This is a sponsored post by Essilor of America, a supporter of NewGradOptometry & new graduate optometrists! 😎
In business there is never a shortage of competition. Optometry is no exception. If you are not innovating and finding ways to compete in the ever changing landscape of eye care, you will undoubtedly fall behind.
Most practitioners will agree that staff is the heartbeat of any practice. The growth and success of a practice is dependent on the collective effort of the doctor(s) and the staff.
A major contributor to success can be staff education, knowledge and training. To help remedy this, Essilor developed ECP University, which has recently undergone a major transformation and re-design. With the help and support of Essilor, an ophthalmic juggernaut, ECPU enhances the skills, knowledge, and abilities of staff through distance, in-person, and online learning opportunities.
ECP University is broken up into three major components:
- Practice and Staff Fundamentals
- Management Development Program
- Management and Business Academy
Practice and Staff Fundamentals:
The Practice and Staff Fundamentals (PSF) program, is an online program, and can be utilized to develop the skills of staff at all levels. This program covers things from product education to optical and dispensing basics. PSF is broken into three categories:
Staff Training:
This online training offers comprehensive courses for building knowledge based on specific staff needs and roles. If you have ever had to onboard new staff, perhaps with little to no previous optical experience, you know how daunting and time consuming this task can be. The online courses are perfect for that. As your staff progresses, you can use PSF to enhance and develop their skills.
Check out the full list of courses.
Cost: Subscription packages start at $499 per year, per practice location. For the average practice, that's less than $1 per hour of online learning.
ABO Exam Prep:
Take your staff to the next level with American Board of Opticianry (ABO) Certification. This program offers 24/7 web access to preparatory material for the ABO Basic Certification Exam.
Cost: $349 per person
Product Training:
Doctor driven dispensing is so critical to help capture sales and increase revenue. However, if your staff is not in sync with you and knowledgeable about the products you are recommending, then your recommendations may fall flat.
With Product Training from ECP University™, staff can learn about the latest optical products and technology available to our patients to ensure the best possible patient experience. This program is even beneficial for doctors who are not confident on recent innovations in lens options and materials.
Cost: Complimentary (just register on the site for access)
Check out the full list of courses.
Management Development Program (MDP)
MDP, is designed to help practice, optical, and office managers gain and sharpen business skills and abilities to immediately impact the practice. Through a combination of live instruction, project-based, and online learning, this 6-month program teaches business strategies to increase practice performance and profitability.
Cost: $1,999 per person
Answers to FAQ about MDP per ECPU:
The Management Development Program is six months long and is comprised of three live instruction sessions (two days each) typically held at the Essilor US headquarters in Dallas, Texas. In between the live instruction sessions, the attendee will have weekly assignments, activities, webinars, readings, and coaching sessions which average three hours per week of the student's time.
The class participant is responsible for hotel, airfare, and transportation to and from the airports. Essilor has pre-negotiated rates with local hotels for under $90 per night that includes a full breakfast, wireless internet, and shuttles to and from the on-site class. Lunch is provided both days and dinner on the first day of each session. Classes end at 4 PM the second day in order to give people time to catch their flights home.
Management & Business Academy (MBA)
This resource is designed for practice owners to not only manage but grow their practice successfully. The MBA features live events, industry insights and timely articles designed for better patient and practice care. The live events are by invitation-only and are a great opportunity for docs to connect with other successful colleagues!
Check out the latest article on how to improve capture rate.
The average independent eye care practice loses 20% of total lens sales to online or other retail competition. Learn proven, practical techniques for turning more exams into eyewear sales.
The evidence supporting the importance of staff in the success of any practice – or really any business - is staggering. Essilor devoted a lot of time, resources, and energy attempting to combat this known fact.
These are some important things to consider:
- Employees without access to learning are 400% more likely to leave their current employer within one year.(2)
- The cost of hiring & training a new employee is up to 200% of their annual compensation.(3)
- 50% of practice revenue is driven by the staff.(1)
- 61% of revenue in independent optometric practices comes from product sales – Your optical staff could be costing you more than you think.(1)
- The average ECP loses at least one-third of eyewear sales – staff can help change this.(1)
Even if this program helps your staff make one extra eyewear sale a week, the program will pay for itself. Just like any machine, a private practice has many moving parts: doctors, staff, technicians, etc. For any machine to work properly, all parts must move together.
ECP University is very easy to use. You can browse through many categories to pick a subject you're interested about. I've been a certified Optician over 20 years now and I can go online to ECP to learn about updates in the optical field, and take tests to keep my certification. You can learn everything from the anatomy of the eye to how lenses are made in a lab. If you want to become a certified optician, they have all the studying material you'll need to pass the ABO exam.
-Jeff Grosekemper ABOC
Allow your staff to take your office to the next level by giving them the tools and support they need. Your success depends on it!
Sources
- "2015 Key Metrics: Assessing Optometric Practice Performance."Http://www.mba-ce.com/2015-key-metrics-assessing-optometric-practice-performance.aspx. Management and Business Academy for Eye Care Professionals, 2015. Web. 7 July 2015.
- Bassi, Laurie J. "Training Investment Can Mean Financial Performance."Training and Development 52 (1998): p. 40-42.
- American Management Association
This article is an advertorial for the company Essilor. We would like to let you know that NewGradOptometry, LLC has chosen to work only with companies who support new graduate eyecare professionals, the profession of optometry and who our team believes in. We will always remain true to that
