Patient Prism CEO Amol Nirgudkar and Heartland Dental CEO Patrick Bauer are featured together on the cover of the Summer 2026 issue of INFLUENCE Magazine. This cover marks a milestone for the dental industry, bringing together a dental technology founder and the leader of the world’s largest DSO to discuss the intersection of leadership, innovation, and patient care.

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The cover story, “The Leaders We Become,” explores the seven-year friendship and mentorship between the two executives. It highlights how Bauer’s candid feedback and guidance challenged Nirgudkar to rebuild Patient Prism’s technology from the ground up, emphasizing that true leadership requires authenticity, continuous learning, and putting the patient experience first.

The magazine’s release coincides with the 13th Annual Dykema DSO Conference, where Nirgudkar presented new data from Patient Prism’s analysis of over 12 million patient calls. A key takeaway from his session is that large dental organizations are currently experiencing voicemail rates between 20% and 40%, meaning a massive number of patients seeking care are falling through the cracks. This data underscores the core message of the magazine feature: sustainable, same-store growth is achieved by fixing the everyday patient experience, not just adding new technology.

The Summer 2026 issue also includes a bylined article by Nirgudkar on driving organic growth and a letter of gratitude to the DSO community.