Practice owner Kenneth Lowder, AuD, saw something special in new grad Jason Aird. So he recruited, mentored and eventually went to work for the young audiologist turned entrepreneur.

By Jolynn Tumolo

Not long after he hired him, Kenneth Lowder, AuD, hoped Jason Aird, AuD, would take over his practice. Not that Dr. Lowder planned to exit the profession anytime soon—he was in the midst of expanding his business to the eight locations it currently occupies, was an active and founding member of a multi-state network of hearing professionals, and had yet to hook up with the Audiology Foundation of America, where he would serve 5 years as the organization's chair and champion the need for an AuD degree.

Retirement wasn't on his radar, but hiring another audiologist was. So he perked up when his wife, Mary, an audiologist at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, told him about a new grad putting in his clinical fellowship year in her department.

"She said, 'There's a kid that we've hired here, and you have to meet him. He's terrific,'" remembers Dr. Lowder. "That's how he fell into my lap."

Dr. Aird had a business education as an undergrad, was interested in private practice as an audiologist, and was born, raised and married in Iowa, signaling a stability that Dr. Lowder liked. But beyond that, Dr. Lowder says, was a greater indicator of future success.

"The man is just as genuine as you can imagine," says Dr. Lowder. "To me, success in life depends on what kind of person you are. How good an audiologist you are comes in second or third or fourth. But how good of a person you are—if you don't have that, you don't have anything, as far as I'm concerned. And he had that. He had that in spades."

Second Career

Dr. Lowder was a speech-language pathologist for 17 years before he decided to embark on a second career as an audiologist. The catalyst for change?

"I met and married an audiologist," he says. "I couldn't resist her, and I couldn't resist being an audiologist either."

Degree in hand, Dr. Lowder, then 39, launched Iowa Audiology and Hearing Aid Centers, in Coralville, in 1981. He harbored no illusions about life during start-up: plenty of hard work and little financial reward. And that's what he experienced for the first 2 years. After that, though, he noticed a change in the tide. Patients and profits began to drift his way.

He attributes much of his success to friendships with a handful of audiologists and hearing aid dispensers who also owned private practices in various parts of the state. The entrepreneurs created an informal support group, calling one another with questions and meeting in person at conventions and later for continuing education sessions organized by the group itself.

"We got along famously," says Dr. Lowder. "The key element was that none of us were competing with each other. We were separated geographically and didn't mind helping one another out."

In 1983, the group decided to take their commitment a step further and incorporate as Hearing Aid Management Systems (HAMS). The provider network negotiated group purchasing discounts with manufacturers such as Siemens, GN ReSound and Oticon. Over the years, the savings have reached millions, Dr. Lowder estimates.

More than 2 decades later, HAMS is still at work and includes members in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Meeting of the Minds

After Mary introduced them, Drs. Lowder and Aird began a series of meetings where the two would discuss the practice of audiology, the business of audiology and Dr. Aird's personal and professional goals. Dr. Aird began sitting in on patient visits to observe how Dr. Lowder practiced and how he expected patients to be treated. The new grad officially joined Iowa Audiology and Hearing Aid Centers in 1995. Dr. Lowder continued to ask Dr. Aird to shadow him for the first couple of months, beyond which "I turned him loose and never looked over his shoulder again," Dr. Lowder says.

Dr. Aird found the personal feel of the practice and the faith placed on him appealing.

"I enjoyed the independence," Dr. Aird says. "I liked the flexibility of being able to do my own thing and make my own mark. Ken was very generous in the sense that he always gave me a lot of latitude. I don't think he wanted to micromanage me, and I don't know that I would have responded as well if he had."

"The credit goes to Jason," says Dr. Lowder. "He took right off and didn't need a lot of advice."

At staff meetings, Dr. Lowder was open about the financial health of the business, preferring, he says, to treat Dr. Aird as a partner rather than an employee. Dr. Aird began to gain a real-world education about the financial ups-and-downs of private practice ownership and what to expect should he ever take the step himself. It was then that Dr. Lowder became convinced he could and, more than 10 years before the business would change hands, began prepping Dr. Aird for ownership. Barring any unforeseen events, Dr. Aird was the audiologist Dr. Lowder wanted to succeed him.

