You can only see so many clients in a week.
At some point, even the most dedicated solo therapist hits the ceiling:
your schedule is full, your waitlist is long, and the only way to grow seems to be working more hours.
But scaling your impact (and your income) doesn’t mean burning out.
For many therapists, the next step is transitioning from private practice to a group practice.
Here’s a simple, actionable guide to help you make that transition with clarity.
Why Expand Into a Group Practice?Expansion isn’t just about increasing revenue — it’s about increasing freedom.
A sustainable group practice helps you:
Reduce dependence on your own billable hours
Offer more availability to clients
Bring in clinicians with diverse specialties
Build a long-term, stable business
Step into leadership instead of doing everything
1. Get clear on your vision
Before hiring anyone, ask yourself:
Why am I expanding?
What kind of practice do I want to build?
What values will guide my team?
Do I want a boutique, highly specialized group… or a large, multi-clinician practice?
Your vision determines everything: who you hire, how you market, and how clients experience your practice.
2. Understand the Financial Foundation
Running a group practice shifts your financial model.
Before you hire clinicians, make sure you understand:
Your current monthly revenue
Your operating expenses
What you need to pay yourself
What you can afford to pay employees or contractors
Insurance vs. private-pay considerations
How caseloads translate into profitability
Don’t expand based on hope. Expand based on numbers.
3. Decide on Your Hiring Structure.
You have two main options:
Employee Model
More control over schedules & policies
Higher long-term stability
Higher upfront responsibility (payroll, benefits, taxes)
Lower overhead
More autonomy for clinicians
Less control over consistency and operations
Neither is “right” — it depends on your vision and capacity.
Before deciding, consult an employment attorney who understands your state’s regulations and your specific business structure (PLLC, PC/MSO, LLC, Sole Proprietorship).
State laws differ on what qualifies as a W-2 vs. 1099 relationship, and choosing the wrong model can create legal and tax issues. An attorney can help you determine the structure that’s compliant and aligned with your long-term goals.
4. Build Systems Before You Build a Team
The biggest mistake new group practice owners make?
Hiring before they have systems.
You need simple, reliable workflows for:
Client intake
Scheduling
Payments
Documentation
Communication
Marketing
Tracking availability
When your systems are clear, onboarding new clinicians becomes easy, and your client experience stays consistent.
5. Start Small: Hire Your First Clinician
Your first hire sets the tone for your entire group.
Look for someone who:
Aligns with your values
Communicates clearly
Works well independently
Shares your commitment to client care
Adds something new (a specialty, modality, population)
Start with one clinician, learn the process, refine your systems, and then scale.
6. Create a Smooth Client-Matching Process
One of the biggest challenges in group practices is matching clients with the right clinician.
A clear process helps you:
Reduce no-shows
Improve fit
Increase client retention
Support better clinical outcomes
Maintain high satisfaction across your team
Think through:
What criteria do you use for matching?
Who handles intake?
How do you track availability?
How do you ensure new clients aren’t “lost” between first contact and first session?
This is where many group practices leak revenue, and where automation can make the biggest difference.
7. Let Technology Do the Heavy Lifting
Scaling manually leads to burnout.
Tech supports you by:
Automating repetitive tasks (intake, reminders, follow-ups)
Reducing manual scheduling
Centralizing messages
Helping you track availability across your team
Making client–clinician matching more accurate
Ensuring nothing slips through the cracks
Offering the visibility you need as a leader
And if you’re expanding, you’ll need a system that supports multiple clinicians, not just one provider.
Final Thought:
Transitioning from solo practitioner to group practice owner is one of the biggest steps in your career, but it doesn’t have to be overwhelming.
When you build the right systems, understand your numbers, and trust your vision, you create a practice that supports you, your clients, and your team.
And if you want support making that transition smoother…
Breksey helps group practices streamline intake, match clients with the right clinicians, and manage operations — all in one simple platform.
If you're growing or planning to hire your first therapist, we’d love to help.