Lori William

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Lori William Partner of Strategix, focusing on maximizing practice efficiencies and engaging teams.

If every decision eventually makes its way back to the doctor, it’s worth asking why.Sometimes the team genuinely needs ...
10/20/2026

If every decision eventually makes its way back to the doctor, it’s worth asking why.

Sometimes the team genuinely needs an answer. But sometimes they already know what to do. They’re just used to checking first.

Over time, this creates an environment where the doctor becomes the bottleneck for decisions the team could have made independently.

And it works both ways. Your team needs to understand what they’re responsible for and where they have the authority to make a decision. But once that’s clear, they also need the opportunity to use it.

If you answer every question, approve every decision, and step in every time someone hesitates, your team never gets much practice trusting their own judgment.

This week, pay attention to how often someone comes to you for an answer they already have.

Instead of immediately giving it to them, try asking:
“What do you think we should do?”

You may be surprised how often they already know.

10/18/2026

20 years in orthodontic consulting, and there are still stages you dream about speaking on.
For me, AAO is one of them.

I’ve been invited to speak at AAO 2027 in Vancouver, and having it happen in Canada makes the opportunity even more meaningful.

I’ve worked with practices across Canada for more than two decades. Knowing that some of those doctors and teams will be in Vancouver while I’m on that stage is something I’m really looking forward to.

I’ll also be speaking about The Conversion Code, with the book launching around the same time.

There’s a lot of work to do before then. For now, I’m excited to finally be able to say:
I’ll see you at AAO 2027 in Vancouver!


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You may have a new-patient process in place, but how closely does what's happening day to day match the process you've o...
10/15/2026

You may have a new-patient process in place, but how closely does what's happening day to day match the process you've outlined?

When different team members are responsible for different parts of the patient journey, it's easy for gaps to develop between one step and the next.

A missed detail during the first phone call can leave the treatment coordinator scrambling. An unclear handoff can create confusion before the consultation even begins, and a follow-up without a clear owner can easily fall through the cracks.

These small inconsistencies add up, affecting how smoothly the patient moves through your practice and how prepared your team is at each stage.

Bring your team together and walk through four key moments in your new-patient process.
Ask each person to explain how they're currently handled, what information needs to be communicated, and who is responsible for the next step.

Then compare the answers.

You may discover that everyone understands their individual role, but there are gaps in how those responsibilities connect.

If your front desk believes certain information is being passed along, but your TC isn't receiving it, you've identified something that needs attention.

Having a process documented is one thing. Making sure your team understands how their responsibilities connect, from the first phone call through the final follow-up, is what makes that process work in practice.

Your strongest team member shouldn’t be the reason your new-patient process works.Because what happens when they’re off?...
10/13/2026

Your strongest team member shouldn’t be the reason your new-patient process works.

Because what happens when they’re off?
Or someone else answers the phone?
Or the practice gets busy and everyone falls back into their own way of doing things?

Patients shouldn’t get a completely different experience depending on who happens to be working that day.

That doesn’t mean everyone on your team needs to sound the same. It means the important parts of your process shouldn’t change.

What information are you gathering?
How is it communicated to the next person?
What does the patient experience when they arrive?
How is the consultation handled?
What happens if they don’t start that day?
When those pieces are clear, your team can bring their own personality to the experience without reinventing the process every time.

And that’s an important distinction.

Consistency isn’t scripting every interaction. It’s making sure the patient experience doesn’t depend on chance.

Here’s a question worth asking yourself:
If your best team member was away tomorrow, how much of your new-patient process would change?

And I’m curious, what’s one part of the new-patient experience you think every practice should get right, every single time?

10/08/2026

More options can feel like better service.

But if your patient leaves the consultation trying to sort through everything they just heard, you may have made the decision harder instead of easier.

And that hesitation has somewhere to go:
They go home and research.
They start comparing.
They book another consultation.

The confidence they had sitting in front of you starts getting replaced by more questions.
That doesn’t necessarily mean they weren’t ready for treatment. They may have needed more clarity.

Your Treatment Coordinator’s job isn’t simply to present information. It’s to understand what matters to the patient, communicate the recommendation clearly, answer the questions standing in the way, and help them feel confident about what comes next.

Because more information doesn’t always create a better decision. Clarity does.

Take a look at your own consultation process: are you helping patients make a decision, or giving them more to think about?

If your team keeps coming back to you for answers, the first question shouldn't always be, “Why can't they just make a d...
10/06/2026

If your team keeps coming back to you for answers, the first question shouldn't always be, “Why can't they just make a decision?”

Sometimes, it's worth asking whether you've made the expectations clear enough for them to feel confident making one.

When people are left guessing what “good” looks like, they start second-guessing themselves. They double-check decisions they could have made independently, wait for approval, and hesitate to take ownership because they're unsure where their authority begins and ends.

Over time, the leader becomes the person everyone turns to for every answer.

Clear leadership helps change that by giving people a solid understanding of what's expected of them, what they're responsible for, and where they have the freedom to make decisions without waiting for approval.

That's how confidence develops. It comes from having the clarity to take ownership and knowing you're trusted to follow through.

Before you ask your team to step up, ask yourself:
Have I made it clear what stepping up actually looks like?

10/01/2026

Patients don't want to feel like they're being sold to.

They want to understand their options, ask questions, and feel confident in the decision they're making. That confidence doesn't begin when treatment is presented. It starts with every interaction leading up to that conversation.

The phone call.
The welcome.
The way your team communicates.

Those moments influence how patients experience your practice and how they receive your recommendations.

Practices with strong treatment acceptance don't leave those interactions to chance. They build consistency into the patient experience from the very beginning.

If you'd like to take a closer look at your new patient process, reach out to Strategix. We'd be happy to help you identify opportunities to strengthen the patient experience and improve treatment acceptance.

Practices spend a lot of time improving how treatment is presented.What often gets overlooked is everything that happens...
09/29/2026

Practices spend a lot of time improving how treatment is presented.
What often gets overlooked is everything that happens before that conversation.

Patient confidence starts building with the first phone call.
The way they're welcomed.
The questions your team asks.
The time they take to listen before explaining.

By the time treatment is presented, patients have already formed an impression of your practice.

When they feel comfortable and confident in the people caring for them, treatment conversations become much easier.

Connection isn't separate from the consultation. It's part of the process. The practices with the strongest treatment acceptance understand that every interaction helps patients move forward with confidence.

Where do you think patient confidence is built most: before the consultation, during it, or after it?

One of the biggest misconceptions that I see is that creating a great patient experience depends on having the "right" p...
09/25/2026

One of the biggest misconceptions that I see is that creating a great patient experience depends on having the "right" people.

It doesn't.

The practices that consistently create exceptional patient experiences don’t rely on personality alone. They define what great looks like. They coach it. They reinforce it.
And they build it into the way the practice operates every day.

Because patients shouldn’t have a different experience depending on who answers the phone, greets them at the front desk, or walks them through the consultation.

When the experience is consistent, patients know what to expect. That creates confidence in the team, builds trust, and makes the entire new patient process feel more seamless.

That’s the difference between hoping your team creates connection and designing a patient experience that supports it every time.

Which of these do you think has the biggest impact on the patient experience?

09/24/2026

After 20 years as a Strategix consultant, I’m incredibly excited to share that I’ve officially been invited to speak at AAO 2027 in Vancouver!

The AAO stage is one of the biggest in orthodontics, and receiving that invitation is a pretty special career moment.

I can’t wait to be there, share the stage, and see so many familiar faces in the audience!

Vancouver 2027 — I’ll see you there!

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Okotoks
Okotoks, AB
T1S2E8

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