Jeff Leger on What it Takes to Build Canada’s Fastest-Growing DSO
Canadian dental support organization (DSO), 123 Dentist, has become the country’s fastest-growing dental organization. How? We’re unpacking it all in this episode of The Dental Economist Show as host CRO Mike Huffaker of Planet DDS sits down with CEO, Jeff Leger, for the ultimate insider’s perspective.
What you’ll learn:
- How to translate expertise from adjacent healthcare sectors
- Why visiting your frontline teams isn’t optional; it’s your competitive advantage
- The regional doctor mentor model for balancing clinical autonomy with organizational standards
- How to protect culture during rapid acquisition-driven growth
- Why operational excellence and clinical care aren’t competing priorities
- The digital engagement platform opportunity in dentistry
Most importantly, this conversation highlights what we all know and cannot afford to ignore: strong people-focused culture is a non-negotiable in today’s day and age.
Episode Highlights
This episode of The Dental Economist Show explores this critical yet often overlooked nuance of dentistry today. Here are some highlights from the show:
First growth move: Meeting your teams
Leger’s strategy of visiting more than 100 clinics in his first six months reveals a critical leadership principle: Understanding operations requires boots-on-the-ground observation before deploying spreadsheet solutions. Many leaders default to analyzing profit and loss (P&L) statements and data dashboards, missing the real friction points that slow clinicians down and block growth.
By engaging directly with frontline teams and simply asking what’s working, what’s getting in the way, and what training gaps exist, you uncover bottlenecks that data alone never surfaces. For anyone building a DSO or scaling a dental practice, this approach transforms strategy from top-down mandates into collaborative problem-solving that clinicians actually adopt and sustain.
Clinical autonomy doesn’t mean isolation
Leger’s solution to balancing clinical independence with organizational standards is elegant: Establish regional doctor mentors and a dental advisory council rather than imposing clinical protocols from headquarters. This peer-to-peer model, where experienced clinicians coach newer practitioners on standards and best practices, removes the perception of corporate control while elevating care quality across the network.
By involving academics and regulatory experts alongside practicing dentists, you create a credible, independent body that sets standards, not a DSO mandate. The outcome is clinicians who feel supported and validated rather than restricted. This structure protects both autonomy and excellence, giving clinicians the mentorship early-career practitioners desperately need while preserving their independence to make patient decisions.
Best ideas are hiding in high-performing locations
Instead of importing operational playbooks from outside consultants, Leger shares that the majority of scalable best practices already exist within high-performing clinics. You just need to identify them, understand why they work, and amplify them across the network. This flips the traditional “central office knows best” approach on its head and positions frontline operators as the real innovators.
When you spot a clinic running efficient scheduling, nailing treatment acceptance through patient education, or retaining staff better than peers, reverse-engineer that model rather than defaulting to external solutions. The speed and adoption improve dramatically because clinicians see the proof in a peer’s results, not in a corporate directive.
Culture is your shock absorber during growth
Leger defines culture as how your organization treats colleagues, patients, and clinicians. And it matters because strong culture allows teams to navigate uncertain periods and rally behind purpose when execution gets tough. During rapid acquisition-driven growth, culture becomes your invisible safeguard. Without it, each new clinic acquisition dilutes your values and creates friction. Leger protects 123 Dentist’s culture by being visible, approachable, and transparent.
Examples: Doing thirty to fifty town halls annually as a CEO, visiting 100 clinics in six months, and explaining the “why” behind every major change. This consistent demonstration of values (caring, operational excellence, continuous learning) sends a message to new team members: “This is how we actually operate here, not what’s written in the manual.”
About The Dental Economist Show
Don’t miss insightful conversations with industry experts on the latest trends and top strategies to grow your DSO or dental group. Tune in to The Dental Economist Show each week as we meet at the intersection of profit and purpose.
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