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News|Articles|May 1, 2011

Management would be easy–if it weren't for my people! (Proceedings)

Take recruitment and induction seriously if you want a top performing practice.

Who should come to this session?

     • Managers

     • Owners

     • Senior vets/nurses/technicians with direct reports

     • All staff who want to learn about leading teams.

Part 1: Planning for a new hire

     • Organisational assessment – do you need to hire? This is a recession.

     • Why did your last vet leave? Exit interview findings?

     • Opportunity to revisit the plan/vision. Refocus.

     • Assess current team mix. Do you know? Belbin, Myers briggs...

     • What traits would best meet the clients, practice and the team needs.

     • Involve your staff.

     • Should we involve clients in the interview process? Practice consults.

     • Dr Nicol's thoughts on what makes a successful vet.

     • Costs of recruitment and induction - an example.

Part 2 How to do recruitment and selection well

Proper preparation prevents piss poor performance!

Interview skills

     • Like, trust, respect.

     • Clinical skills

     • Values based techniques

     • Personality profiling

     • Going on gut plus weird and wonderful.

Following up – an opportunity to look good or bad.

Part 3 Induction – the first month

     • What should an induction program cover?

     • The benefits of induction.

     • Beyond induction – setting expectations.

Bonus extras if time allows:

The future of recruitment - how web 2.0 is changing the game.

     • Linked in

     • Personal branding

     • And why the CV just might be dead.

Final destination:

Take recruitment and induction seriously if you want a top performing practice.


Related to this article

Q&A: Caregiver burden can begin early in pet illness. Are veterinary teams equipped to support clients, and how can veterinary social workers help both parties?
Caroline Cox, LSW, MSW, and Erika Krick, VMD, DACVIM (Oncology), discuss the role of veterinary social workers in supporting clients, communicating with veterinary teams, and helping practices address the human side of veterinary care in this Q&A from an interview at the 2026 Fetch National Harbor Veterinary Conference.