17 Jun Why use PARAGON?
To get right to the point… POSITIVE RESULTS! PARAGON’s consultants exemplify one of the oldest and fastest growing assemblage of dental consultants in the country. Since 1988, the core group of PARAGON’s consultants have worked collectively to analyze the needs and goals of thousands of dentists and provide assistance in selling, purchasing and merging their practices. PARAGON also provides professional assistance with practice valuations, contract services, equity associateships, partnership buy-ins and buy-outs as well as other co-ownership arrangements.
All of the programs PARAGON offers today were originally developed for the dental profession. Make no mistake about it… PARAGON consultants began marketing their services for dentists in 1988 and working with the dental profession still represents well over 98% of PARAGON’s annual business activity. However, as time went by, it became more obvious that other healthcare professions have as great a need for our services as well. Our programs and contracts can easily be modified to the specific needs of the medical practitioner, the chiropractor, veterinarians, and all other healthcare professions. Through the years we have indeed assisted several non-dental clients, but our primary focus will always remain with dentists.
While a professional practice is indeed a business, but it is also a very unique business. For example, a dental practice is a direct reflection, and extension of the personality, philosophy and methodology of the owner-dentist. Locating the right personality, qualified both clinically and financially to either replace or work with the current owner- dentist, requires a special understanding and sensitivity to the distinctive needs of the dental profession.
Most attorneys, accountants, business brokers and other “advisors” have little, if any, prior experience in handling the complexities involved in either the sale or the acquisition of a professional practice, much less a dental practice. They also do not have access to the various specialized transition programs that PARAGON has developed and proven successful over the years. PARAGON’s consultants identified this market need years ago and developed the unique concepts, programs and skills necessary to effectively complete a successful practice transition.
In the past, dentists and other healthcare professionals had no one to turn to with the true expertise needed to accurately and honestly advise them on selling their practice.
Consequently, most often the sale of a professional practice was seldom, if ever, even considered as the doctor approached retirement. Unfortunately, doctors typically let their practice value slip away by slowing down and not taking on any new patients. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in practice equity simply vanished as the doctor faded into retirement never knowing the fortune his or her practice represented!
Those few dentists who were lucky enough to find a potential purchaser for their practice generally did not know what steps to take to get the transaction closed. Typically the first obstacle was establishing a price for the practice. Without experienced guidance, the price was either considerably higher or far below the actual fair market value. Most of the time the deal was doomed because of the adversarial posture the parties felt compelled to assume during the “negotiation” process of simply establishing a fair price. But, even if the price could be agreed upon the deal generally blew up when the parties tried to draft an agreement to complete the transaction.
The same rule applied for bringing in an associate. A contract was either never written (we call this an “Ambiguaship” and your PARAGON consultant will be glad to explain why these fail well over 90% of the time), or some unilateral, unfair agreement was written and “negotiated” by an attorney for the current practice owner (the host) and the associate lost out in the end.
Adversarial postures assumed by parties in the negotiation process frequently results in failed attempts to transition a professional practice. The “Win/Lose” philosophy virtually always prevails. It is our belief that FAIR can be determined by a knowledgeable, reasonable and objective third-party representing both parties to the transaction. On the other hand, we feel it is impossible to reach FAIR through “negotiations.” After all, the true nature of the negotiating process is that one party is attempting to achieve a financial advantage at the expense of the other party. Thus negotiations by pure definition represents a “Win/Lose” outcome! What can possibly be considered fair about a transition process that is designed to produce a winner and a loser? This is why negotiations have always been unacceptable to PARAGON and responsible for PARAGON developing its entire business philosophy of “Equitable Transactions through Dual Representation.”
It is PARAGON’s belief (and first-hand experience as well) that most doctors prefer to conduct business in a non-adversarial, fair environment that results in both parties completing an equitable transaction. However, prior to our dual-representation process, doctors were forced to enter into harmful negotiations requiring that they hire attorneys to “defend” themselves against being taken advantage of by the other doctor’s attorney. Of course, generally both attorneys would come out swinging at each other until one gained an advantage over the other. The problem for the doctors is that attorneys get paid regardless of which side wins so there is no vested interest in a
positive outcome. In fact, if the deal falls apart and the doctor must move on to another deal, the attorney gets paid a second time to try to hammer out a transaction closing. This concept of being paid regardless of failing to accomplish the desired results is simply not acceptable to PARAGON. PARAGON gets paid to represent both parties and we ONLY get paid after we assist you in closing the transaction! Thus, we truly do have a vested interest in the success of both the buyer and the seller!
PARAGON believes that both parties only want to feel confident that they are represented competently and that both parties truly do desire a transaction resulting in both parties achieving an equitable “win/win” result. Unfortunately, this equitable result is rarely achieved when the transaction is left in the hands of inexperienced advisors and especially those that are looking out for only one party’s best interests. We know that an equitable transaction can be much better achieved consulting with a well- informed, experienced and competent third-party representing all parties for the sole purpose of completing a successful transaction instead of trying to “win” at the expense of the other party.
PARAGON’s approach of “Equitable Transactions through Dual Representation” has enabled our highly trained and experienced transition consultants to develop a tremendous reputation for professionalism, fairness and extremely positive financial results for sellers; buyers; hosts; and associates throughout the dental profession… locally and nationally!
If you are considering selling, buying, bringing on an associate or accepting an associate position you owe it to yourself to call PARAGON today for a complimentary consultation… no obligation, just an extremely worthwhile education!
