Women dentists are becoming more prevalent and invaluable. But the ability to capitalize on their assets depends on the profession’s interests and ability to expand the necessary efforts and resources to support and develop women’s careers as the profession has done for men dental file. One of the most important ways an organization can cater more to women is with flexibility. Women tend to spend more time caregiving (up to 50% more than males), whether it’s for children or aging parents, and thus have more priorities to juggle.4 That’s why women are more likely to practice dentistry part-time (20% of female dentists versus 12% of males).2 When I first began leading clinician recruiting at DentalOne Partners, I encountered a bias against hiring part-timers. We needed a provider who could work 5 days each week, but many female dentists were unable to work a full week’s schedule due to a need to balance their professional and personal lives scian nebulizer. As a solution, I created overlapping clinician opportunities that allowed 2 part-time clinicians to share job responsibilities. With these new opportunities, females are granted the flexibility they need, and our organization has enhanced hours and coverage at the practice level. Since I am a “priority mom” myself, meaning I have lots of different priorities, I could understand the need to alter schedules when one’s children are young. But if I hadn’t personally cared for a critically ill adult or toddler, I might not have understood exactly why this group requests the work schedule they do. Instead, it was my familiarity with the female-centric perspective, as well as the many other females on the DentalOne Partners’ executive team, that helped us create an informed solution. Throughout my career, I have encountered issues missed simply due to a lack of knowledge, which is why it’s so important to have diverse leaders who can speak to all types of experiences and needs. What Female Professionals Can Do My biggest piece of advice for female dentists interested in the dental field, and in leadership positions specifically, is to be extremely diligent in researching opportunities. When you pick your position of employment, explore whether the organization has other female leaders. Ask yourself if there is anyone at the top of the company who has been through what you have been through. If the organization hasn’t taken actionable steps to meet the female workforce need, it may not understand what you’re walking through in life. Look for female-centric companies with proven track records that can lead to a successful partnership on both sides. Also, know your subject matter as well as you can, and don’t shy away. Look at successful women around you. In the words of one of my favorite female leaders, Nancy Kane, director of the Health Care Management Program at Harvard University, “Figure out who you are, and do more of it.” Women have unlimited potential. Considering how the numbers of women in dentistry have grown since the late 1970s, female leadership in the profession has a bright future Dental Chair. But our future successes will require more than strength of numbers. We must commit to a concerted effort to advance a more representative number of women into top leadership positions across our profession and progress the industry in a positive direction for all.