Ashish Tholia
Ashish is a strategy executive that loves building teams and developing and executing strategies on 'where to play' and 'how to win'. Ashish helps shape corporate and growth strategies and execution via corporate venture capital, strategic partnerships, and go-to-market, leveraging his multi-disciplinary experience across multiple industries in goods and services.Ashish is currently leading strategic investments and corporate development for Delta Dental of CA. Over the last 2.5 years, he has helped stand-up Delta Dental’s corporate venture and partnerships function, and has invested and partnered with companies that are at the forefront of innovation in the oral health ecosystem.
Dr. Bruce Lieberthal
Bruce serves as the Chief Innovation Officer for Henry Schein, Inc., reporting to Chris Pendergast, Henry Schein’s Global Chief Technology Officer. In this role, he is at the nexus of evaluating hundreds of cutting edge solutions and technologies, advising the many medical and dental business units of Henry Schein on important emerging trends and helping connect the company’s global sales, marketing and distribution capabilities with important new products that help its customers run better practices and deliver excellent patient care. Previously, from 2009 until 2015, he was the Vice President, Emerging Technologies for Henry Schein, Inc., reporting to the president of Henry Schein’s Global Practice Solutions Group. Bruce had oversight responsibility for Henry Schein Medical Systems (MicroMD) between 2011 and 2017 and currently leads Henry Schein One’s DDX business. He led the ConnectDental team, focused on the launch of Henry Schein’s digital dentistry business, for two years and worked closely with the Corporate Business Development Group advising on technology opportunities. He started, at Henry Schein, as the Director of Product Management to the leadership team in Utah when Discus Dental Software was acquired by Henry Schein, Inc. in May 2007 and was promoted, in 2008, to Vice-President of Product Management and Development, managing all of Henry Schein Practice Solutions’ software lines and development teams.
Bruce was the founder of Direct Vision Software, the General Manager of Discus Dental Software and has been a leader in dental technology for almost 35 years. He graduated SUNY Buffalo’s School of Dentistry in 1983, practiced dentistry for 14 years between 1984 and 1997, and brings much knowledge to the Henry Schein team.
Dr. Kyle Stanley
Dr. Kyle Stanley, DDS, is an award-winning dentist and the chief clinical officer at Pearl, an AI company specializing in diagnostic and business analytics solutions for the dental industry. A graduate and former faculty member of USC’s Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, Dr. Stanley’s esthetics, dental implant, and smile design research has been published in the top international dental journals. He has been honored with the AAED’s Charles L. Pincus Award for outstanding achievement in esthetic dentistry, and named to the AACD’s "The Next Generation of Cosmetic Dentistry" and Seattle Study Club’s "Top 10 Young Educators in Dentistry" lists. As a key opinion leader and public speaker, Dr. Stanley has become the dental industry’s leading advocate for mental health awareness. His private practice is located in Beverly Hills, CA.
Dr. Linda Vidone
Linda Vidone, D.M.D., is the Chief Clinical Officer/V.P. Clinical Management at Delta Dental of Massachusetts (DDMA). She has 20 years of dental experience in clinical private practice, dental school faculty, and in the dental benefits industry. She is responsible for all clinical programs at DDMA which include dental/medical integration, utilization review and management, oral health analytics, benefit criteria, clinical and contractual appeal review, and sets standards for quality care confirming DDMA maintains a quality network of providers. She continuously stays abreast of innovations in oral health ensuring that DDMA continues to enhance and provide the best dental benefits to its customers. Dr. Vidone is a liaison to the National Scientific Committee and Policy Committee for Delta Dental Plans Association.
Dr. Vidone is a hands-on leader in the dental insurance industry. Beyond her work with DDMA she currently serves as Immediate Past President and Chair of the Certification Committee for the American Association of Dental Consultants. She is chairperson on National Association of Dental Terminology workgroup, is a voting member of the American Dental Association’s Code Maintenance Committee, where she represents American Health Insurance and a voting member for the Dental Quality Alliance as well as serving on their educational committee. She holds membership with the American Dental Association and American Academy of Periodontology, National Healthcare Fraud Association, and New England Dental Society. She lectures nationally on Dental insurance, Claim coding, Opioid Epidemic in Dentistry and Quality in Oral Health most recently at the American Academy of Periodontology and Tufts School of Dental Medicine.
