Let’s talk about the ultimate goal for any practice owner: building a business that runs so smoothly and profitably that it doesn’t need you there every second of the day.
The reality for most owners is the exact opposite. They are prisoners of their own practice, constantly putting out fires and feeling like if they take a day off, the whole thing will fall apart.
Getting a practice to run without you isn’t magic. It’s the direct result of implementing a few critical systems that allow you to keep your eyes on things without having to be physically present.
When I had only one or two practices, my management system was simple: me. I could walk around, look over shoulders, and have hallway conversations. But the moment I expanded, that system completely broke down. I was forced to evolve. These are the three essential systems that came out of that trial by fire, allowing me to scale and manage multiple practices with just a few hours of focused management time per week.
System #1: The Digitized Task List (for Accountability)
So much of managing from a distance is about still being able to see what’s happening. You need a way to know, at a glance, who is completing their daily, weekly, and monthly tasks—and more importantly, who is not. This isn’t micromanaging; it’s about accountability and early problem detection.
- The Simple Start (Google Sheets): Create a simple spreadsheet with a tab for each team member and a checklist of their recurring tasks (e.g., “Check insurance eligibility,” “Run end-of-day report”). They simply check off each item as it’s completed. This gives you a quick, visual dashboard of your practice’s core functions.
- The Advanced Solution (Task Management Software): To get more hands-off, graduate to a tool like monday.com or Asana. You can create automated, recurring tasks, but the real power is in the notifications. You can set it up so that if a critical task like “Run weekly spore test” becomes overdue, it automatically sends you an email. This is a game-changer. You no longer have to look for problems; the system alerts you only when something is wrong.
Watch the full breakdown of these three essential systems.
System #2: Google Forms for Critical Submissions (for Auditing)
You need a simple, standardized, and permanent way for your team to submit critical information for you to review. The old way of leaving a pile of paper on your desk is a mess and impossible to manage remotely.
The Solution: Google Forms.
Create a simple Google Form for key submissions:
- End-of-Day Reports: Your office manager fills out fields for production, collections, etc., and attaches a PDF of the detailed report.
- Bank Deposit Slips: Snap a photo of the slip and upload it to the form.
- Spore Testing: Require a photo of the test vial before it’s mailed for a perfect compliance record.
- Patient Refund Requests: All requests go into a form. Once a week, you pull up the spreadsheet and process them all at once.
Every time a form is submitted, it automatically populates a Google Sheet, creating a permanent, time-stamped record of every submission. This is incredibly powerful for tracking trends and long-term record-keeping.
System #3: Internal Communication Software (for Real-Time Management)
This is the system that ties everything together. You absolutely must have a method for communicating with your team when you’re not in the office. A simple solution like Google Chat or Slack is perfect.
Let’s say you’re reviewing your task list on your CEO day and notice a critical step was missed. You cannot wait until you’re in the office next Tuesday to address it.
Using a chat solution, you can immediately send a direct message to that team member, attach a screenshot, and give clear, real-time feedback. Once you’ve sent the message, you’re done. You don’t have to keep a running mental list of things to discuss later. This frees up immense mental bandwidth and creates a culture of immediate accountability.
By implementing a digitized task list, a form-based submission system, and a robust communication platform, you can create true freedom as a practice owner. It frees up your time to work on high-level growth, explore new opportunities, or simply spend more time with your family, all while knowing your practice is running smoothly and predictably without you.
