Dental office manager vs front desk manager

The differences between dental office managers and front desk managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a dental office manager and a front desk manager. Additionally, a dental office manager has an average salary of $55,915, which is higher than the $40,802 average annual salary of a front desk manager.

The top three skills for a dental office manager include patients, patient care and customer service. The most important skills for a front desk manager are front desk operations, reservations, and customer service.

Dental office manager vs front desk manager overview

	Dental Office Manager	Front Desk Manager
Yearly salary	$55,915	$40,802
Hourly rate	$26.88	$19.62
Growth rate	28%	-
Number of jobs	68,831	54,551
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does a dental office manager do?

A dental office manager oversees the business operations of the dental practice, including billing, expenses, and budget. Dental office managers are leaders in the practice. Among their duties and responsibilities are appointment schedule maintenance and staff supervision. They coordinate the treatment of patients and oversee billing. They may become successful when they incorporate modern communication skills.

What does a front desk manager do?

A front desk manager is an employee employed to manage a hotel's reception area, coordinate all front desk activities, and supervise the support staff. A manager is expected to handle guest complaints and schedule training for front desk staff. Apart from handling hotel guests, a front desk manager must be able to handle cash, accounting procedures, and general administration. A manager should also possess talents such as multitask, manage time as well as proficient in computer skills.

Dental office manager vs front desk manager salary

Dental office managers and front desk managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dental Office Manager	Front Desk Manager
Average salary	$55,915	$40,802
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $77,000	Between $27,000 And $59,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	New York, NY
Highest paying state	New York	New York
Best paying company	GPAC	RH
Best paying industry	Professional	Hospitality

Differences between dental office manager and front desk manager education

There are a few differences between a dental office manager and a front desk manager in terms of educational background:

	Dental Office Manager	Front Desk Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common major	Dental Assisting	Business
Most common college	University of Minnesota - Twin Cities	Cornell University

Dental office manager vs front desk manager demographics

Here are the differences between dental office managers' and front desk managers' demographics:

	Dental Office Manager	Front Desk Manager
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 9.7% Female, 90.3%	Male, 31.4% Female, 68.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 19.3% Asian, 5.3% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 5.4% White, 60.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between dental office manager and front desk manager duties and responsibilities

Dental office manager example responsibilities.

Manage medical health documents, submit laboratory works and input diagnoses, ICD-9 and procedure codes.
Manage daily office operations, policies and procedures, and OSHA compliance in a fast pace setting.
Help dentist manage dental and medical emergencies by maintaining CPR certification.
Manage business accounts receivable and payable, payroll, and insurance verification and submission responsibilities.
Work a POS register and sell movie tickets.
Ensure HIPAA compliance, perform monthly inventory, order supplies.

Front desk manager example responsibilities.

Manage vendor relationships in support of CRM and sales reporting projects.
Serve as a point of escalation for guest problem resolution and manage all VIP special guests and execution of requests.
Manage facility procedures relate to insurance and billing and solve patients' queries regarding their insurance renewal and expiry.
Direct a team of three, successfully providing resolution to daily incidents, meeting SLA and KPI objectives.
Supervise entire front of the house functions including front desk and concierge personnel, bell staff and PBX associates.
Utilize Marriott policies and procedures to train new employees and keep proper records to relay training progress to hotel supervisors.

Dental office manager vs front desk manager skills

Common dental office manager skills

Patients, 24%
Patient Care, 11%
Customer Service, 10%
Dental Care, 6%
OSHA, 6%
Payroll, 5%

Common front desk manager skills

Front Desk Operations, 16%
Reservations, 15%
Customer Service, 11%
Guest Service, 8%
Room Availability, 5%
Customer Satisfaction, 5%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Dental Office Manager
Dental Office Manager vs Front Desk Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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