Putting Veterinary Industry Employees’ Happiness at the Forefront
People rarely (if ever) go into the veterinary industry without having a true passion for it. You may even remember the specific moment when you decided to have a career in veterinary medicine. Maybe it was when you got your first puppy, your first time riding a horse on a farm, meeting a pet in need or simply a nondescript moment when you realized that working with animals was your calling.
The veterinary industry offers exciting and rewarding opportunities for doctors, veterinary technicians, support staff and practice managers alike who get the chance to care for animals.
Even if that passion never wanes, throughout your career, you may find that your aspirations or interests change. Perhaps you discover you want to explore different types of services like caring for exotic pets, performing more extensive surgeries, or adding acupuncture to your practice. Maybe you have new priorities in life that require more of your time. Or, perhaps you simply want to slow down a bit.
Most organizations will offer standard support such as opportunities for continued education or mentorship programs. But life isn’t always so linear, and it typically can’t be squeezed into a one-size-fits-all box, and you can find yourself stuck in a situation that leaves you feeling less than fulfilled, or perhaps worse, burned out.
A Better Way to Work
At VetEvolve, we know that our team members’ career objectives may change over time, and what makes them happy today may not be the same thing that will make them happy two, five or 10 years from now. This is especially true for 88.3% of our team members who identify as women, many of whom have started families and need extra grace and accommodation through pregnancy and early parenthood.
Our “Happy Starts Here” program is grounded in supporting the total well-being of all of our team members to be sure they are happy inside and outside of work. As far as we’re concerned, it’s simple: we care about our employees, and we want them to feel empowered to live their best life.
Your Career is Exactly That: YOUR Career
As mentioned, one size never fits all when it comes to careers, and a career shouldn’t negatively impact your life outside of work. We know that, and we tailor each employee’s path to their individual needs. We approach relationships with our employees as a partnership, committing to having open, honest and ongoing conversations at our first interview and every single meeting afterward. Each employment arrangement is customized, and is flexible as time goes on.
Here are some of the ways we support our employees through life’s changes:
- Pregnancy Support and Parental Leave: We support pregnant employees and arrange schedules during pregnancy to make sure they can attend doctor’s appointments, parenting classes and lab tests. We offer parental leave for new parents.
- Flexible Return to Work Schedules: New parents sometimes expect that they will return to work full time, but then after parental leave, they may realize they may want to adjust their schedule to spend more time with their new baby. We offer flexible return to work options customized to their needs.
- School Aged Children— After School and Summertime Schedules: As kids get older, parents have a different set of needs, including adjusted schedules for picking up kids after school or making sure they get to extracurricular programs on time. Summer is a whole different animal, often with childcare challenges, camps and vacations thrown in the mix. We offer shorter days or the option to work a part-time schedule as options for managing kids’ ever-changing itineraries.
- Leave of Absence: At VetEvolve, we support team members who want or need to take a leave of absence. Leaves can be for a variety of reasons, including pursuit of an opportunity within your field, such as going to Africa to study cheetahs, as one of our employees chose to do. It could also be for medical issues that require longer treatment and/or recovery time.
- Caring for Family Members: Employees are often caregivers, either for their children or for elderly parents, grandparents or other family members. We help take some of the burden off by adjusting schedules as needed to take family members to doctors’ appointments, physical therapy, or other treatment programs.
- Permanent Part-Time Position: We offer permanent part-time positions, often with benefits, to help employees keep their lives balanced.
How We Do It
We champion flexible, customized career paths that are achieved through proactive communication with our employees. Conversations can happen whenever, and as often as necessary, to make sure each person is comfortable with their arrangement. We don’t wait for contract renewal meetings to discuss our employees’ happiness.
If there’s a change that we can accommodate, we look to make that change in a thoughtful way with proper planning so that everyone wins. And the benefit to us is not only knowing our staff is getting the support they need, but also knowing that happy people are more productive and motivated to do better work. Together, we create a fun, meaningful and supportive environment for all.
To learn more about our career opportunities, visit our Careers page.