Staff training and onboarding can take a considerable amount of time and effort for independent practitioners, especially during a period of historically high employee turnover. One resource is EssilorLuxottica’s Leonardo platform – specifically the Essentials Program. This approachable solution to new hire training offers three role-specific courses: the Eye Care Dispenser Essentials, the Practice Manager Essentials, and the Front Desk Professional Essentials.
Having a team that can provide high-quality care and a remarkable patient experience is essential for practice growth and profitability. With the Essentials Programs, Leonardo helps independent practice owners with staff training, starting from the onboarding process. The education platform provides new hires with the training needed to develop the skills and knowledge required in their new role, increasing their confidence, reducing turnover, and accelerating their readiness to start creating value for the practice.
Breaking Down the Roles
The Essentials Programs by Leonardo offers three role-specific courses: the Eye Care Dispenser Essentials Program, the Practice Manager Essentials Program, and the Front Desk Essentials Program. The suggested timeframe for each program is one to three weeks, but the time to completion can be adapted to the needs of the individual learner, as the programs can be accessed at any time. This flexibility also allows practice owners to manage when new hires spend time training versus when they spend time with patients. The programs are self-led and allow the learner to be autonomous in the onboarding process, and practice owners can monitor the progress of their teams.
Eye Care Dispenser Essentials Program
The Eye Care Dispenser Essentials Program offers content on the basics of optical care, patient management, and how to provide the best solutions to patients. The program is designed for new hires in an Eye Care Dispenser or Dispensing Optician role.
The course starts with an introduction to the role, providing an overview of the basics of dispensing. In the second section, the new hire is taken through the fundamentals of optics. From the general structure of the eye, to the main refractive errors, and a deep dive into presbyopia, new dispensers will learn how to correctly identify their patients’ needs. Additional modules focus on frames and lenses, as well as various ophthalmic solutions.
In the third section, the program details every key moment of the relationship with customers. New hires will be fully prepared to make a great first connection from the moment the patient walks through the door. They will also discover how to explore the customer’s needs by asking the right questions and actively listening. Lastly, they will learn how to close the sale with customers and lay the grounds for a lasting relationship.
In the fourth and final section of the Eye Care Dispenser Essentials Program, new hires are provided with a range of content focusing on the basics of practice management and how to effectively contribute to the success of the business. There are also some highlights on inventory management, portfolio selection, and operations in an optical laboratory.
Practice Manager Essentials Program
The Practice Manager Essentials Program breaks down how to run a practice. The new hire will cover the basics of vision needs and solutions, how to successfully manage the patient and customer journey, general operations, and managing other employees. The program offers a deep dive into people management aimed at training how to lead a team and create an inclusive environment. An additional module focuses on the importance of marketing activities for the practice.
Front Desk Professional Essentials Program
The Front Desk Professional Essentials Program is relevant for a range of roles, from front desk professionals to receptionists and optical advisors, and it focuses on how to manage patient appointments and records. In the first section, the learner will understand the value these roles can add to the practice, and they will get a preliminary understanding of the key responsibilities. The second section covers how to work with patients and colleagues in a professional manner to build lasting relationships through best practices in effective communication over the phone and in person. It also covers management of appointments to enhance office flow in order to provide each patient with a memorable experience. The third section presents the importance of goal setting and time management, and it also offers a module on how to set the foundation for social media marketing in the practice.
Streamlining Onboarding
Thanks to the Leonardo Essentials Programs, practice owners can optimize their time focusing on creating a positive work environment, reinforcing the on-the-job training, and nurturing talents rather than directly training on the core skills and knowledge of each specific role. On the other side, new hires will have ready-to-use support to start their journey in the practice, and they will instantly be equipped with the basic skills and knowledge they need to efficiently carry out their responsibilities. Because the content is all online, the learner can access training whenever there is downtime, without taking away time with patients.
The Essentials Programs are part of the educational offerings of Leonardo, EssilorLuxottica’s learning platform that makes quality education accessible to everyone in the industry. It draws from a century of knowledge and expertise to create best-in-class content designed and taught by industry experts. Within these programs, learners can expect to find compelling content that truly reflects their needs, coupled with an intuitive and user-friendly experience. The presence of multiple modules developed in multiple formats allows the platform to adopt different ways of receiving and retaining knowledge, depending on the learner. Additionally, over time, these sessions can be enriched with new content, delivered either through additional on-demand content or via live sessions.
Educating Every Corner of the Eye Care Industry
Leonardo is a global platform that not only leverages a central team that guarantees the quality of the service provided to ECPs, but it has also built a very strong local presence in the different geographies to ensure relevant content for each specific market. The local North America Leonardo team represents constant support for the ECPs using the platform, providing a wide variety of expertise across brands, products, vision care, and practice management.
The Essentials Programs are specifically designed to be easily accessible anytime, and they effortlessly adapt to each practice’s schedule. Overall, Leonardo was created to be accessible not just for a small few, but for every member of the vision care community. Enroll your new hires today in the Essentials Programs on Leonardo.
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