The Speaking Consulting Network (SCN) has published the 2026 Dental Speaker Index, the first edition of what will become an annual index tracking dental continuing education. The index is based on the published programs of 12 major U.S. dental meetings and details the speakers who were selected and which topics were presented during the year. The index is compiled from program data, with no nomination, submission, or paid placements involved.
SCN, a 30-year-old membership organization founded by Linda Miles and led by Ryan Vet since 2022, built the index to replace guesswork with concrete data about the topics and speakers who shape dental education. The index is akin to a bestseller list, but of speakers. Like USA Today's Best-selling Booklist, the Dental Speaker Index reflects what records show rather than applying editorial judgment.
DrBicuspid.com's Editor-in-Chief Kevin Henry ranks as the top speaker in the Leadership, Culture & Workforce category among dentistry's top continuing education speakers.Kevin Henry.
Index data were based on sessions listed in each meeting's published program. Sessions focused on a specific product or a single company's commercial interest were excluded, while sessions covering educational or broader clinical or professional topics were included. In total, SCN recorded 2,202 appearances and excluded 90 sessions, which were deemed promotional rather than educational. Appearances identified only through biographies or speakers’ bureaus, without verification in an official program, were not counted.
Twenty-seven speakers earned a total of 33 placements across eight categories in the 2026 index. Five categories were ranked and published with a top five list. Two categories, Technology & Digital Dentistry and AI in Dentistry, were published as unranked alphabetical listings. The DSO & Group Practice Strategy category was included without rankings or honorees because no speaker met the qualification threshold.
Among the ranked categories, DrBicuspid.com Editor-in-Chief Kevin Henry placed No. 1 in Leadership, Culture & Workforce. Other category leaders included Daniela Skeen in Practice Growth & Patient Acquisition, Colleen Huff in Business Operations & Revenue Cycle, Amanda Hill in Compliance, Safety & Risk, and Amber Auger in Clinical & Specialty Education.
SCN said it tested the methodology against programs from prior years and found that some speakers would have ranked in earlier editions, while others achieved a category-leading position for the first time in 2026.
The organization plans to publish the index annually each fourth quarter, with each edition archived and rebuilt from that year's programs. SCN added that it is monitoring the AI and DSO & Group Practice Strategy categories in 2027.
The full index, methodology, and a corrections process are available here.
