The 3 Pillars of a Dental CEO with Dr. Scott Leune

In this in-depth training, Dr. Scott Leune—one of the most recognized voices in dental business leadership—shares the hard-earned lessons behind becoming a true Dental CEO. Through his experience owning and scaling multiple practices and coaching thousands of dentists, Dr. Leune lays out a proven framework for transforming any overwhelmed dentist-owner into a confident, organized, and successful executive leader.

Why Most Dentists Struggle as CEOs

Dr. Leune begins by acknowledging the brutal reality: most dentists are not trained to run businesses. Dentistry school prepares you to be a clinician—not a CEO. The result? Dentists are constantly putting out fires, running on fumes, and barely holding together their teams, finances, and systems.

Scott emphasizes that what many call “burnout” is actually a leadership and organizational issue—and it starts with stepping into the role of Dental CEO.

The 3 Pillars of a Dental CEO – Key Highlights from Dr. Scott Leune

1. Mastering Dental Practice Operations

Scott emphasizes that the first and most foundational pillar of becoming a true Dental CEO is mastering your practice operations. Most practices are chaotic because the owner is trying to juggle too many things without structure.

He teaches that a Dental CEO must:

• Understand every step of the patient journey—from first call to final payment—and identify the “operational knobs” that drive performance (call answer rate, case acceptance, diagnostic rate, scheduled production, etc.).
• Measure the key metrics that impact production and collections, not get lost in the noise of busywork.
• Install a Mandatory Weekly Production Minimum—a consistent, non-negotiable revenue baseline. If you’re under it on Monday, you rally the team to get back on track.

Dr. Leune believes that when the operations pillar is solid, chaos disappears, consistency rises, and the practice starts to perform like a business—not just a clinic.

2. Taking Control of the Financials

Scott points out that the second pillar—financial management—is where most dentists struggle. They are so focused on clinical work and firefighting operations that they never develop financial clarity or discipline.

As a Dental CEO, he insists that you must:

• Review clean, accurate profit and loss statements monthly.
• Learn to spot and address unhealthy overhead: Supplies should stay under 4%, lab under 5%, staffing under 25%, and overall overhead under 50%.
• Approve weekly spending based on a clear budget. No more casual ordering—every expense should be intentional.
• Conduct monthly financial audits. If something is over budget, that becomes the CEO’s top priority.

Dr. Leune emphasizes that profit is not random—profit is planned. Strong dental practice management requires discipline and decisions, not just hard work.

Learn more about Managing Finances as a Dental CEO: https://scottleune.com/blog/the-dental-ceo-financial-strategies-with-dr-scott-leune/

3. Leading People with Systems, Not Just Personality

Dr. Leune believes that most leadership challenges in dental practices come from a lack of structure, not bad attitudes. The third pillar—people—requires systems that create accountability and clarity.

He teaches Dental CEOs to:

• Give every team member a daily checklist so nothing gets forgotten and expectations are clear.
• Conduct audits of both charts and the physical space daily. Every time you find a mistake, it’s an opportunity for positive accountability.
• Establish a meeting rhythm—daily huddles, weekly check-ins, monthly implementation meetings, and quarterly planning. These are not time-wasters—they’re pressure-release valves and alignment tools.
• Build out scorecards that track the most important KPIs for both operations and finances. Scorecards help CEOs focus on what’s improving and what’s slipping.

Scott emphasizes that managing people well isn’t about being charismatic—it’s about being consistent. Systems create culture.

Learn more about Managing People as a Dental CEO: https://scottleune.com/blog/leadership-masterclass-with-scott-leune-managing-people-as-a-dental-ceo-shared-practices-podcast/

Blocking CEO Time – Every Single Day

One of the most critical habits Dr. Leune recommends is setting aside 30 minutes a day to be a CEO. He calls it CEO Time.

During this time, a Dental CEO should:

• Run audits
• Review key metrics
• Follow up on priorities
• Prepare for team meetings
• Make strategic decisions

Scott insists that this small daily habit has the highest ROI of any activity in the business. “You’ll make more money during CEO time than by cutting another tooth,” he says. “That’s what it means to lead.”

Check out The Daily Habits of a High-Performing Dental CEO

You Don’t Have to Be Perfect—Just Intentional

In closing, Dr. Leune emphasizes that you don’t need to be the perfect Dental CEO. You just need to focus on the vital 20% of activities that drive 80% of your outcomes. That means:

• Tracking 5–6 core metrics
• Fixing one broken system per month
• Staying financially aware
• Leading your team with purpose

You don’t need to master everything at once. But you do need to start.

“Dental business leadership is not about being Superman,” he says. “It’s about being organized, focused, and committed to doing the few things that actually move the needle.”