A Call for More

Having benefited so much from his membership in HAMS and other industry organizations, Dr. Lowder naturally encouraged Dr. Aird to pursue association involvement as well. At Dr. Lowder's recommendation, the young audiologist joined the Iowa Hearing Association and went on to serve on its board. He's a member of the American Academy of Audiology and is currently serving his second term on Iowa's licensure board.

In 1997, Dr. Lowder was appointed to the Board of the Audiology Foundation of American (AFA) and worked to support its call for the Doctor of Audiology degree.

"It was apparent to all of us out there practicing that the academic training we had received was completely inadequate. Moreover, the academic community had been simply unresponsive for years, and appeared unwilling to respond to our calls for a professional doctorate," says Dr. Lowder, who began a 5-year tenure as AFA chairman in 2001. "I believe that without the foundation (AFA), there would have been no AuD degree. Other than my private practice, my work with the AFA was the highlight of my career." Both Drs. Lowder and Aird would go on to earn their AuDs from the University of Florida.

Professional life in high gear, Dr. Lowder's personal life suffered a difficult loss in 2000 when his best friend died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease.

"He was in his early 50s, a teacher. I had known him for several years, and his death affected me deeply," says Dr. Lowder. "Every day is a gift, and nothing against audiology, but I realized I didn't want to be stuck in the office seeing patients forever."

More and more, Dr. Lowder thought about retirement and pursuing other interests. More and more, Dr. Aird was taking on the responsibilities and know-how of an entrepreneur in a private practice that he loved. The pair decided in 2004 that the time was right for both of them, and each hired attorneys and accountants to make the deal happen.

Making the Switch

Selling and buying a business is an involved process that involves a collection of considerations before reaching an end deal: Is the transaction an asset-only purchase or the purchase of the corporation? Who owns the accounts receivables? Who pays the bills accumulated before the purchase date? Who owns the money in the business' checking account on the purchase date? Will the owner finance the purchase amount? And, if so, at what interest rate?

Pile on even more questions and the fact that the timing of the sale can affect the bottom lines of both the buyer and the seller (some months are more lucrative for a business than others), and the transaction becomes much more complicated than a simple set-the-price/agree-to-it deal.

Dr. Aird had seen friendships go sour over the tedious, months-long process of buying and selling a practice, and he resolved early on to put a check on his emotions. His perseverance resulted in a successful transition.

"It can be difficult when you have worked at a place for a long time and have a lot invested in it, but you have to separate the emotions from the business and keep an open mind," he says. "You're not going to get everything that you think you need, but in the end it very well may not be important anyway. I don't know that anybody can possibly get through a process that large and not have some differences of opinion. Ken and I joke about it today, that we're still good friends through all of it. It's a testament to how Ken handled the situation."

In March, 2005, Dr. Aird became the practice owner, and Dr. Lowder, a part-time employee. They celebrated the turn of events with a nice meal out. Dr. Aird was sure to also bring dinner home for his family.

"My wife and my children," he says, "endured the process as well."

Moving Forward

Dr. Lowder continues to put in an occasional half-day at Iowa Audiology and Hearing Aid Centers, seeing long-time patients he's treated for years. He cut back on his hours a year after selling the practice, and now devotes his time to traveling the world as a birder (so far, he's visited Argentina, Kenya and Venezuela and will soon see New Zealand, South Africa and Antarctica), playing and umpiring tennis matches, delivering Meals On Wheels, reading to people with blindness, and rehabbing injured hawks, owls and eagles at the University of Iowa Raptor Center.

Dr. Aird continues to call on Dr. Lowder for counsel when necessary. He's focused on keeping the practice current, continuing its quality care and growing its patient population. Managing a staff he was once part of has proved a transition, Dr. Aird suspects more for him than his employees, but he's content to learn and improve with experience.

Once he gets up and running with his business, Dr. Aird will go on to make a difference in the profession on a national level, Dr. Lowder predicts.

"He has enormous talent. I believe he could be president of the American Academy of Audiology or the Academy of Doctors of Audiology if he wanted to," says Dr. Lowder. "I have one son. But if I were to have another, I'd kill for it to be Jason. I just love the guy."

Jolynn Tumolo is a freelance writer in Morgantown, PA.