The Orthopreneurs Podcast with Dr. Glenn Krieger

What if I told you the biggest threat to your orthodontic practice isn't competition—it's assuming tomorrow will look like yesterday?

In this episode of Five Minute Friday, I tackle a conversation many orthodontists have been avoiding. For the first time in modern orthodontic history, we're seeing four consecutive years of flat or declining growth across the profession. This isn't about fear or pessimism—it's about recognizing the data, asking the right questions, and making smarter decisions before the market forces you to.

I share why I believe this is a pivotal moment for our profession, what industry trends may be driving these changes, and why simply waiting for the next "bounce-back year" may not be the strategy it once was.
 
More importantly, I discuss how surrounding yourself with the right peers, evaluating your practice through today's economic lens, and becoming more intentional with your business decisions can position you to thrive—regardless of what happens next.
Whether you're considering opening another location, hiring an associate, or simply wondering why your growth has slowed, this episode will challenge you to think differently about the future of orthodontics and how to prepare for it.

💬Quotes

"Once anything can happen. Twice is a coincidence. Three times is a pattern. We're working on four."
— Dr. Glenn Krieger

"The whole point of this Five Minute Friday isn't to give you all the answers—it's to make you aware of something and get you to start thinking about it."
— Dr. Glenn Krieger

🎯 Key Takeaways
Intro: Are four flat years changing orthodontics forever? (00:00)
Industry trends and what the data is telling us (00:45)
Why startups are different from mature practices (02:00)
Is this the new normal for orthodontics? (03:10)
Making smarter expansion and hiring decisions (04:45)
Why every orthodontist needs a trusted mastermind or peer group (06:00)
Preparing your practice instead of waiting for the market to change (07:15)

🟦 Additional Resources

I've seen firsthand how quickly orthodontics can change—and the practices that adapt first are almost always the ones that continue to grow.

If this episode got you thinking differently about your practice, don't navigate these changes alone. Find a trusted group of orthodontists who challenge your thinking, share ideas openly, and help you make better decisions.

If you'd like my perspective on your practice or want to learn more about the Orthopreneurs RD community, send me a message. I'm always happy to help however I can.

- Airway Meeting: https://web.orthopreneurs.com/arizonasleepandairway2026

- For more information, visit: https://orthopreneurs.com/

- Join our FREE Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/

What if I told you one of the biggest reasons your orthodontic results don't last has nothing to do with braces or aligners?

As orthodontists, we're trained to move teeth—but lasting results depend on much more than mechanics. In this episode, I sit down with Autumn Henning, speech-language pathologist, certified orofacial myologist, founder of Chrysalis Orofacial, and one of the leading educators in the myofunctional therapy world, to talk about something every orthodontist should understand: oral function matters.

We dive into what myofunctional therapy actually is, why airway treatment requires an interdisciplinary approach, and why no single provider—or appliance—can solve every airway or sleep-related issue. Autumn explains how speech, swallowing, breathing, tongue posture, and orthodontics all work together, and why better diagnosis always leads to better outcomes. If you're treating growing patients—or simply want more stable orthodontic results—this episode will change how you think about collaboration and patient care.

*Quotes*

"Protocols are probabilities. They work a lot of the time, but they're never going to work 100% of the time."
*— Autumn Henning*

"I believe there's a reason for everything. I don't accept 'idiopathic' without asking why."
 *— Autumn Henning*

*Key Takeaways*

Intro (00:00)
Autumn's background & oral function trifecta (01:59)
How Chrysalis and Touch Training were created (03:51)
Why orthodontics can't solve airway problems alone (04:49)
What myofunctional therapy actually is (06:21)
Hardware vs. software (09:16)
Why interdisciplinary care matters (11:31)
What happens during a myofunctional evaluation? (22:03)
Virtual vs. in-person therapy (25:11)
Treatment timeline & investment (27:44)
Why school speech therapy often misses these patients (34:05)
The future of airway treatment is collaboration (37:11)

*🟦 Additional Resources*

If you've ever wondered whether myofunctional therapy belongs in your practice—or how it fits into airway treatment—this episode is the perfect place to start. The more I learn about airway and sleep-disordered breathing, the more convinced I become that great outcomes come from great teams, not individual providers.

If you want to dive deeper, join us at the Orthopreneurs Airway Symposium in Scottsdale, where Autumn will be one of our featured speakers alongside orthodontists, ENTs, oral surgeons, sleep physicians, and other experts focused on interdisciplinary care.

- Airway Meeting: https://opairway.com

- For more information, visit: https://orthopreneurs.com/

- Join our FREE Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/

*To connect with Autumn directly:*

📧 autumn@chrysalisorofacial.com

📸 Instagram: @chrysalisorofacial1

What if I told you the biggest threat to your orthodontic practice isn’t aligners, competition, or GPs doing ortho—it’s your inability to let go of the wrong work?

In this Five Minute Friday, I’m talking about one of the most common mistakes I see orthodontists make when adopting new technology: trying to “make it their own” before they let it actually do what it was designed to do. Whether it’s remote monitoring, financial follow-up, aligners, or any other system, too many doctors create stress by micromanaging tools that are supposed to make their lives easier.

I break down why outsourcing isn’t a weakness—it’s one of the keys to operational efficiency. If you want your team focused on the work that truly moves the practice forward, you have to stop burdening them with tasks that can be done better, faster, and more consistently by people trained specifically to do them. The future of orthodontics belongs to doctors who do great ortho, lead well, and build systems that let their team focus on what matters most.

