“What is a Jen?” you might ask.
Jen is the receptionist at a privately-owned orthodontic practice. More accurately, she is the heart of it: the steady, radiant presence that turns every appointment into a homecoming the moment families step inside.
This is the story of a lady who took a chance on us, and who we took a chance on as well. I guess you could say we were mutual chance-takers. But I think we all just knew that there was something special about our first meeting, and that we could build something meaningful together.
Jen had spent 20 years at her family’s counseling business before it was squeezed out by corporate chains, insurance pressures, and COVID fallout. She walked into our interview determined but guarded. We were the smallest ortho office in town. Dr. Walker had bought a struggling practice in a tough location that the previous owner had basically given up on. But Jen saw what we saw: the chance to create the kind of warm, family-style environment she loved and had lost.
She said yes, and smartly negotiated a pay bump because she knew her worth.
The hub of the practice
From day one, Jen became the hub around which the spokes of our practice ran. She learned every patient’s and parent’s name immediately. She greeted them with a genuine, huge smile. She remembered their struggles, their kids’ new pets, their exciting opportunities. She sent handwritten congratulations cards, sympathy cards, and get-well-soon notes, and followed up next visit like it was the most natural thing in the world.
She cared for the staff too. Birthday lunches, listening to worries from home, watching the Walker kids when we needed it. She treated the practice like it was an extension of her own family, because to her, it was.
Why corporate offices lose their Jens
You won’t find many Jens in corporate dental offices. Corporate settings chew them up and spit them out. High turnover, rigid scripts, quota pressure, and endless metrics mean genuine relationship-builders don’t survive. A Jen who spends time remembering names, sending personal cards, or staying late to help a worried parent gets flagged for low productivity. Corporate systems reward speed and upselling, not deep community ties. The best people eventually leave, or burn out trying to fit a mold that wasn’t built for humans.
“When the owner’s name is on the door, the culture can be built around real care instead of corporate profit targets.”
Private practices? We get to keep our Jens.
If you want to find you a Jen, or a Patty, or a Barbara, or any of the other incredible receptionists and team members who pour their heart into their privately-owned practices, start at CorpFree.org. Search for privately-owned dentists and specialists in your area who still get to hire and keep the kind of people who make all the difference.