She received her DMD and advanced certificates in Prosthetics and Periodontology at Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in biology from Providence College. She maintains a private practice in Periodontology in Brookline, Massachusetts.
Lou Azzara
Lou Azzara graduated with an economics degree from Binghamton University and later received an MBA from Florida Metropolitan University. He started his dental career in 1993 as a Regional Manager for the Leach & Dillon Co., and in 1995, cofounded the Captek™ Precious Chemicals U.S. Division, where he grew the company over $25M through a customer centric focus, becoming one of the most recognized brand names in the dental world. In 2010, Lou joined The Argen Corporation® as the Executive Vice President of Business Development and was later appointed to Chief Marketing Officer. During his time with Argen, Lou helped drive the development of Argen Digital, the largest digital solution center serving the dental laboratory. In 2013, he became President of BEGO® USA, providing advanced digital technology and advanced restorative solutions to the dental industry. In 2016, Lou joined the Dental Services Group® (DSG®) organization, serving as Senior Vice President of Operations and Strategy. In 2018, DSG appointed Lou as the Chief Executive Officer. At DSG®, Lou leads one of the largest nationwide networks of dental laboratories and continues his dedication towards the evolution of dental health care through innovative digital solutions.
Dr. Markus Blatz
Dr. Markus B. Blatz is Professor of Restorative Dentistry, Chairman of the Department of Preventive and Restorative Sciences and Assistant Dean for Digital Innovation and Professional Development at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he also founded the Penn Dental Medicine CAD/CAM Ceramic Center, an interdisciplinary venture to study emerging technologies and new ceramic materials while providing state-of-the-art esthetic clinical care. Dr. Blatz graduated from Albert-Ludwigs University in Freiburg, Germany, and was awarded additional Doctorate Degrees, a Postgraduate Certificate in Prosthodontics, and a Professorship from the same University.
Dr. Blatz is co-founder and immediate past President of the International Academy for Adhesive Dentistry (IAAD). He is a Board-certified Diplomat in the German Society for Prosthodontics and Biomaterials (DGPro) and a member of multiple other professional organizations, including the American Academy of Esthetic Dentistry, the European Academy of Esthetic Dentistry, the International College of Prosthodontists, the American College of Prosthodontists (honorary member), Academy of Osseointegration, and O.K.U. Honor Dental Society. He serves on the editorial boards of numerous recognized scientific dental journals and is Associate Editor of Quintessence International and the International Journal of Prosthodontics. He is coauthor of the international bestseller “evolution – contemporary protocols for anterior single-tooth implants”, which has been translated in over 8 languages.
Prior to joining Penn Dental Medicine as Chairperson of the Department of Preventive and Restorative Sciences in September 2006, Dr. Blatz was at Louisiana State University (LSU) Health Sciences Center School of Dentistry in New Orleans, where he served as Chairman of the Department of Comprehensive Dentistry and Biomaterials and Assistant Dean for Clinical Research. During his tenure at LSU, Dr. Blatz also directed the Masters of Science in Oral Biology Program and was a senior faculty member in the Department of Prosthodontics. From 1994 to 1998 he was an Assistant Professor and from 1998 to 1999 a senior faculty member in the Department of Prosthodontics at Albert Ludwigs University Freiburg School of Dentistry in Freiburg, Germany.
A widely published and internationally respected lecturer, Dr. Blatz’s main focus within clinical practice and research is esthetic dentistry with an emphasis on implantology and dental materials, particularly ceramics and adhesion. Dr. Blatz is the recipient of multiple teaching and research awards and has published and lectured extensively on dental esthetics, restorative materials, and implant dentistry. He was recently named one of the “World’s Top 100 Doctors in Dentistry”.
Merritt Dake
Merritt Dake’s vision as the CEO of Rock Dental Brands has always been founded on providing affordable, quality dental care to all patients. This has been accomplished through progressive partnerships with dentists and dental specialists who have been able to focus solely on the care for their patients while Merritt and his team have served to provide centralized practice management services that provide all back-end support needed to successfully run and grow a clinic. Over the past 7 years, Merritt has been committed to providing tools for dentists and specialists so that they can provide the highest quality care possible.
