The Henry Schein Women’s Leadership Network Field Chapter hosted a live interview March 18 with Premier Dental President and CEO Julie Charlestein. The engaging session offered invaluable insights into various facets of professional growth and leadership, including adapting to change, overcoming imposter syndrome, and earning respect with colleagues while maintaining healthy boundaries.
Leading a century-old business as the company’s 4th-generation chief executive, Charlestein is recognized within the dental industry and beyond for her leadership and as a champion of creative healthcare solutions to meet the evolving needs of today’s patients.
The live session, titled “Building Your Business & Brand with Julie Charlestein,” featured an introduction from Stanley Bergman, Chairman and CEO, Henry Schein. Noting the importance of recognizing women who have made immense contributions to our society, especially in business, Bergman introduced Charlestein as “a longtime business partner, a great friend, and a remarkable business leader.”
Charlestein discussed her career journey, including lessons learned and her perspective on leadership, and how she’s been able to create value for herself and her organization.
“I come from a place of yes. I will always raise my hand. I will always try something. I will always make suggestions. I try to balance this as much as I can with analysis, with data-driven decisions,” she said.
Among the topics covered during the interview was how to deal with the tremendous amount of change that has taken place in recent years and how it has shaped her leadership.
“I'm a very collaborative leader, but also, what I've learned about my leadership style is that I'm also a very resolute leader,” Charlestein said. “So, there is a time for collaboration and there is a time for decisiveness. And, again, because of coming from a place of yes, and giving that kind of vision and direction, that decisiveness is needed, it is wanted, it is appreciated, and it is followed because you have been able to develop this platform, the success of your organization, and the recognition that you have a vision and you have a solution collaboratively with the team, and there is a resolute direction as to how to hopefully achieve that.”
Charlestein, who holds a bachelor’s degree from Emory University and a master's degree from Temple University, serves on the Board of Overseers for the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, the Dean's Advisory Council of Temple University Dental School, and the Board of the Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health. She has previously served on the Dean's Advisory Board of the School of Dental Medicine at Harvard University. She has served as chair of the Government Relations Committee for the Dental Trade Alliance and is a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO).
Her book, How to Lead Your Family Business, is a Wall Street Journal Bestseller and represents a master class in working with and for family, reshaping generations-old company cultures, earning your colleagues’ respect, and more. Through stories full of candor and humor, she writes about her leadership adventure, offering actionable strategies for those leading and working within their own family businesses.
The Women’s Leadership Network is a Henry Schein employee resource group whose mission is to promote an environment for Team Schein members where diversity and inclusion thrive to best support the diversity of customers and the patients they serve.