How To Leave PPS 2025 With Real ROI
PPS 2025 is your opportunity to turn three days of sessions and conversations into lasting business results. Paul outlines how to approach the conference strategically, connect with the right people, and bring back ideas that can drive real growth for your practice.
Full transcript
Generated from the episode audio and lightly edited for readability.
Good morning. This is Paul Martin and welcome to another episode of the Martin Rehab M&A Advisor. I'm Paul Martin, founder and president of Martin Healthcare Advisors. And today I am in Southern California in Santa Monica at the Fairmont Hotel. And so you may hear a little bit of noise in the background, but I'm traveling and I wanted to get this out to you because we are coming up on a very special event and that is the APA private practice section conference in Orlando in Orlando, Florida.
You know, as we look back, and I've been going to these conferences, gosh, since 1999. This is the biggest event in the physical therapy business calendar. This is three days. It's packed with ideas, packed with insights, connections, and all these things can truly change how you think and how you go about your business dayto day. Right? So, if you're attending, this isn't just another conference. It's a chance to really step away from the daytoday and look at your company from the outside in. We always like to have that perspective because I think when you have that kind of perspective that enables you to look at your different look at your business from a place that is different and unique for you.
You're always on the inside of your business. It allows you to really truly see your challenges, see your opportunities, and map out a future with what we call a fresh lens. And that's what this private practice section conference will give you. So before you step off that plane in Orlando, decide what does success look like for you? Ask yourself, what are the two or three biggest challenges you're hoping to solve at this conference? And what do you want to learn that could change the direction of your company?
Who do you want to connect with while you're there? I always recommend that you connect with those folks that are one or two or three steps ahead of you. They can give you a lot of information on how they have gotten there. You don't want to just show up and kind of let the week happen. You want to plan your conference almost like it's a business strategy meeting and it can be turned into that. I promise you. So go in, pull up that conference agenda and really highlight sessions that connect directly to your goals.
If your challenge right now is recruiting or retaining therapists, look for talks that focus on leadership, look for talks that focus on culture as well as team building. Maybe your focus is on growth or merger and acquisition readiness. Prioritize the financial and operational sessions to get information as well as strategies in these areas. And yes, make sure you've got Thursday at 1:30 p.m. Marked off on your calendar. That's my session. And we're going to dive into what's driving the rehab, merger, and acquisition market right now.
How are these lowering interest rates impacting acquirers and how they're looking at companies? We're going to dig into that on Thursday at 1:30. Really try to get them out. Something that I tell every single physical therapy business owner, the most valuable part of the private practice section conference isn't just what happens in these sessions, but it's outside of the sessions. It's the conversations that happen right after those sessions. So seek out owners as I had said who are a few steps ahead of you and ask them about what's working you know be ask open-ended questions to get them talking what's not working and how are they adapting to the market.
One of the best parts about our profession is that physical therapy owners love to share. You're never going to find a more open, honest dialogue in the hallways of the private practice section conference than any other conference in the United States. Yeah. Be very intentional about meeting people. When you sit down at breakfast or between sessions, talk to the person next to you. Again, ask questions. Ask where they're from, how many clinics do they run, what are their challenges that they're facing. Kind of get a little script in your head that's going to, you know, engage in conversation, but also help to get information and strategies that will move you and your business forward.
You're going to be surprised at how often that five minute conversation getting a business card or you know you tap phones and how these conversations lead to ideas that saves or earns you hundreds of thousands of dollars in many cases. You know, when you're buried in your business every day, you don't have the opportunity to kind of look around and see what's happening around you. And you'll be amazed at some of the strategies that you will learn by just talking to people. Here's another important piece.
Try not to fill every minute of your schedule. Leave some space and some thinking time, right? Your best insights usually hit when you slow down long enough to start connecting the dots. Look, if you're thinking about growing or selling in the next five years, this is the perfect place to start shaping that path. Meet with people who have already done that or learn what they wish they would have done earlier. And if you want to understand what today's acquirers are looking for or how to prepare your company for growth internally or externally, just reach out.
Click below and we'll schedule a time for you and I to meet or for your for you to have an opportunity to meet with one of our experienced consultants. All of our consultants have owned businesses, grown them to multi-site practices and have transitioned and partnered with other companies and are now on the other side of all that. We definitely will have time to set aside for one-on-one discussions about your goals, your challenges, and your strategies moving forward. You know, also as you attend sessions, take some notes, but not just on what you are hearing.
Focus on how it applies to your business. When you hear a great idea, you know, I always keep my phone with notes and I put those in and but when you get those ideas initially think, how could this help us? We're talking about recruiting or retaining. How could this help us recruit or retain better? Could this improve efficiencies or drive more profit per visit for us? Or how could this strengthen our culture and our leadership team? You're going to be amazed in conversations that you have and sessions that you attend.
Write those down. Take those notes. Keep those notes. You'll come home from PPS with a serious real return on investment, not just a notebook full of notes. If you think through how these things will be able to help you, that's why you need to spend a little bit of time away, if you pack your calendar just full of meetings and sessions and then you get on the plane, you're like, "Wait a minute, what was that three days ago that I did?" Try to, you know, spend a little bit of time after each session or meeting with how it applies to your business.
You know, the other things I've learned or the other thing I should say that I've learned over the years, the relationships that you build at this private practice section conference can and will last a lifetime. Some of the best partnerships in this industry started with simple introduction at a table, a hallway conversation, or at a shared session. So, go in with the mindset that you're not just going to attend a conference. You're entering into a community and that's when the next generation of leaders in private practice physical therapy are learning.
They're learning who are those new leaders and they're starting to connect and shaping the true the future of our profession. Look, I've been in this I I've been in the private practice section. I spoke at my first private practice section in 1999 and it was in Canada. I was told not to say anything about mergers and acquisitions and I followed suit, talked about exit strategies and what your options are. But I cannot tell you the number of relationships that have grown from this annual event. So in closing, make a plan.
Pick the sessions with some purpose. Connect with people who will kind of stretch your thinking and take time to reflect on the next three to five years. Try to picture what you want your business to look like. And again, if you're exploring growth, leadership development, or positioning your company for acquisition in the next few years, just click below and we'll schedule a time to meet either at the private practice section conference or at another time. This is not just another event. It's your opportunity to take your company, your team, and your vision to the next level.
Thank you for joining me today and I look forward to either hearing from you to talk about things that maybe we brought back from the conference or having an opportunity to meet with you at the upcoming conference in Orlando. Thank you. Have a great rest of your day and a great weekend.
Want to talk about your own business?
Marlton, NJ 08053