...
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

Everyone in this audience is a successful clinician and business owner, but each of us has experienced a point of burnout from owning a dental practice.
So, if you didn’t already own your business, would you buy it? And if you had it to do all over again, would you become a dentist? Think very hard about your answer…
Then “push play”
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CHAPTERS:
Moore’s Law and the most successful “pivot” in Corporate America history
Is it time for you to pivot, too?
My MBA case study on your industry
My job performance “needs improvement”
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
2 Frames of Reference and the Merits of the Model
21 Taking stock of where you are and what you want
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Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Book a Call to Discuss the Executive Program
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide HERE.
...
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.

If you’re going to build a group dental practice that isn’t dependent upon you or your clinical skills, then it had better be one that that executes at a high level. If execution equals performance, then why do so many dentists incorrectly think they need to be great at strategy?
It may be time we all had “a reality check” about what drives our business and where our focus needs to truly be.
Trust me when I tell you: “push play.”
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CHAPTERS:
Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance?
Is your vision and your strategy getting in the way of your tactics and your execution?
The fundamentals of execution
Creating your own “SMaC recipe”
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Other Episodes You’ll Love:
9 Is Yours an “Execution Business”?
60 Top "10-12" Mistakes People Make Building a Group Practice?! (#1)
62 Top "10-12" Mistakes People Make Building a Group Practice?! (#2)
…
Got Questions? Send them to me here: [email protected]
Book a Call to Discuss the Executive Program
Love this show? Leave a review or share it with your friends!
Want more advice on running a better business? See what I’m writing and what I’m reading.
...
Considering selling your business to a DSO? Download the “Top 10 Questions” Guide HERE.
...
Follow me for more insights: LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | TheNextLevelExecutive.com
© 2025–2026 by Perrin DesPortes. All Rights Reserved.