Hiring well is one of the strongest levers you have for building a thriving veterinary practice. The right questions during an interview not only help you uncover clinical skills, they reveal how a candidate thinks, collaborates, and contributes to your team culture. By asking with intent, you dramatically increase your chances of choosing someone who will stay and succeed.

You already know that recruitment continues to be highly competitive, but what you truly need is more than just a team member with a pulse and a license to practice. What sets strong leaders apart is their ability to structure interviews that go beyond résumés and rehearsed answers. These four questions are designed to give you clearer insights, speed up decision-making, and reduce costly hiring missteps while showing candidates that you run a thoughtful, well-managed practice…

You juggle shifting costs, staffing gaps, and clients who want faster, clearer answers. Predicting the future is not the job. Staying ready for it is. Resilience turns uncertainty into workable decisions you can make next week, not next quarter.

In practice, resilience looks like cash you can see on one page, a team that can flex without breaking, clients who understand value before price, and habits that surface issues before they become crises. Use this playbook as a menu. Pick two moves, run them for thirty days, then layer in the rest…

Picture this: you walk out of an interview knowing, deep down, that this is the place where you will grow, be supported, and genuinely enjoy coming to work. That clarity does not happen by chance. It comes from asking questions that reveal more than the standard “what’s the schedule?” or “how much is the salary?”

You already know your skills, qualifications, and what you want in broad terms. The real insight comes from finding out how a practice truly works day to day, how they support their team, and whether their culture aligns with your values. With the right questions, you can spot red flags early or uncover hidden opportunities that could make the role even better than expected…

You don’t need to hate your job to start thinking about your next one. In fact, some of the best career moves begin with a vague feeling… that there might be something better, something more aligned with how you want to work and live. But before you start scrolling job boards or replying to recruiter DMs, it’s worth pausing to ask: what are you actually looking for? Because “not this” isn’t enough.

Whether you’re gently testing the waters or actively looking for a change, there’s huge value in getting clear on what really matters to you right now, in this phase of your career. This isn’t about overthinking or making a 10-year plan. It’s about asking the right questions early so that when a great role does show up, you’ll recognise it… and more importantly, know if it’s worth pursuing…

You already lead a team that values high clinical standards, ethical decision-making, and compassion. And AI is coming… already nibbling at the edges of diagnostics, scheduling, and client communication. The big question is no longer whether it will impact your practice, but how. We’ve unpacked where AI is genuinely adding value, where caution makes sense, and provided a foundation for those conversations without compromising the human touch that defines your care.

Imagine buying your team equipment that promises better diagnostics, higher quality imaging, or more efficient dentals…with no training or instruction manuals. You wouldn’t do it, and AI should be no exception. When thoughtfully implemented, it offers real advantages. But if left unchecked, it can introduce serious risks for your patients, clients, and team. Now is the time to engage, understand the opportunities, and make sure AI strengthens your care, your culture, and your clinical outcomes..

You’re not officially in charge. But people are starting to look to you. The newer team members ask for your opinion. You’re the one who steps in when something’s unclear. Your boss trusts you with a bit more responsibility than everyone else. You haven’t been given a title, but the signs are there – leadership is coming. And if you’re honest, you’re not sure you’re ready.

In veterinary practice, leadership rarely starts with a promotion. More often, it creeps in quietly – through trust, competence, and visibility. But when the moment finally comes, most people step into leadership roles with no training, little support, and only an idea of how different it is from clinical work. So this article is your primer. It won’t make you a great leader overnight, but it will help you start thinking like one. Because leadership isn’t something you wait for, it’s something you prepare for…

A fulfilling veterinary career grows from moments where you choose curiosity over hesitation and clarity over uncertainty. You already bring deep expertise, compassion, and adaptability to your role. But the veterinary industry continues to evolve in ways that affect how and where you work.

When you’re equipped to recognise new opportunities and stay grounded in what matters most, you create a career path that reflects both your passion for animal care and your long-term goals. From ownership transitions to hybrid care models, being prepared puts you in a position of strength. By shaping these moments into meaningful turning points for career growth, work-life satisfaction, and professional purpose, you’ll be ready to thrive when change appears on the horizon…

You’ve found the perfect candidate for your open position. Their experience matches your needs. Their references are glowing. They seem genuinely excited about joining your team. Then they disappear during your hiring process, accepting another offer instead. This scenario plays out in veterinary practices every day. The culprit is often a hiring process filled with unnecessary hurdles that frustrate even the most interested candidates.

You already know that top veterinary professionals have multiple job options. The practices that win these candidates make applying easy and responding fast. Simple application forms, clear salary ranges, and quick follow-up communication can separate successful practices from those that struggle to fill positions. Small changes to your hiring process can dramatically improve your results…

Ask almost any veterinary practice owner or manager what their biggest challenge is right now, and you’ll likely hear it: “We just can’t find good people.” The shortage of veterinarians, vet nurses, and techs has become the go-to explanation. Industry forums echo with frustration. Jobs sit unfilled for months. Applications are few and far between. And when someone promising does appear, they often vanish just as quickly. The idea that “there’s no one out there” has become a widely accepted truth.

But that truth is incomplete.

While many practices are struggling, others continue to hire well… consistently. They engage with quality applicants, including professionals who weren’t actively looking. And it’s not just luck or geography. These practices operate with a different mindset. They take a whole-of-practice approach to recruitment, one that starts long before a role is even needed or advertised and continues well beyond the contract being signed. They treat recruitment as storytelling – not just what they say, but how they say it, where they say it, and how often. They understand that being a great place to work isn’t enough if no one hears about it in the right way, at the right time.

The encouraging reality is that this approach is entirely within reach. Any practice can shift from reactive hiring to strategic attraction with a fresh mindset, approach and implementation. Great hires don’t just happen… they’re built through consistent actions and intentional moments. The practices that get this right aren’t just filling roles, they’re building a recruitment flywheel for the long haul.