Veterinary recruiting is a tough job. Despite the impact of COVID-19 (and in some ways because of it), the veterinary and animal health industry has continued to experience growth in revenue, while overall unemployment rates have declined. With 6 jobs available for every veterinarian, you need to stand out from the competition now more than ever. That also often means moving them to where they’re needed, and selling them on the entire opportunity. To help you do just that, we’ve created a playbook with tips on competing for top veterinary talent.
The best hire is always going to be one with a strong cultural fit. You need to make sure you’re highlighting your company culture in everything you do in order to attract the right talent - and get them excited about working with you. Your workplace environment is a key piece - do you offer remote or hybrid work options? Do you host social events (virtually) for your team? What about professional development - do you connect new grads with mentors, or offer training incentives? Your approach paints a picture of your overall company culture and shows candidates how you value your employees. Today’s veterinary talent is looking for innovative, exciting, and even “fun” places to work. Focus on tech & innovation to set yourself apart as a forward-thinking organization. That’s what will help you stand out from the crowd in veterinary recruiting. From your website, to your social media, and of course your job postings - make sure your culture shines.
Your “image”, or company brand, is too important to attracting and signing veterinary talent to ignore. Although they sound similar, your culture and your brand aren’t the same - however, your company culture is absolutely a part of your employer brand. Every company has an employer brand - whether you built it on purpose...or by accident. Your employer brand includes every experience that a job candidate has with your organization during the recruiting and hiring process. From the job posting itself, to the initial contact, to the interview and even the job offer - how you present yourself as an employer to your potential candidates is a critical piece of attracting talent. Poor communication during the application and interview process will kill your brand. So will an unnecessarily long recruiting process. Keeping candidates informed (and excited) throughout the process will go a long way to differentiating you as a top employer.
Veterinary residents (new grads) are typically broke - the AVMA reported that in 2020 the average educational debt for all US veterinary grads was over $157,000. This means that reimbursing job candidates for interview-related expenses (for example if they need to travel for a final in-person interview) is very attractive. And doing it as fast as possible will set you apart from the competition, since typical reimbursement times are 5-6 weeks for non-employees. When relocating veterinary talent, use a relocation management partner as an extension of your team to provide a winning experience to residents and lead vets. This is also critical for internships and externships. Providing an excellent relocation experience is a great marketing tool that you should use in your recruiting efforts to show candidates you truly care about them. Not only will this help you hire better candidates, it will also help you retain top veterinary talent.