Finding the Edge: ProVision 2024 Conference

Themed ‘Edge’, ProVision’s 2024 conference attracted an enthusiastic crowd of 300 people from around the country and showcased the group’s proactive services for independent optometry.

From welcomes by CEO Tony Jones and Chair Rowena Beckenham through to the updates from the executive leadership team, optometrists were left in no doubt that ProVision has experts on hand, and a comprehensive collection of resources to support their businesses, from acquisition and startup through to succession planning and sale.

The biannual ProVision conference is a highlight in the calendar, serving up an inspiring program delivered by motivational speakers from all walks of life. This year’s program was kicked off by Dr Richard Harris OAM, the anaesthetist and cave diver who played an instrumental role in saving the lives of 12 young footballers and their coach trapped 2.4 kilometres inside a flooded cave system in Thailand. Although the cave rescue occurred back in 2018, and there has been plenty of coverage since, I never tire of hearing more. From the silence in the room during Dr Harris’ talk, it was clear the audience felt the same.

The crux of Dr Harris’s message centred on risk management. While the rescue plan – sedating the boys and diving them out – seemed impossibly dangerous, inaction would have certainly resulted in their deaths. This decision, though fraught with ethical and medical dilemmas, ultimately saved all 13 lives.

Dr Harris drew parallels between the rescue and everyday risk management, noting that we cannot (and should not) aim to avoid all risks. He advocated for allowing young people to experience and learn from manageable risks, building resilience and decision-making skills.

The presentation underscored the importance of courageous decision making in the face of uncertainty, a lesson applicable to optometry and beyond. His experience demonstrated that sometimes, calculated risks are necessary for achieving extraordinary outcomes, whether in extreme scenarios or professional practice.

ProVision Initiatives and Member Services

In his welcome address, Mr Jones spoke about the importance of developing a competitive edge in the post-COVID landscape, to help position practices for future strength. Showcasing ProVision’s impressive growth, Mr Jones cited the group’s consistent above-market retail sales growth and increased member engagement across various services.

He acknowledged the crucial role of supplier partners and encouraged members to actively participate in shaping Provision’s future strategies through surveys, advisory committees, and focus groups.

Ms Beckenham addressed optometrists about the organisation’s initiatives to enable members to focus on patient care, by providing resources including ProAccounts, RecruitPro, and ProIntel. Ms Beckenham also outlined the board’s strategic involvement, working with the senior leadership team to ensure ProVision’s relevance and sustainability. She assured members of ProVision’s strength and stability, reaffirming their dedication to fostering a thriving future for independent optometry in Australia.

In a strategic update, ProVision’s executive team outlined several key initiatives aimed at supporting independent optometrists. A major focus is leveraging big data through the new ProIntel system, which provides practices with powerful insights into patient demographics and business performance. This is complemented by plans for advanced marketing automation to help practices engage more effectively with existing patients.

To aid practice transitions, a new platform called optometrypracticesales.com.au has been launched, offering enhanced listings for buying and selling practices. Social media support is being bolstered with the upcoming ‘ProSocial’ system, providing a centralised hub for content from ProVision and industry partners.

Staff engagement strategies, including regular check-ins and wellness initiatives, are being developed with potential for rollout to member practices. The team is also exploring new product and service opportunities, such as protection plans and sustainability initiatives, to keep members competitive. Recruitment support continues to evolve, with a simplified online toolkit now available.

Micheal Knipe Address

Gary Crerie, a retired optometrist and former ProVision Director, delivered the Micheal Knipe lecture, reflecting on the history and philosophy of independent optometry in Australia. He spoke about the challenges faced by early optometrists, including opposition from ophthalmologists and discrimination by health funds. Mr Crerie recognised the importance of visionary leaders like the late Micheal Knipe in shaping the profession. He encouraged the audience to be “warriors for change” and “pollinators for growth” by proactively engaging with their communities and professional bodies.

Retail Trends

Paul Zahra, head of the Australian Retailer’s Association (ARA), addressed optometrists on the current retail landscape and emerging trends. He highlighted the challenges faced by small businesses post-COVID, including cost-of-living pressures and changing consumer behaviours. Online shopping has grown significantly, with 5.7 million Australian households shopping online monthly, but is stabilising. Mr Zahra emphasised the importance of having an online presence, even for optometrists, as a window to their customer base.

