Gerilyn Alfe, DMD, MBA Bio & CV
Meet Your Coach
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Meet Your Coach
As a former practicing dentist and practice owner, I am in a unique position to help my clients. I have actually “walked in their shoes” for the 25 years I owned my dental practices. I owned, and led, both large and small practices. I can especially empathize with the specific challenges that female dentists encounter as the leaders of their teams.
In 2005, I started my last practice, Chicago Smile Spa, from scratch. I, therefore, have intimate knowledge of how to build a start-up practice, attract and engage clientele, and motivate team members to take ownership in their practice.
I graduated from Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in 1993, magna cum laude. I have been passionate about Continuing Education since I graduated from dental school.
For more than 20 years, in addition to my private practice, I worked as a speaker, hands-on instructor, and mentor to thousands of dentists for numerous dental companies. My last position was as a mentor with Six Month Smiles. I routinely built relationships with my dentist-students which lasted for many years after the dentists had attended my classes.
After selling my last practice, I completed my MBA through the Jack Welch Management Institute and graduated as a Distinguished Welch Scholar with Honors. Even though I had built and led two successful practices for a quarter century, I knew that there is always more to learn! My MBA experience positioned me to be able to delve deep into a practice’s financials, as well as honed my ability to lead and inspire teams of all sizes.
I understand that your team is the most important asset of any successful dental practice.
During my tenure as Chicago Smile Spa’s solo practitioner and leader, I developed a marketing strategy that facilitated business growth, pursuing a niche market and achieved a 90% conversion rate across social media platforms such as Instagram.
I was able to increase new patient revenue stream by 50% YOY. I accomplished all this while remaining independent from insurance companies and motivating my patients to pay for discretionary services like veneers, Botox, and adult orthodontics.
The great thing about the covid shutdown was that it showed me that I can coach anyone, anywhere. Since most of our coaching is done via ZOOM calls, I can help dentists across the country and around the world. When it’s time for me to come in and train your team, I just jump in my car or hop on a plane!
My husband and I recently bought a home in Naples, Florida. I love being able to be outside 95% of the year! It’s been quite a welcome change from my experiences living in New England and Chicago. In my spare time, I enjoy Spinning, strength training and yoga, taking long walks, reading, and traveling with my husband. We both enjoy trying new restaurants, as well as grilling and chilling at home. And as a former Bostonian, I am a devoted New England Patriots fan (I’ve even taped games that I had to miss in order to watch them later!).
I was a coaching client for 20+ years as a practicing dentist. I know that working with a coach helped me achieve all that I had wanted with my practices and my life. That experience, along with my MBA teachings, enables me to pivot from taking a “30,000-foot view” to “getting into the weeds” when necessary.
And more than many other coaches, I can “speak dentistry” with my clients and 100% understand the clinical challenges they may face. My previous experience as a mentor, lecturer, and KOL has provided a deep knowledge regarding CE courses and the clinical leaders in our field. While this is not really my focus anymore, this is one “value-add” I bring to the table.
Do I miss practicing dentistry? Sometimes. (If you don’t know why I retired, please go to My “Back” Story for more “back”-ground. Pun intended.) What I miss, most of all, are the relationships I built with my team and my patients. I miss that feeling when a patient looks in the mirror and for the first time in her life, she LOVES what she sees! I miss watching her burst into tears of joy. I miss her jumping out of the chair and hugging me. I miss feeling like I might cry, too, because I was honored to be part of her journey.
Now, as a coach, I am able to bring my passion, expertise, experience, and enthusiasm to literally hundreds and thousands of people. When I can watch my teams grow and stretch and start to LOVE their practice, I realize that my impact is exponential. When my teams LOVE what they do, it comes through in their work. Their patients feel it. Their families and friends feel it. And like ripples on a pond, I’m able to help people I haven’t even met. That’s one of the reasons why I leap out of bed each morning! When you love what you do, it’s not work.
Check out my appearance on the Remarkable Dentist Podcast! We talk about my fascinating journey as a dentist, business owner, and now practice coach.
I discuss my mentors and the difficult decisions along the way – it’s a great talk!
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