Scott Jones to retire as President & CEO of Delta Dental of South Dakota
Scott Jones, President and CEO of Delta Dental of South Dakota (DDSD) will retire April 3, 2023, after 46 years at the company, including more than 33 years as its President and CEO.
“Delta Dental of South Dakota has been a wonderful place for me to spend my career, and I’m grateful for all our team has accomplished,” Jones said.
DDSD Executive Vice President Jeff Miller, who has been with the company since 2001, will be the new President and CEO. Jones will continue part-time as president of the Delta Dental of South Dakota Foundation.
“The company’s future is bright, and the leadership of the organization has never been better,” Jones said. “Jeff Miller is a high integrity servant-leader who will do a great job leading the company.”
Jones joined DDSD as its third employee in 1977 as head of sales. At the time, the company’s revenues for its first 14 years of operation combined were less than $400,000.
When Jones became CEO in 1990, DDSD had grown revenue to $8 million and the company has continued to grow steadily under his leadership. DDSD’s revenues this year will reach $200 million, with claim payments expected to exceed $185 million. More than 500,000 South Dakotans are now covered by local or national Delta Dental benefit programs.
With that success, the nonprofit company created the Delta Dental of South Dakota Foundation in 1996 and has invested over $40 million to grow South Dakota’s dental workforce, improve access to dental care, and improve oral health through prevention and education. DDSD’s flagship Mobile Program with two mobile dental clinics that provide dental care to kids across the state is the most well-known of those efforts.
“The Foundation has been one of the most satisfying parts of my career, and I look forward to staying engaged in its work a few more years,” Jones said.
Jones has served on nearly twenty nonprofit boards during his career, and currently serves as treasurer of the South Dakota Dental Foundation and as vice chair of the South Dakota Community Foundation. He has been recognized with Governor Mickelson’s Neighbor Helping Neighbor Award, South Dakota Volunteer Fundraiser of the Year, American Dental Association Access to Care Award, USD Beacom School of Business South Dakota Business Person of the Year, and USD Alumni Achievement Award for Service to the University.
Jones and his wife Julia live in Pierre where they are actively involved in their church and community. Together they have been the recipients of the Avera Guardian Award, Capital Area Counseling Service Visionary Award, and South Dakota Community Foundation Hometown Heroes and Christen-Larson Heritage Circle. They were recently named 2022 South Dakota Outstanding Philanthropists by the South Dakota Association of Fundraising Professionals.