Project Proposal:

        My current company, Veterinary Innovative Partners (VIP), is a small network of veterinary hospitals. The company formed one year ago with the merger of several smaller regional groups. In the past year, all recruitment has been done by third party vendors who overcharge and have no loyalty to any company. The veterinary industry is at the top of the list for mental and physical burnout and therefore nearly every hospital has hiring needs, especially for veterinarians. VIP had two junior recruiters who had no experience and little direction. They hired two doctors in 1 year. Not only did we have 34 doctor openings, but our goal was to double the number of hospitals from 33 to 66 over the next 24 months.

        I was hired as Director of Talent Acquisition in August of this year. I am responsible for building a team of recruiters and training them. I have been given complete ownership of my department and am trusted to make the decisions that I see as best. For the past six weeks, I have worked to create workflows, SOPs, job descriptions and new roles and responsibilities. Our new team makeup and tasks are recruiting for veterinarians, credentialed technicians, practice managers and administrative/HQ jobs.

        In this leadership project, I will highlight the processes that I have built thus far. I will also continue to build new processes and procedures. I will create more roles on my team and work hard to fill these openings with people who are looking for a career path forward in veterinary medicine. As our company grows, our team will be able to stay up to date on company needs and be flexible and collaborative. The recruitment efforts will also focus on DEIB initiatives.

 

Desired Outcome/Results:

• All recruitment team workflows completed

• Create 2-3 more roles for team with job descriptions

• Hire as many top talent as possible

Indicators/Measures of Success:

• Processes complete and accepted by Executive Team

• Roles created and filled

• Track metrics using ATS

• Scalable to other departments and potentially to other small businesses

Process & Transfer of Skills/ Integrated Learnings:

• Leadership and Diversity, ORGL 506

  • Competencies: 

Students apply intercultural communication concepts to identify DEI goals and needs, and develop, implement and evaluate DEI initiatives within an organization. I am using DEIB learnings in two ways. First, I will recruit by focusing on a diverse and inclusive workforce. Second, I am working towards creating DEIB training for our employees.

• Servant-Leadership ORGL 530

  • Competencies:

Articulate a personal, servant-centered philosophy of leadership. I am leading my team as a servant-leader. We talk regularly about their career aspirations and needs.

 

• Teambuilding ORGL 550/Advanced Teambuilding ORGL 551:

  • Competencies:

To increase knowledge and understanding of team development. I will create and organize regular, perhaps quarterly, in person meetings to keep team connected and relevant to our clinics.