Practice Owner Tools

VHMA Career Center

The VHMA Career Center offers one of the most comprehensive career and recruiting sites for the veterinary profession. Here, employers and recruiters can access the most qualified talent pool with relevant work experience to fulfill staffing needs. The VHMA Career Center has the largest pool of veterinary management candidates and available positions, but we don't stop there. Our Career Center is a great resource for all of your staffing needs, veterinarian and non-veterinarian. Make this exclusive resource part of your strategy for success today! GREAT VALUE! Post your jobs on VHMA and your openings will be listed and viewed nationwide on all Veterinary Career Network (VCN) career centers automatically - at no extra charge! Through VCN reach over 80,000 veterinary professionals.

VHMA Career Center

Job Framework & Job Description for Veterinary Managers

VHMA's Job Framework & Job Description Tool presents the typical job framework for a veterinary practice management professional — in other words, the background for and qualifications of the job — and provides a job description that you can edit, personalize to your practice, print, and sign. The appendix outlines how a veterinary practice management professional can become a Certified Veterinary Practice Manager (CVPM).

It is extremely difficult to differentiate the three levels of practice management because each level builds upon the knowledge and skills of the other levels. Therefore, this document presents the three levels simultaneously:

1. Veterinary Hospital Office Manager
2. Veterinary Practice Manager
3. Veterinary Hospital Administrator

The VHMA’s commitment to the field of practice management has led it to develop general descriptions of the various levels of management within a veterinary hospital. No two individuals are the same and no two veterinary practices are the same; therefore, it follows that these are very general descriptions and are proposed only as guidelines to assist in identifying the level of knowledge needed by veterinary practices or desired by those pursuing this career.

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Critical Competencies: A Guide for Veterinary Practice Management Professionals

VHMA created this guide to provide an overview of the skills necessary to be an effective practice management professional. The job requirements and competencies in the guide were derived from a scientific job analysis for the position of veterinary hospital/practice management professional. The goal of a job analysis is to identify and detail the specific job duties and requirements of any given job and evaluate the importance of these duties. The critical requirements are then linked to knowledge, skills and abilities that contribute to success.

The purpose of this guide is to define the major job domains and tasks that practice management professionals should be expected to undertake in their positions. Additionally, it identifies the competencies that are critical for fulfilling specific responsibilities. Competencies are defined as demonstrated behaviors, skills and abilities associated with the successful completion of job-related responsibilities. Often these personal attributes will differentiate effective employees from ineffective employees. Therefore, owners and supervisors would be wise to look for these attributes when making hiring decisions.

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Compensation and Benefits for Veterinary Managers

Biannually the VHMA conducts a comprehensive compensation and benefits survey for practice managers. The bi-annual report includes compensation characteristics broken down by:

• position and responsibilities
• credentials
• years of experience
• type of practice
• years at current location
• geographical region

This is a bi-annual report, the next report will be published in 2019.

VHMA Members can download the complete report for free through the MemberConnect Community. Non-members may order the report(s) through the VHMA Store.

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Empower U Self-Assessment

VHMA is pleased to announce that practice management professionals can now access a self-assessment tool that will allow them to evaluate their veterinary practice management knowledge. Empower U Self-Assessment test is a non-proctored (no time limits) examination modeled after the CVPM examination and is available to all practice management professionals.

Empower U is a highly effective tool, which can be used to identify professional strengths and weaknesses and pinpoint areas for improvement.

Empower U focuses on management knowledge in key areas: Human Resources, Law and Ethics, Marketing, Organization of the Practice, and Finance. The tool’s true-false and multiple-choice questions about relevant management knowledge are presented in a format that is similar to the VHMA's Certified Veterinary Practice Manager (CVPM) certification examination.

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CVPM Certification

In 1989 the VHMA realized the increasing need among Veterinarians and Practice Managers for a program that would qualify the knowledge and experience necessary to successfully manage the ever-changing business management of today's veterinary practices. The Certified Veterinary Practice Manager (CVPM) certification is the result of that realization. Today the CVPM certification is respected as the highest level of credential for professional veterinary managers.

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Veterinary Practice Self-Audit Workbook and Document Organizer

The business community uses internal audits to make improvements, satisfy stakeholders, and maintain effective operations. The outcome is enhanced confidence by boards of directors and owners and improved profits, programs, and services.

The VHMA Veterinary Practice Self-Audit Workbook and Document Organizer introduces the assessment practice to veterinary hospitals. The workbook, with appendixes and accompanying CD supports practice efficiency by 1) identifying the key systems and required documents, (2) developing best practices related to processes, and (3) documents them in one manual.

This voluntary self-audit workbook helps to identify what systems and documents are in place, missing, or deteriorating and serves as a catalyst to correct the problems before clients or staff begin pointing them out. What you don’t find in an internal audit can be as important as what you find!

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Preventative Pet Healthcare Champion Workbook

Preventive healthcare is an important part of a practice's commitment to quality care for your patients. But, at any busy practice, preventive pet healthcare can get lost during the non-stop action of a regular day. Sometimes it takes a talented, passionate someone to remind the practice team to keep preventive healthcare a priority in your clinic. That someone can be you!

Preventive Pet Healthcare: Your Guide to Becoming a Practice Champion is a workbook developed by your peers, designed for you. It’s your guide to lead a step-by-step process to increase the emphasis on preventive healthcare in your practice. It includes tips from getting support from your practice leadership to developing effective ways to roll out plans to the entire staff. You can use this workbook to help your team become aligned on your practice’s philosophy and speak with one voice. Let this workbook be your roadmap to making a difference with your patients, clients, practice, team and you.

Learn new leadership skills to earn new leadership responsibilities at your practice by becoming a Champion of preventive pet healthcare today. Whether you’re an old pro at leading initiatives or an enthusiastic first-timer, this workbook has everything you need.

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Insiders' Insight Report

The VHMA Insiders' Insight Benchmark Report tracks key economic indicators (Revenue Growth, Patient Visits, and New Client Growth) to determine how VHMA member practices are performing monthly, as well as results from VHMA surveys on issues impacting the profession. There are over 600 VHMA member practices who contribute to the data for the key economic indicators. Data is representative of companion animal practices only. The monthly report is provided free to VHMA members.

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