Merritt is respected by his colleagues as an intelligent and humble leader. Full of enthusiasm and ambition, he thrives on hard work and sets a good example for his team that has grown from 9 employees in 2012 to approximately 600 employees in 2018.
In 2011, he entered the dental industry as CFO of a dental support organization where he consolidated 11 individual orthodontic practices into a centralized operating platform. Merritt has overseen the growth of Rock Dental Brands through acquisitions and de novo clinics to from 2 locations in 2012 to 74 locations since 2018. Merritt started his career at Deloitte providing tax and M&A consulting services to private equity groups, funds, & Fortune 500 companies. He attended Southern Methodist University where he received Bachelor degrees in both Business Administration, Accounting as well as International Studies.
He lives in Little Rock with his wife Lauren and their four children.
Mischa Reis
As SVP Strategy & Corporate Development, Mischa Reis leads Envista’s strategic planning and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activities, including portfolio management, market analysis, deal sourcing, valuation, due diligence, negotiation, and deal execution.
Mischa joined Danaher in 2012 as VP Business Development and Strategy for the Dental Platform, with responsibility for driving its strategy and inorganic growth activities. During his tenure, he completed more than 10 deals spanning four continents, ranging from small minority investments in innovative startups to the $2B+ acquisition of Nobel Biocare.
Prior to Danaher, Mischa worked at Fortune 500 company Avery Dennison for 10 years in a variety of business development, marketing, and strategy roles, most recently as VP and Head of Corporate Strategy. He started his career as a consultant at The Boston Consulting Group in Frankfurt, Germany.
Mischa holds a master’s degree equivalent in Business Administration & Industrial Engineering from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany. He lives in Los Angeles, California, with his wife and three kids and is a passionate soccer player (and even more passionate soccer fan of his hometown team, Bayern Munich).
Ophir Tanz
Ophir Tanz is an award-winning serial entrepreneur and technologist. He is the founder and CEO of Pearl, an AI company focused on solving fundamental problems in the dental industry. Previously, Mr. Tanz founded and led GumGum to several hundred million in global revenue by applying computer vision machine learning to drive and measure value for the digital media and sports sponsorship industries. Mr. Tanz received his bachelor in computer science and master’s in information systems from Carnegie Mellon University. An active member of the Los Angeles startup community, Mr. Tanz actively advises and invests in startups and, in 2017, was named one of Goldman Sachs’ 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs.
Dr. Seth Gibree
Dr. Seth Gibree is Senior Director of Clinical Advocacy for Heartland Dental. Dr. Gibree focuses on artificial intelligence, machine learning, and clinical advocacy. As a key opinion leader and industry expert with more than 20 years of experience, his expertise spans from strategy and communication to operations and organizational development. Before his time with Heartland Dental, he started and owned multiple multi-disciplinary dental practices. Gibree has served on the Editorial Advisory Board of Dentaltown Magazine since 2009.
Ron Bolden
Ron serves in the capacity of Cigna’s Vice President, Dental Market Insight. As part of Cigna's dental senior leadership, his responsibilities include working with team in formulating and implementing the company’s growth strategy by driving the company’s business intelligence, acting as the business lead in evaluation, implementation and delivery of strategic business relationships, guiding and delivering innovation, and serving as the company spokesperson in industry associations.
Prior to this, Ron served as Regional Marketing Officer for Cigna Healthcare's west region where his team was tasked with driving the development and execution of strategic business plans and marketing activities in west markets to deliver competitively superior growth. In all, Ron has worked at Cigna for 21 years in various positions.
Ron began his career in the health insurance industry after obtaining a B.S. in Biology from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. Ron resides in Scottsdale, AZ, where he currently serves as a board member and board Chair for the National Association of Dental Plans, and was previously a board member and Vice-Chair for the Arizona Diversity Council.
Ron and, his wife Gail, have two children, Camille and Steven. For hobbies, Ron is an avid hiker and enjoys competing in trail races, sprint triathlons and short distance runs.
