Meet Our Team
Mike Hesketh
CEO & consultant, Hesketh Healthcare
Born in Wales, trained in Leeds and ‘made in the Royal Navy.’ Mike’s passion is leadership, having witnessed first hand the power of good leaders in life and death situations. Gaining the Royal Marines coveted commando green beret and serving on the front line in Afghanistan as a dentist & casualty medic has given Mike a grounding in what is required to help teams work under stressful situations.
With a wealth of formal leadership experience, training at the UK Defense Academy, Britannia Royal Naval College, Exeter University Business school (MBA) and at The Henley Business School undertaking the Professional Certificate in Executive Coaching. Access to innovative business and coaching academic theory has solidified Mike’s knowledge of what makes small healthcare businesses thrive and is regularly booked to guest lecture by Universities, Dental Mastermind Groups & Dental Conferences. Having completed 15 years in public and private dentistry, completing a Maxfax SHO year and passing his membership exams at RCS (Edinburgh) and RCS (London), Mike is aware of what good clinicals skills look like.
Following the acquisition of The Exeter Dental Centre Ltd in 2012 for £280,000 and selling for £3.2m five years later, Mike focuses solely on new dental practice acquisition & business consulting, driving forward with his passion for business leadership, business growth and sharing his knowledge to help other practice owners thrive.
Mike has worked with practice owners on a one to one consultancy basis since 2014. With 20 years clinical dental experience, two multimillion pound practices & 100 + clients advised, the principles he teaches are successful because they have been honed through real life practice.
A personal life highlight for Mike was a family gap year, taken to travel around the world with his two small children, Poppy and Hugo, after the sale of The Exeter Dental Centre. He has a passion for travel and relished this special time out. Upon return he completed a self-build of a family home on the Exe Estuary, Devon with his wife and business partner Lara.
Jodie Loveday
Partner, Hesketh Healthcare Accountancy
As a Partner at Hesketh Healthcare Accountancy and CFO overseeing all Hesketh Healthcare Dental Projects, Jodie brings over a decade of specialised experience in dental accounting and boasts a comprehensive thirty-five-year background in broader business accountancy managing accounts ranging from £50k turnovers to £22 million.
Jodie has worked closely with Mike and Lara for many years and they rave about her ability to simplify intricate procedures and relieve the burdens of dental practice owners. With a keen eye for streamlining accounting systems, she excels in providing CEOs with the accurate information essential for making informed business decisions. Having witnessed first hand experiences associated with poor dental bookkeeping, financial reporting, and forecasting, Jodie is sucker for detail and is committed to proving clients accuracy and effective communication.
With a track record of working with over 150 clients across various industries, Jodie is adept at swiftly addressing complexities, untangling problems, and implementing efficient operational changes to alleviate the concerns and workloads of practice owners. Her approach is personal, calm & extremely organised. She is a straight forward, very honest and one of the most humble people we know.
When Jodie isn’t crunching numbers or dreaming about spreadsheets, she can be found on weekend breaks away with her husband, developing a Wildlife pond in her garden or shuttling her teenage daughter around!
Lara Hesketh
Founder & Brand Director, Hesketh Healthcare
Founder & Director at Hesketh Healthcare, Lara has a decade’s experience in the dental sector and roots in talent management in London's West End. Lara brings a unique perspective on the industry, elevating talented dental professionals to raise their standards.
Behind the scenes, Lara’s drives positive change, and elevates standards across our consultancy & the dental practices we own. She is our go too girl for practice set up, developing our business brands, websites, systems and set ups.
Beyond the realm of the dental world, Lara loves to get away for city and country breaks. She travel, musical theatre, spending time with her two children, friends and family and finishing her architectural self-build project on the picturesque Devon Estuary, which is an ongoing passion project.
Karina Keyte
Group Manager, Hesketh Group
With over a decade of dental practice management experience, Karina is the General Manager overseeing the practices owned by Hesketh Healthcare. Dedicated and efficient thriving on raising standards and those around her Karina was a pivotal organiser and driver of growth of both Dartmoor Dental and the success story of Exeter Dental.
On a day-to-day basis, Karina engages in strategic business planning, resource allocation, and performance evaluation. Implementing innovative approaches to enhance patient care and overall practice efficiency, Karina's leadership style is characterised by a focus on creating a collaborative and supportive environment, encouraging continuous learning among the team members.
Karina is currently focusing on implementing digital dentistry within Hesketh Healthcare's practices. Recognising the transformative potential of technological advancements in dentistry, integrating cutting-edge digital tools and systems to enhance diagnostic accuracy, treatment planning, and overall patient experience.
Outside dentistry, Karina enjoys spending quality time with her husband and two bundles of joy, Arlo and Arbie. Their shared love for the relaxing and creating cherished family memories!