How is TempStars Different (and Better!) Than an Agency?

Important Update for Our Community

At TempStars, transparency and commitment to our dental community are core values. We want to address questions about Ontario's new licensing requirements for Temporary Help Agencies (THAs) and recruiters, effective July 1, 2024.

Our Current Operating Model

TempStars is a digital platform enabling direct connections between dental offices and dental professionals, similar to specialized job boards or classified ads. Key aspects of our service include:

• Dental offices post their opportunities directly on the platform
• Dental professionals browse and select opportunities independently
• Direct communication between parties
• No employment relationship between TempStars and dental professionals
• No active matching or deployment of professionals
• Optional payment processing for convenience
• No exclusivity requirements
• No finder's fees or hiring restrictions

Our Commitment to Compliance

While our current operating model differs from traditional THAs and recruiters, we understand the importance of providing peace of mind to our community. Therefore, TempStars has secured a recruiter licensing as of November 2024 to:

1. Ensure our dental offices can use our platform with complete confidence
2. Support future service expansions
3. Demonstrate our commitment to operating at the highest standards of compliance

What This Means for You

• Dental Offices: Continue using TempStars as usual, knowing we've taken extra steps to protect your interests. You will still review and select the individual you'd like to fill your shift needs!
• Dental Professionals: No changes to how you use the platform or your independence in selecting opportunities

NOTE:  Conduct your own due diligence, whether as a dental office owner or dental professional.  The tax and employment laws change, and the information in this article may not apply to your unique situation.  The following is not legal or tax advice, nor is a guarantee of compliance in your unique situation.  Always consult your tax and legal experts for advice and guidance based on your individual situation.  

Given the long history of Dental Temping in the profession, it’s understandable to imagine that all services in that space are generally the same and operate under the same Agency model.  

This is not the case - in fact, TempStars is proud to have been on of the first pioneers and trailblazer in using cutting edge technology to allow dental office owners and managers to connect directly with local available dental professionals, without the need for the high fees, negotiations and friction of agency intervention.

So it might help to think of TempStars kind of like a very specialized mix of Classified Ads, Indeed and LinkedIn that is laser-focused on allowing individual parties to quickly and easily make direct dental temping connections.  Here are a few key differences that set TempStars apart from a traditional Temping Agency:

And it would be understandable to think that a “hands-on” agency selects and diligently matches dental offices with dental professions and the success rate might be higher.  This just is not the case.  Since 2015 and with tens of thousands of dental temping shifts completed, over 97% of dental offices report being “Happy” or “Very Happy” with their TempStars dental hygienist or assistant.  

This is not to disparage agencies or paint them all with the same brush - there are some reputable temping agencies that are doing good work with their ‘high touch’ service (and corresponding fees).  And while the above chart summarizes agencies based on industry standards and norms, there are certainly those that operate successfully with different models and systems.  

And there are, admittedly, still some dental office owners and managers who feel better under the impression that someone from an agency is working hard behind the scenes to fill their shift with the perfect candidate.

But we at TempStars, with our proven (and growing) track record for empowering dental office owners and managers to make their own direct dental temping connections - quickly, easily and predictably - are excited every day to bring our service model to more and more members of the dental profession.

James Younger, DDS

Founder/CEO, TempStars