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For Johnson Family Dental, a small dental firm in Madisonville, Tennessee that’s been in business for over 35 years, staying ahead of the competition has always been a priority. With over 3,000 active patients, Johnson Family Dental thrives due to the hard work of its 12 employees. However, according to Dr. Austin Johnson, owner of Johnson Family Dental, staying in business for nearly four decades has required a smart retention strategy.
“When you are in the small business world of dentistry, and you're competing against all these major corporate offices, any way you can find to get an edge is going to only benefit you and staff retention and staff recruitment,” said Johnson. “When you're recruiting people and trying to keep staff, they see retirement plans being offered at the corporate offices. That's something they're going to consider when deciding where to work.”
“When you're recruiting people and trying to keep staff, they see retirement plans being offered at the corporate offices. That's something they're going to consider when deciding where to work.”
Dr. Austin Johnson, owner of Johnson Family Dental
To keep up with the competition, Johnson began looking into offering retirement benefits and reached out to Human Interest. As a new owner of the firm, Johnson wanted the experience of working with a retirement plan provider to be painless and seamless for both him and his employees. That meant a quick and easy set-up, onboarding, and distribution process, which he found through Human Interest.
Quick and easy set-up and less manual work with a payroll integration and Concierge plan
Johnson found his firm’s 401(k) onboarding to be seamless, largely thanks to the Human Interest onboarding team, which led him through each step of the process. Because Johnson Family Dental uses Gusto as its primary payroll provider, the practice was easily able to integrate its payroll with the Human Interest platform. This helps Johnson avoid manually tracking retirement data and ensures that his employees are receiving the right plan information.
Johnson also selected the Human Interest Concierge service level, which offers the highest level of support and comes with a dedicated account manager. “The process overall is very hands-off,” said Johnson. “And the one issue that we did have [with the IRS], we were set up the right way with the right people, and it was resolved very quickly.”
Choosing a safe harbor plan to stay compliant
Within a few months of managing their 401(k) plan, Johnson Family Dental’s retirement plan was found to have an expensive issue related to a failed nondiscrimination test. Human Interest worked with Johnson to customize his plan free of charge to include a safe harbor provision with a 3% nonelective contribution, a six-month minimum service requirement, and an age requirement of 21 years and older. By adding this safe harbor provision, Johnson Family Dental was able to correct the issue.
This switch is a win-win for the firm and its employees. Not only does a safe harbor help the firm stay compliant with IRS requirements, but adding an employer nonelective contribution also helps its employees invest in their futures. After assessing the cost of correction, Johnson realized the money he paid on fees would be better spent on his employees. “When we talked it through with Human Interest and our CPA, it was pretty obvious that [a safe harbor] was a smart switch for us and a smart way to give our staff a little bit more of a boost on the retirement as well.”
Providing retirement benefits leads to better retention rates and more financial stability for employees
Since offering a 401(k), 87% of Johnson’s employees have elected to participate and contribute to their retirement plan, and many of his employees have personally told him that they believe having a retirement plan with an employer contribution is a huge benefit.
“In dentistry, the practice owner is also typically the main clinician as well, meaning your hands are tied with treating patients,” said Johnson. “As a new owner in the dental field, my focus needs to be elsewhere. If you can outsource something in a cost-effective way and know that it will get done [without] having to spend time working on it, that's huge. It’s kind of a no-brainer.
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