Dental Front Desk: receptionist or office manager?

Question

I am currently employed in a front desk position with a dental office that runs 3 schedules daily. I do all scheduling, incoming calls, process all incoming/outgoing claims, act as a liaison between patients and doctor, do monthly reports, payroll (biweekly), any calls that come in for the office manager I take care of, month-end reports, and order all supplies.

My questions is am I more than a front desk position?

I have 10 years' experience. Also I have brought many new changes to the practice by implementing electronic claims, verifying insurance online, text & email reminders and am pushing to go paperless. I have done this by myself for 3 years and have recently asked for help which he complied with after 3 months by hiring a 2 day a week front desk girl with zero experience, which means I am training her in all my job duties. Do I have the right to ask for the title of office manager and the pay that goes with it? I want so much more then to be just a receptionist.

Answer 1

It's difficult for us to tell you outright whether you deserve a raise or not - that is ultimately down to you and your employer. However, you obviously feel under-appreciated (with some reason, I believe) and therefore you should bring this up with him (assuming "him" is the dentist here).

The key will be to prepare your case. Research the salaries and the responsibilities for the job titles you are considering. I would strongly advise having an alternative to 'practice manager' in mind - manager by nature implies authority he may be unwilling to give up. Something like administrator (though you know your field better than I do) might be a suitable alternative. Research by using websites like Glassdoor.com, searching job adverts and even Linkedin profiles for those roles, and get a strong idea of what the roles generally entail and where you fall on the scale. Also prepare yourself to make the case about how you have improved their practice - implementing new features and functionality certainly goes beyond the scope of someone employed to answer the phone, for example. Emphasise the value you've brought to the company.

You should ask for a formal pay review, if this is what you want. Bear in mind that this may be pretty out of the blue for your employer, so don't panic if he doesn't respond straight away. Just make sure you have evidence to back you up on the responsibilities you have and how they compare to the role you are currently employed for.

Answer 2

My questions is am I more than a front desk position?

My wife has worked in dental offices for quite a while, so I have a fair amount of exposure to dental practices.

What you describe is certainly more responsibility than most receptionists. And it's more than many front desk positions as well.

Handling payroll, in particular, isn't that typical of receptionist/front desk duties, in my experience.

Do I have the right to ask for the title of office manager and the pay that goes with it?

Well, there are really no "rights" involved here, but anyone can always ask for anything.

You have some good arguments that you are acting like many office managers, and it may or may not make sense to have that as your title. If your office doesn't already have an office manager, perhaps the boss has concluded that one isn't necessary.

There's no way to assess "the pay that goes with it". As I'm sure someone with your experience knows, some offices have Office Managers who are paid like receptionists, and others pay more. What makes sense in your office is very subjective.

Find a quiet time that you can sit down with your boss and discuss your situation. Talk about what you are currently doing, and what more you could be doing - what else would an office manager do in your office that you aren't already doing?.

For example, some office managers have hiring/firing/supervisory responsibilities that it sounds like you don't currently have. Some office managers are responsible for writing/update the office manual. Some office managers run staff meetings and/or morning meetings, etc, etc.

Then discuss your salary history - what you are making now, when you last received an increase, and what you would like to receive.

Get clear in your own head beforehand what you really want out of this conversation. Is the title most important? Is the pay increase most important? Often, you will need to compromise.