Training staff, both as a group and one on one, can make a huge difference in their job satisfaction, which translates to better retention. Take a moment to ask yourself this question: When you think about the most valuable asset to your veterinary practice, would you say it is… Your relationships with clients? Your equipment and building? Your employees? The goodwill of your practice? Something else? The value of your practice is determined by so many factors and the largest is your employees. Practice owners constantly struggle with how to create a culture that truly impacts the lives of those who work there. Yes, it does start with compensation in the beginning. What someone gets paid plays a huge part when finding quality people and providing them a good standard of living. Yet, what about the other factors impacting the culture? The culture, by far, starts with the owner. Whenever you respond negatively to someone or even the act of doing nothing shows and communicates a specific message to your team. My business partner and I believe strongly in creating an environment where we welcome criticism and encourage open communication. Sometimes we might not like what is being said, but it is part of the process of building an open and transparent team. Some things as small as acknowledging someone by providing a quick thank you note goes a long way. There are three specific categories to consider in order to drastically increase your practice’s profitability and effectiveness through your employees. 1) Recruiting 2) Rewarding 3) Retaining We often call these the 3Rs and it is hard not to sound like a pirate every time they are said. Each one of these categories can contribute significantly toward growing and improving the team you already have. Recruiting This is where it all starts. If you have no people working at the practice, you do not have a practice. Maybe one day things will be a bit more automated, but there is nothing that can replace the human touch, and there are a few distinct things to pay attention to in this category. When promoting and encouraging someone to work at your practice, how do you differentiate your clinic from others? Is there a clear sense of family communicated? What about communication and transparency? How about the possibility to be part of something bigger than just showing up for a job? What about the vision of where the practice is moving toward? Every practice should start with the message they want to communicate to the people working at the practice, and those who are interviewing should know what to expect when they work there. Compensation is a great starting place, but what else are they signing up for? There are basic programs and offerings you can provide. First, these benefits should be offered to stay competitive and, second, to add value to those working at the practice. Many of the options available are meant for everyone so it can be difficult to pick and choose who gets what. A few of them are: Health insurance 401(k) or SIMPLE IRA Group short- and long-term disability insurance Group life insurance Group dental and vision Reimbursement for continuing education Reduced pet care costs License renewal reimbursement There are certain regulations with health insurance and retirement accounts the practice must share the cost for insurance or provide a match on their retirement account. Other insurances, such as group, short- and long-term disability, and life insurance can be offered where the employee has to pay the full cost. All these options could be offered at your practice; determining which ones make the most sense depends on the cost and the competitiveness of clinics in your area. Rewarding Most practice owners get this category wrong. When a practice owner wants to implement reward programs, they default to provide each person a cash bonus. The cash bonus might be paid out during the holidays or there might be bonuses paid out throughout the year as the practice earns a specific revenue or profit. The problem with this approach is the employee is unsure on what actions they did to earn that bonus. How did they contribute towards earning the reward? Reward programs should focus on how to engage and motivate the team. When a bonus is paid out without anything attached to someone’s specific actions, it will be received and forgotten quickly with the expectation to receive another one around the same time each year. This is the scary thing when paying out cash bonuses because that expectation basically adds pressure to the practice each year. The best way to reward employees is to put them in categories based on position (technicians, receptionists, kennel workers, or veterinarians) or focus on a specific goal for each person individually. Sometimes digging down into what someone should focus on each day can be tough without having any metrics, and working with a business consultant to find out these numbers is a great starting place. A great example for a receptionist would be to make sure there is a follow-up appointment scheduled with each person before they leave. This can help reduce the number of dormant clients the practice has built up over time. (A dormant client could be defined as someone who has not been there for over a year.) The goal would be to encourage the receptionist to at least schedule a set amount of follow-up appointments each month to receive a reward. This can help reduce the number of dormant clients. There are many creative ways to design a reward program and the biggest factor is the person must have the ability to control their own outcome. When it comes to how a person or team is rewarded, ask them what they want. Money can be a driving factor for some, but others might want experiences or tokens, such as all-you-can-eat popcorn bowls at their local movie theater. Retaining This last category is underutilized in veterinary practices. Retention plans are used for those who could have a large impact to the profits and/or owner’s time in the event they were to leave voluntarily. These types of compensation arrangements can be limited to certain people inside the practice unlike retirement accounts, health insurance, and other benefits. Let’s start with what defines a retention plan. A retention plan: 1) Is substantial in value 2) Offers cost recovery to the practice 3) Defers for a set period of time 4) Solves an emotional problem for that person Substantial in value. The amount expected to be paid out in the future is a percentage of a person’s total compensation. The time period is usually seven to 10 years. Cost recovery. The plan is structured to include a clause that would not payout anything if they were to leave early, and the practice will keep whatever money was being accumulated. You could choose to provide something in the event they were to leave involuntarily. Deferred. The person will not receive anything until they have satisfied the entire time period. Solves an emotional problem. The problem could be connected to their student loans, practice ownership, purchasing a house, retirement savings, children’s education, or something else they find important. When designing a retention plan, the bonus amount should be determined first. From there, a discussion will be had on what is the best vehicle to fund the retention plan. After those two items are decided, there is an approach on how to introduce the benefit to a person and steps to follow so the plan can become official. Each “R” serves a purpose and depending on the goals for the practice, the owner, and what you want the culture to be will help decide what should be done. Tom Seeko has worked with practice owners and veterinarians since 2014. He is the cofounder of Florida Veterinary Advisors that work with veterinarians throughout the United States, Certified Exit Planner (CExP), business and personal financial advisor, and cohost of the Smarter Vet Financial podcast. Material discussed is meant for general informational purposes only and is not to be construed as tax, legal, or investment advice. Although the information has been gathered from sources believed to be reliable, please note that individual situations can vary. Therefore, the information should be relied upon only when coordinated with individual professional advice. Guardian, its subsidiaries, agents, and employees do not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. Consult your tax, legal, or accounting professional regarding your individual situation. This material contains the opinions of the author but not necessarily those of PAS or Guardian. registered representative and financial advisor of Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS). Securities products and advisory services offered through PAS, member FINRA, SIPC. Financial representative of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America (Guardian), New York, N.Y. PAS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Guardian. Florida Veterinary Advisors is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. CA Insurance License #0K80141. 2021-125145 (Exp. 8/23)