Dr. Roshan Parikh
Dr. Roshan Parikh ("Dr. Ro") was the Founder of a midsize Dental Support Organization (DSO) based in Chicago . His vision is to build a best-in-class dental group that provides excellent back-end business support and gives dentists the opportunity to focus on patient care providing quality, convenience, and consistency. He bought his first practice in the south suburbs of Chicago in 2008, which was three employees in 650 square feet, and grew that into a 20+ network of multi-specialty dental group practices with over 70 dentists and dental specialists in a constant state of growth, while always maintaining unparalleled patient care and clinical quality.
Good medicine is good business, and by doing things the right way (by always putting the patient first), success will follow. In my dental practices, I work to maintain relationships as a reputable clinician and do right by the patients and people I work with each day. My passion for dentistry runs deep, which is why mediocrity is never an option. - Dr. Ro
Dr. Ro is a proud graduate from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) – College of Dentistry. He also obtained a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from Loyola University Chicago with dual emphases in finance and marketing. Some of his professional memberships include American Dental Association (ADA), Georgia Dental Association (GDA), and the American Association of Cosmetic Dentists (AACD). He is very active in the community and is a member of several organizations including Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Give Back A Smile, Karma International & Generation Rescue.
In his free time he enjoys traveling, biking, basketball, and running in the park with his Goldendoodle, Jordy.
Dr. Sanjay Mallya
Dr. Mallya is Associate Professor and Chair of Oral & Maxillofacial Radiology at the UCLA School of Dentistry. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology. Dr. Mallya has authored numerous scientific manuscripts and book chapters for major text books in Oral Radiology, Periodontology, Endodontology and Implantology. He is the editor for White and Pharoah’s Oral Radiology, the premier textbook in oral radiology worldwide. He is active in organized dentistry. He is Past-President of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, and serves on the board for the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission.
Steve Bilt
Steven C. Bilt is the co-founder and CEO of Smile Brands, Inc., a leading Dental Support Organization with nearly 450 affiliated dental offices across 18 states. He co-founded the company in 1998 with just 11 locations and charted the organization’s rapid growth through a combination of acquisitions and de novo practice openings to create the first nationwide DSO. Steve also serves as Chairman of the Smiles for Everyone Foundation, which has delivered over $25 million in donated dentistry across seven countries since 2011. He is the chief architect of the company’s award-winning culture and has been recognized as a Glassdoor Top CEO for the past two years, and was named Best CEO for Women and Best CEO for Diversity by Comparably. He has also received many honors for his philanthropy, including; the 2020 Pepperdine University Graziadio Business School ‘Best for the World Leader’ Alumni Award, 2019 Association for Corporate Growth Founders Award and the CEO of the Year for Social Impact from Wharton. He has also been named EY/USA Today Entrepreneur of the Year and is a member of the Entrepreneur Hall of Fame. Steve is a founding member of the Association of Dental Support Organizations (ADSO), past President, and current member of the Executive Committee.
Tom Daulton
Tom Daulton is President and Chief Executive Officer for GDC Holdings, Inc., owner of National Dentex, LLC.
Tom Daulton has 25 years of extensive business experience including many turnarounds, startups, and large scale enterprises. Previously, he was the Founder and CEO of Devicor Medical Products, Inc., a clinician focused company that manufactures devices to help physicians quickly and accurately diagnose breast cancer. Under Tom’s leadership, Devicor carved out the Mammotome product lines from Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon Endo division and built a 200 million dollar revenue company with over 750 employees and operations in ten countries. Building out Devicor included creating and establishing all the functional areas including global manufacturing, product development, IT systems, financials, quality, regulatory, and sales and marketing. In addition, the launch of two new platform products and multiple key acquisitions helped rebuild the business by increasing revenue and profitability.
As a result of Mammotome’s growth, Tom and his leadership team sold the business to Danaher Corporation’s, Leica Biosystems division in December 2014. Tom continued as the president of Danaher until taking over National Dentex.
Prior to his Devicor CEO role, Tom held senior leadership positions at Cardinal Health, Allegiance Healthcare, and Baxter Healthcare in multiple senior management roles that span General Management, Operations, Sales, Marketing, R&D, and M&A.