Our Co-Founders’ Headshots
Cary Gahm
Ed Thomas
TempMee Screenshots
Posting Shifts
Getting Paid
Contact Our Amazing PR Team!
Who is TempMee?
Recognizing the severe staffing shortages impacting dental practices and the growing workforce marketplace, entrepreneurs Cary Gahm and Edward Thomas, in collaboration with dental hygienist Deborah Simmons, launched TempMee in late 2019. Since its inception, TempMee has grown from a bootstrapped startup to an institutional, investor-backed powerhouse with dozens of dedicated team members. In February 2022, the young company received $4.1 million in venture capital funding—which will help fuel further expansion into new markets and new positions, including associate dentists.
TempMee’s innovative, dental staffing marketplace app revolutionized the dental industry by efficiently connecting registered dental hygienists and dental assistants with dental offices in need of short-term help. The app allows licensed dental professionals to elevate their career, giving them control few thought possible. These professionals choose where, when, how, and for how much they work.
Registered dental professionals create a profile, enter license information and upload photo identification. Once their profile is verified, professionals can browse shifts entered by participating dental practices. TempMee’s proprietary software instantly notifies registered professionals of new opportunities—allowing them to accept, or counter an offer. Once the shift is confirmed, all logistics are handled through the platform, including payment. To date, TempMee connects more than 15,000 dental offices with over 45,000 dental professionals. Thus far, the platform has filled over 100,000 shifts, paying over $36 million directly to dental professionals.
Like other staffing marketplaces, verified TempMee app users identify as 1099 workers, which is a marked divergence from traditional staffing practices. As the dental industry changes to meet the needs of a post-COVID environment, dental hygienists often work apart from dentists with minimal oversight. Categorizing TempMee users as independent contractors is a more accurate reflection of today’s dental practices and offers professionals the flexibility to supplement income or manage shift hours. While
competitors require professionals to work under W-2 form guidelines, categorizing TempMee users as contracted workers provides maximum financial independence free from minimum shift requirements, the ability to selectively choose their career trajectory and the opportunity to redefine their role in the workplace.
For more information, visit https://tempmee.com/.
TempMee Media FAQs
What is TempMee?
TempMee is a digital dental staffing marketplace that allows dental offices to contract directly with registered dental hygienists (RDH) and dental assistants to fill single-day, short-term, or permanent positions.
Through its innovative platform, TempMee provides instant staffing solutions using engineered simplicity and skill-sharing on demand. By participating in this value-driven marketplace, professionals will feel in control of their lives and earning potential, while dental practices will feel supported in providing patient care without disruption.
When was it founded?
TempMee was launched in October 2019.
Who are the founders?
Entrepreneurs and childhood friends Cary Gahm and Edward “Ed” Thomas founded TempMee, in collaboration with Deborah Simmons, RDH.
Why was TempMee founded?
The idea for TempMee began during a casual conversation between Thomas and Simmons. Simmons, a working dental hygienist and office manager, shared her frustration with the industry’s antiquated approach to staffing. She noted that many dental practices were looking for short-term help from skilled hygienists but had no way to efficiently connect them to qualified short-term hires. Thomas immediately recognized the business possibilities and brought the concept to Gahm, a seasoned digital marketing professional.
Together, they quickly discovered a systemic problem stemming from a lack of qualified dental hygienists to fill critical roles.
Much like the nursing industry, dentistry is now feeling the effects of the “Great Resignation.” A May 2023 study by the American Dental Association’s Health Policy Institute found that one-third of dental practices surveyed reported experiencing trouble filling vacant staff positions. Across the board, almost every practice struggled to recruit dental hygienists, with 79.9% calling it extremely challenging and 13.2% calling it very challenging. Practices reported hiring dental assistants was not much easier, with almost 83% finding it extremely or very challenging.
Armed with data to support Simmons’ experiences, Gahm and Thomas quickly realized the need to reinvent the way dental offices filled their positions. The duo envisioned a skill-sharing model that placed the hiring power in the hands of its users, allowing practice managers to directly connect with qualified candidates who possessed the skills they need, while offering the chance to work where they want, when they want, and how they want.
Business plan in hand and the focus to realize their goals, Gahm convinced Thomas to move to Miami and make a concerted effort to grow their fledgling company. Today, TempMee is a successful startup, boasting more than 120 dedicated team members. In February 2022, TempMee received $4.1 million in venture capital funding for national expansion.
