Are Your PPO Fees Costing You Thousands in 2026? How to Negotiate and Take Back Control

How Do Successful Dental Groups Run on Data? The KPIs, Metrics, and Operations Behind Profitable DSOs

When a dental practice grows beyond one location, the things that used to live in your head suddenly need systems, dashboards, and clean data behind them. Without that foundation, growth slows, problems hide longer, and decisions get made on instinct instead of insight. In this episode of the Insurance Untangled Podcast, host Don Adeesha sits down with Vincent Cardillo, founder of Mava Dental Advisors and a 25+ year veteran in scaling dental service organizations. Vincent led one group to #14 on the Inc. 500 list with 12,896% growth, and today he provides outsourced C-suite services to emerging dental groups through Mava and their proprietary performance platform, Pronto. Don and Vincent unpack what actually changes when a single practice becomes a group, why most owners struggle with the same five gaps (org chart, accountability, SOPs, training, and numbers), and how to coach yourself out of the "I'll just do it myself" trap. Vincent also breaks down the four KPI buckets every group should be tracking — financial, operational, clinical, and culture — and shares a powerful insight: focusing on just two metrics (missed calls and percentage of new patient calls booked) can grow your new patient count by 20% in three months without spending another dollar on marketing. In this episode, you'll learn: * The five biggest operational gaps owners hit when scaling from one to multiple locations * Why promoting your most loyal team member into management can backfire — and how to handle it * How to have the honest "what do you really want?" conversation with long-tenured staff * The four KPI buckets every dental group should track (financial, operational, clinical, culture) * The two metrics that can lift new patient numbers 20% in 90 days * Why benchmarks matter more than dashboards * How data-driven groups build the confidence to open practice #2

Are Your PPO Fees Costing You Thousands in 2026? How to Negotiate and Take Back Control

In this episode of Insurance Untangled, hosts Ben Tuinei and Tessina Bullock dive into one of the most overlooked revenue opportunities for dental practices: PPO fee negotiations. Many practices assume insurance reimbursements are fixed, but Ben and Tessina explain why that is not always the case. They discuss why practices often avoid negotiations, how to prepare before approaching insurance companies, and what data matters most when evaluating PPO relationships. You'll learn why knowing your office fees, tracking write-offs, understanding plan profitability, and building leverage are essential steps toward improving reimbursements. Even small fee increases can create a major financial impact over time, especially for practices that remain in-network. This episode is a practical, straight-to-the-point conversation for dental teams looking to take more control of their insurance relationships and stop leaving revenue on the table. Topics covered include: * Why many dental practices delay or avoid PPO negotiations * Whether insurance companies really negotiate fees * How to prepare your data before starting the negotiation process * The importance of tracking write-offs and plan profitability * Why small reimbursement increases can make a big difference * Key takeaways for practices ready to start negotiating For more resources, visit Insuranceuntangled.com

Why Doing "More" Isn't the Answer — Doing the Right Things Is!

In this episode, Ben Tuinei and Naren Arulrajah uncover why doing more—more ads, more PPOs, more hustle—often leads to burnout and lower profitability. Learn how to identify what's actually holding your practice back, and how to solve the right problems using data, call tracking, and smarter marketing and insurance participation. Real stories, practical tips, and a powerful reminder: less is more when done right.

Why Your Schedule Controls You and How to Change That

In this episode, Ben Tuinei and Naren Arulrajah talk about why so many dentists feel stuck with busy but unproductive schedules. They explain how the real problem often starts with ignoring marketing until it's too late—and how depending on insurance just makes things worse. You'll learn how to take control by attracting the right patients, building long-term marketing habits, and setting smart goals. If you're ready to stress less and gain more freedom, this episode will show you where to start.

What Google Really Wants From Your Dental Website in 2026

In this episode, Ben Tunei and Naren Arulrajah break down what Google truly wants from your dental website in 2026. They explore how Google's AI-first approach is reshaping search, why beautiful websites alone won't cut it, and how E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trust), mobile performance, and helpful, trustworthy content are now essential for ranking. Learn what it takes to stand out online and attract more of the right patients to your practice.