Last year was exceptionally strong for Sybron Dental Specialties, the leading manufacturer of value-added products for the dental and orthodontic professions. It saw a 13.5% increase in revenue during the third quarter and a 17% increase in net sales for the fourth quarter. When asked how the company was able to achieve these numbers, president and CEO Floyd Pickrell said that face time with leaders in dentistry and a strong product portfolio have made all the difference.

Newport Beach, Calif.-based Sybron manufactures supplies for the orthodontic, dental, endodontic, infection prevention, and dental implant markets. To effectively penetrate these markets, the company operates in two business segments: professional dental and specialty products.

In the professional dental segment, Sybron uses a network of independent distributors to sell branded dental consumables, small nonconsumable equipment, and infection prevention products worldwide. Its specialty products division sells a broad range of products to specialists such as orthodontics, endodontics, and implantologists. Driving sales for both segments, Pickrell said, calls for two independent yet intertwined business strategies.

Thought leaders
On the professional dental side, there are about 130,000 dentists in the US alone, so Sybron needs to have a solid strategy to pull products through its distribution channel. This includes spending as much face time with customers as possible and calling on large group practices that will yield higher outcomes.

The company conducts roundtable discussions on a yearly basis that bring together what Pickrell calls industry thought leaders. “We solicit the ideas and concerns of the top people in the industry so we can identify where we can help them from a technology standpoint. Our ultimate goal is to manufacture products that will make the dentists more productive and save them money,” he said, adding that productivity is crucial as more dentists are retiring than entering the profession. “The more reliable the products are, the more time dentists can spend with patients.”

The roundtable discussions are a major factor in the success of the professional dental division. Pickrell explained that its independent distributors sell products manufactured by the competition in addition to those of Sybron, so a solid reputation for quality products and high visibility are crucial to driving sales.

In addition, Sybron representatives attend trade shows. “Typically, dentists hear about our products at trade shows. When we educate them about our products, it stimulates interest and acts as a catalyst to them buying our products over other brands.”

Product-driven approach
On the specialty products side of the business, Sybron sells direct to the end user, so sales are driven based more on product development and improvement than consumer education and exposure. To that end, the company has made a number of investments geared toward improving product quality, including an automated inventory system that will reduce labor and eliminate human error. Another investment is in metal injection molding technology to manufacture small product components.

“New product development is huge across our entire platform. Our research and manufacturing company is solely dedicated to product development. It keeps the sales people excited and keeps customers interested,” Pickrell said.

As sales increase due to improvements made within the two divisions, Pickrell expects the company to grow 4% to 6% organically within the next few years. He’d like to see an additional 2% to 4% growth from small, niche acquisitions.

To facilitate this growth throughout the entire company, all 4,500 employees dispersed throughout 29 locations across the globe have to work together. To that end, Sybron brings its management teams together several times a year to share ideas and report on company achievements. “It is important for everyone to know what each region—the US, Asia, Australia, and Europe—is doing so that our respective management teams can learn from each other,” Pickrell said.

From the inside out
To Pickrell, outstanding customer care starts from the inside out. “Internal customer service is just as important as external customer service. If we can’t serve and care for ourselves, we are not going to do a very good job with our customers,” he said.

To achieve this, Sybron emphasizes a few key philosophies. One Pickrell calls aim versus blame. “Instead of employees blaming each other when something goes wrong, we want them to aim for results.” Another philosophy is “crew versus baggage,” which simply means that every employee needs to contribute to the wellbeing of the company.

The overarching methodology Pickrell follows is one that pushes results over activity. “We welcome differences of opinions, but once a decision is made, we expect people to get on the bus and move forward. We don’t want people spinning their wheels— if you have achieved your goals efficiently, we’d rather you go out and enjoy life than beat yourself up in the office keeping busy for activity’s sake.”