💬Quotes

“The greatest existential crisis to our profession is not at-home aligners anymore. It’s not GPs doing ortho. It’s the workplace.”
— Dr. Glenn Krieger

“You don’t need to micromanage. You don’t need to make these things your problem.”
— Dr. Glenn Krieger

🎯 Key Takeaways
Intro: The biggest crisis facing orthodontics today (00:00)
Why remote monitoring improves patient care (00:39)
The mistake orthodontists make when adopting new technology (02:45)
Why trying to “make it your own” creates unnecessary stress (03:37)
The dishwasher analogy: why you don’t need to understand every internal process (04:43)
Where doctors and teams should actually focus their energy (06:39)
Why outsourcing helps solve the staffing and efficiency problem (08:56)
Final call: Try remote response and clean up your systems (09:21)

🟦 Additional Resources

I’ve seen firsthand how operational efficiency can lower stress, protect your team, improve patient care, and help your practice make more money.

If you’re using DentalMonitoring—or thinking about it—don’t make the mistake of trying to build everything yourself first. Let Remote Response help you set up your dashboard, create better protocols, and take the pressure off your team. DM me directly if you have questions, and try it for 60 days. If it doesn’t change your life, you don’t have to stay.

- Airway Meeting: https://web.orthopreneurs.com/arizonasleepandairway2026

- For more information, visit: https://orthopreneurs.com/

- Join our FREE Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/

What if I told you the future of clear aligners isn't about cheaper plastic—it's about building a more efficient, more profitable, and less stressful orthodontic practice?

In this episode of The Orthopreneurs Podcast, I sit down with Dr. Blake Davis, a practicing orthodontist who owns three successful practices and helped develop Olive—a new orthodontist-only clear aligner system designed with one goal in mind: helping orthodontists reclaim their time without sacrificing clinical excellence. Rather than focusing solely on aligners, we dive into how better systems, remote monitoring, thoughtful technology, and streamlined workflows can fundamentally change the way you practice.

💬Quotes

"Quality is the one thing that stands strong throughout. It's a race to the top, not to the bottom."
— Dr. Blake Davis

"What's best for the patient is best for our practice."
— Dr. Blake Davis

🎯 Key Takeaways

Intro (00:39)
Meet Dr. Blake Davis and why efficiency matters when running three practices (01:09)
What Olive is and why it was built by orthodontists for orthodontists (02:24)
How integrated systems improve profitability and give doctors their time back (03:00)
What makes Olive different from traditional aligner companies (05:11)
Why reducing refinements is one of the biggest keys to efficiency (07:37)
How remote monitoring is fully integrated into every case (09:03)
The premium patient experience—from packaging to treatment workflow (10:01)
Why staffing shortages make technology more important than ever (12:10)
How outsourcing monitoring reduces workload without sacrificing care (13:08)
The clinical philosophy behind Olive's aligner design (16:10)
Addressing concerns about the company's direct-to-consumer origins (18:04)
Why great systems—not just great plastic—create better outcomes (21:36)
How digital workflows improve chair time and patient experience (24:01)
The financial impact of remote monitoring on overhead (28:01)
Why orthodontists should stop racing to the bottom on price (30:07)
Aligners, efficiency, and the future of the modern orthodontic practice (35:11)
Final thoughts on innovation, technology, and embracing change (41:22)

🟦 Additional Resources

I've seen firsthand how the right technology can transform an orthodontic practice—but only when it's implemented as part of a complete system, not just another product. If you're looking for ways to reduce chair time, improve efficiency, and build a practice that's prepared for the future, this episode is worth your time.

🎧 Listen to the full conversation and let me know what you think.
For questions about Olive, Dr. Blake Davis has offered to connect with listeners.

Visit: https://www.olivortho.com

- Airway Meeting: https://web.orthopreneurs.com/arizonasleepandairway2026

- For more information, visit: https://orthopreneurs.com/

- Join our FREE Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/

What if I told you the reason your practice isn’t growing isn’t your marketing, your team, or your patients—it’s your systems?

In this Five Minute Friday, I’m challenging orthodontists to take an honest look at their operational efficiency. Too many practices assume their systems are working simply because the practice is surviving. But surviving is not the same as scaling, and “good enough” might be exactly what’s keeping you from building a more profitable, less stressful practice.

I break down why bringing in the right technology and expert support early—whether it’s remote monitoring, financial systems, scheduling, or front desk workflows—can save you time, reduce staffing dependency, and make your practice more profitable. This episode is a reminder that being penny-wise and pound-foolish with technology can cost you far more than the investment itself.

💬Quotes

“The biggest mistake you make is thinking you know more than you do.”
— Dr. Glenn Krieger

“If you want to work less, if you want to make more money, the key is operational efficiency.”
— Dr. Glenn Krieger

🎯 Key Takeaways
Intro: Your systems are not as good as you think they are (00:00)
Why “good” is the enemy of great in orthodontic practices (00:53)
The danger of thinking you know more than the experts (01:42)
Why outsourcing first can help you build better systems long term (02:44)
How inefficient workflows quietly hurt your patients and team (03:03)
Why orthodontists become penny-wise and pound-foolish with technology (05:44)
How technology can help you rely less on staffing and more on systems (06:23)
The future of virtual front desk and concierge systems (06:53)
Final challenge: Be honest about your operational efficiency (07:40)

🟦 Additional Resources
I’ve seen firsthand how the right technology and systems can help orthodontists work less, make more, and reduce the chaos inside their practices.

If you’re using DentalMonitoring, struggling with your dashboard, or wondering whether your systems are actually as efficient as you think, reach out to me. Whether you use Remote Response or not, I’m happy to help you look at your systems and find ways to make your practice run better, faster, and more profitably.

- Airway Meeting: https://web.orthopreneurs.com/arizonasleepandairway2026

- For more information, visit: https://orthopreneurs.com/

- Join our FREE Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/