Gen Xer Goes Against the Grain & Affiliates With a DSO

CORDENTAL Group, a dental support organization that provides business support services to affiliated dental practices across the Mid-Atlantic, Midwestern, and Southeastern United States, has entered into an affiliation with John C. Boain, DDS of Boain Dental Care in Florissant (St. Louis), MO.

“St. Louis has been a focus market since the formation of CORDENTAL. Boain Dental Care represents our third location within that market and supports our continued efforts to create density within existing marketplaces.” -Steven Jones, Co-Founder and Chief Development Officer of CORDENTAL Group

A Fellow with the American Academy of General Dentistry, an Associate Fellow with the American Academy of Implant Dentistry, and a member of the Advanced Dental Implant Studies in Atlanta, CORDENTAL was drawn to Boain’s energy, love for dentistry, and involvement in the dental community.

But why was a 40-year-old dentist’s son drawn to a DSO, and in particular CORDENTAL?

A 2006 graduate of Creighton University in Omaha Nebraska, Boain began his career as an associate at his dad’s office. He quickly moved from associate to owner when he acquired the practice from his father, Dr. Joseph Boain, in 2009. A few years later, Dr. John Boain acquired Dr. Mark Guttman’s practice and merged it into his practice.

Always looking to improve his skill set, he is heavily involved with Advanced Dental Implant Studies in Atlanta, a mastery-mind group which meets four times a year and concentrates on clinical implant instruction.

Boain’s main focus was, and is, the clinical side of dentistry, but his entrepreneurial spirit and desire to be a part of something bigger led him to begin a search to satisfy that need. His motivation to get to the next level prompted him to look outside the four walls of his practice. What he saw happening was a DSO revolution.

He had the opportunity to become involved with a startup DSO, which ultimately fell through, but it got him excited about the concept of DSOs. He continued to investigate the landscape, looking for something to reignite him, and he found CORDENTAL. And so his research on them began.

“Group Dentistry Now was a great resource when I was doing my due diligence on CORDENTAL. I was researching the DSO and what was happening and trending in the market; GDN had a lot of articles about CORDENTAL that helped me make my decision to affiliate with them. GDN’s website was a good resource to read all about DSOs and group practices.” -John C. Boain, DDS, Boain Dental Care

At 40 years old, affiliating with a DSO goes completely against the grain. At his highest level of financial success, with an expert skill set and high productivity, he found that many dentists selling to a DSO were retiring or having health troubles.

Not simply concerned with money, Boain was interested in pushing himself to the next level and CORDENTAL tailored a unique agreement that made sense to him. They were able to satisfy his entrepreneurial spirit of wanting to be a part of something greater, and offer him growth opportunities, all while assuring that he will have some skin in the game.

“The idea of loss of control was a concern. But the idea of building something with someone else was exciting. I learned that you need people to help you grow to the next level. It came down to the pure relationship I had with Steven and Dana and the level of comfort I felt with them. I truly thought if I partnered with them, I could build a company with them.” -John C. Boain, DDS, Boain Dental Care

He now has a team to turn to for affirmation on decisions; a true partnership, and he is vested in them. “I’ve gone at this solo, and even though I have family members in the practice, it’s nice to have a partner. It’s freeing me up for options later, to pursue opportunities that arise,” said Boain.

Surprisingly, his 72-year old dentist dad agreed with his decision, knowing that whether anyone likes it or not, DSOs and group practices are where the industry is headed. His father approved of the affiliation and still works in the practice 1.5 days per week.

Boain is excited about the possibility of educating and mentoring CORDENTAL dentists, and eventually he may evolve into a clinical director. Doors will open that he didn’t have access to before. His focus may be clinical, but he is interested in opportunities beyond the chair where he can engage dentists at a different level than what they learned in dental school.

He has significant knowledge in the area of dental implants which he will use to educate and mentor other dentists within the group. Additionally, having already acquired a practice, he has the necessary skill-set to teach dentists the benefits of joining a dental support organization and he is already doing just that.

Dr. Boain commented, “When looking to partner with a service organization, it was paramount that a like-kind relationship would exist.  As all dentists can attest, we are in a relationship business. When I looked at what would help me overcome the effects of gravity in the morning, it was knowing that I would be working with a team of like-minded individuals that would count on me as much as I counted on them. After some surgical-grade inspection of who I would like to partner with, especially at age 40, CORDENTAL fit the bill. I have had no regrets and firmly believe CORDENTAL would be the right choice for anyone considering growing a Class A company.”

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