It’s not surprising that TempMee has caught the attention of venture capitalists, as its concept was endorsed by two well-known investors. Business mogul Kevin O’Leary declared the concept “sheer genius” and entrepreneur Bethenny Frankel called it “brilliant” on an episode of CNBC’s Money Court.
What is the business model?
TempMee is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution to the dental industry’s employment crisis. The app-based marketplace provides dental offices with the personnel they need to keep their businesses thriving while empowering dental care providers to live their best lives.
By replacing a traditional staffing agency with technology, TempMee connects the community in a way that is fast, simple, and easy to use. Practices post open positions and licensed professionals can peruse the app looking for a placement that meets their needs, in terms of location, time, and hourly rate.
Is it a private or public company?
TempMee is a private, investor-backed company.
Is TempMee a major player in the staffing industry?
As the dental industry continues its shift toward a skill-sharing economy – TempMee has created a solution to empower the dental workforce. TempMee’s innovative technology creates better matches than traditional staffing agencies and offers both offices and employees full transparency into pay rates, hours, and needs. Once a match is made, TempMee’s technology handles all the logistics including timely payment.
Is TempMee a temp agency?
TempMee is a technology company that manages an online skill-sharing marketing place for the dental industry. Its innovative marketplace platform revolutionized the dental staffing industry by efficiently connecting registered dental hygienists and dental assistants with dental offices in need of short-term help.
Unlike a temp or staffing agency, TempMee is not affiliated with any of the hygienists or dental offices that use its platform. TempMee simply provides access to a two-sided marketplace platform and ensures credential compliance and payment.
How does this work?
TempMee’s algorithms effectively replace traditional staffing agencies. Using the app, registered dental hygienists create a profile, enter license information and upload photo identification. Once the profile has been verified, users can browse shifts entered by participating dental practices and choose to accept, decline, or counter an offer. Once the shift is confirmed, all logistics are handled through the platform, including payment.
Why does TempMee identify its users as 1099 independent contractors instead of W2 employees?
Like other workforce marketplaces, verified TempMee app users identify as 1099 workers, as they control where they work, when they work, and how they work, in addition to being able to negotiate their hourly pay rates. This satisfies the IRS requirements for being an independent contractor. For years the healthcare industry has successfully used 1099 workers, such as diem nurses; TempMee is now bringing that same opportunity to the dental profession.
Is that legal?
1099 is not a classification; it is a type of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) form that most closely identifies the worker’s situation. According to the IRS, the general rule is that an individual is considered an independent contractor “if the payer has the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not what will be done and how it will be done.” That is the foundation of the TempMee platform.
It is a misconception that hygienists are supervised workers, which would make them employees not independent contractors. There are two crucial components to breaking down this myth. First is the definition of a supervised employee. While hygienists may accept some direction from or consult with dentists in the offices they visit, this alone does not constitute an employment relationship. The primary functions of a hygienist are completed at their own discretion, based on the knowledge and skills they have built through education and practice. The second component of this myth is that a supervised worker is always an employee. Even if a hygienist is operating under some level of direction from a dentist during their shift, that alone is not sufficient to determine classification.
How does TempMee verify professionals’ licensure and credentials?
TempMee screens and verifies all dental professionals and offices that use its service. Before creating an account, every dental professional’s ID and professional license are checked and verified by a third-party credential management service to provide the highest level of safety, protection, and professionalism to the dental offices contracting with independent contractors on the platform.
TempMee requires that all hygienists have an active license and be in good standing with the state licensure board with no derogatory marks. Dental assistants are also required to possess the state’s required licensing/certification(s) and be in good standing with no derogatory marks. In states like Florida, where assistants can be qualified via on the job training, TempMee still requires relevant documentation to prove licensure, graduation from a relevant program, or similar level of proof.
Additionally, all dental offices and professionals are rated and reviewed after each job to ensure the best experience for all parties, including patients.
Are TempMee hygienists covered for malpractice and workplace injury?
TempMee takes the safety of its professionals seriously, which is why it requires users to maintain adequate insurance coverage during each shift they work through the app. Professionals may hold their own Occupational Accident Insurance (OAI) coverage and malpractice insurance or purchase this coverage through the platform. OAI ensures protection in the event of an injury sustained during a TempMee shift. Malpractice covers the professional in the event of a patient filing a malpractice complaint. If a user does not maintain adequate coverage on their own, they are able to purchase both policies on a per shift basis, through coverage TempMee has brokered via FDA Services. This coverage is assessed as a nominal safety fee.