He discussed the circular economy trend, with 7.3 million Australians both buying and selling second-hand goods, and suggested optometrists consider how this might apply to their industry. Offering a recycling service for eyewear, for example, may bring customers back.

In a wide-ranging presentation, Mr Zahra also covered off sustainability and transparency in the supply chain; the importance of diversity and inclusion; and artificial intelligence (AI) as an opportunity, particularly in customer service and inventory management. He recommended optometrists embrace AI on their websites and use customer relationship management systems effectively to make data-driven decisions.

Finally, he addressed the challenges of managing a changing workforce, emphasising the need for flexibility and mental health support.

Evolving Retail Strategies

Drawing on 20 years’ experience in retail, Brian Walker who founded Retail Doctor Group, built on Mr Zahra’s presentation, reinforcing the importance of adapting to evolving consumer behaviours and technological advancements.

Despite the growing significance of online retail, he stressed the need for “relationships before transactions”; personalised human interaction remains crucial, optometrists must focus on creating experience-activated and interactive shopping environments. To do this, he encouraged practices to move from “the herd to the hunter”, leveraging technology for targeted marketing and relationship building via segmented customer databases.

Mr Walker discussed the balance between sales, stock, and space in retail, noting how these metrics interplay to optimise business performance. He encouraged business owners to take an objective perspective on their operations and to continually seek improvement, avoiding complacency in their success.

Embracing Cultural Intelligence

Cultural intelligence has never been more integral to success in today’s diverse landscape. A presentation by Anoushka Gungadin, CEO, board director, and entrepreneur, highlighted how diversity is a given, but inclusion is a choice. Eye care professionals must recognise their unconscious biases and actively work to create an inclusive environment for both staff and patients.

Cultural intelligence is good for business: it allows practices to attract and retain employees, grow patient bases, and enhance brand value. By understanding the changing demographics of our communities, optometrists can adapt practices and better serve patients.

Practical steps for improvement include:

• Conducting diversity audits,
• Implementing inclusive recruitment strategies,
• Offering multilingual welcome signage, and
• Enhancing interpersonal skills through training.

Ms Gungadin said authenticity and curiosity will help build connections with people from different backgrounds. For optometrists considering succession planning, understanding the shifting demographics is crucial for practice valuation and future success.

AI in Optometric Practice

In a compelling presentation, software engineer and educator Inbal Rodnay inspired optometrists to embrace the power of AI, noting that while AI has long been used in various sectors, the advent of user-friendly interfaces like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity, have democratised access to this powerful technology.

Ms Rodnay demonstrated the potential for AI-powered ‘scribes’ to streamline patient consultations, allowing practitioners to focus on patient interaction rather than note-taking. She addressed concerns about data security, emphasising the need for patient consent and careful management of AI-generated content.

While acknowledging potential challenges, Ms Rodnay posited that integrating AI into daily practice could significantly reduce overheads, improve communication, and ultimately enhance patient care.

The conference was rounded off by a series of workshops during which Ms Rodnay delved further into how optometrists can use AI in practice for activities such as patient notes, marketing, and summarising long-format articles for easier consumption. Nigel Collin, who was also the MC for the event, spoke about how practices can create their mindset edge by finding gaps: the small spaces that can be worked on to shift mindsets, find efficiencies, and improve returns. A panel of optometrists and suppliers spoke about how to tap into the commercial opportunities presented by the increasing prevalence of dry eye disease across all age groups within the community. As well as presenting the opportunities, their workshop opened attendees’ eyes to the need to have a clear strategy for service delivery, keeping in mind the need to achieve a return on investment.

The conference wound up with an interactive session by Kate Christie, author and time-management expert, who reminded the audience that “life is too short” and that making things happen can provide an execution edge. With this in mind, she urged them to dispense with setting enormous (and overwhelming) goals, and instead focus on the moment, setting smaller goals, identifying the barriers, and pushing through to achieve outcomes. Building momentum was the key takeaway.

In a fitting conference conclusion, Rabia Siddique, a retired British Army senior officer, international humanitarian lawyer, and former prosecutor, drew on her own awe-inspiring life experiences as a hostage negotiator in the Middle East to motivate ProVision members to embrace courageous leadership and return to practices feeling empowered by what is possible through assertive decision making and by overcoming challenges. You could have heard a pin drop before the standing ovation.