Beyond the “Partnership Track” and What Physicians Expect Now — A Conversation with Tara Ossek and Matt Phillips

On this episode of the MGMA Insights Podcast, host and senior editor Daniel Williams sits down with Tara Ossek, Senior Vice President of Recruiting at Jackson Physician Search, and Matt Phillips, Managing Director at City Capital Advisors to examine the growing pressure points reshaping physician partnership models and private practice ownership.

Drawing from conversations with physicians and practice leaders across the country, Tara and Matt discuss why recruiting and ownership strategy can no longer happen in separate silos. They break down what today’s physician candidates actually want from partnership, why vague promises around buy-ins and governance are falling flat, and how practices that delay succession and ownership planning risk losing both recruits and long-term stability.

Episode takeaways

• Early-career physicians still value partnership, but they evaluate it like a business decision — weighing debt, lifestyle, governance, and risk alongside compensation.
• Vague language like “great partnership track” no longer resonates; candidates expect specific timelines, costs, expectations, and outcomes.
• Ownership conversations often happen too late, triggered by looming retirements or recruiting crises rather than proactive planning.
• Practices can’t maximize retiring partner payouts, keep buy-ins affordable, and reinvest heavily in growth at the same time — trade-offs are unavoidable and must be acknowledged.
• Confusion arises when practices defer ownership discussions or oversell partnership benefits that don’t align with contract language.
• Modern ownership structures — including LLCs, MSOs, and hybrid models — offer far more flexibility than traditional models, if practices are willing to reexamine legacy assumptions.
• A written, transparent FAQ addressing buy-in, timing, economics, governance, and exit scenarios can significantly improve recruiting outcomes.
• Succession planning and physician leadership development are no longer optional — they are foundational to long-term independence and stability.

Resources

• Connect with Tara on LinkedIn
• Connect with Matt on LinkedIn
• Jackson Physician Search
• City Capital Advisors
• "Is your practice telling the best story it can for physician partner recruitment?" (MGMA Insights Article - RE: Jackson Physician Report)
• "The significance of the partnership agreement in private practice and trends in medical practice ownership" (MGMA Insights Article)
• MGMA Conferences
• MGMA DataDive

Email us at dwilliams@mgma.com if you would like to appear on an episode. If you have a question about your practice that you would like us to answer, send an email to advisor@mgma.com. Don’t forget to subscribe to our network wherever you get your podcasts!