Formation of Leadership XXXX:
Last time we talked about how to handle things when the practice is slow. Do you complain to employees or do you lead and give them a vision of what is to come? This is a time where true leadership shines through. If you are looking at your P&L during a slow time, can you find places to make cuts? If we look, we can all get lazy and not watch things as close as we should. I would look over the P&L, make the simple cuts first, and then get as lean as possible. However, unfortunately these are usually not enough to make a large difference, so now you must look elsewhere. The two large places that we can find areas to cut are: employees and inventory.
How many of you know what your employee numbers are, what percentage of gross, and the exact number or percentage of inventory is on your shelves? I would venture to guess that most would be shocked at how much waste that exists in these two areas. We can cut back and not affect the clinic or care of animals at all. I have gone into clinics where I was told they ran 18% inventory; however, when we really looked at it many times, it was over 22%. Take that extra 4% times a monthly gross of say $100,000 and that is $4000 a month of waste. Many times we just go ahead and order that antibiotic or anti-inflammatory that the doctor wants; however, this all adds up. We have a policy where no new products are ordered without a mutual agreement of the doctors where they want to use this product and eliminate another. I do not have ten different antibiotics or anti-inflammatory products on the shelf. We carry a few antibiotics and none of them work in the same way, and then we carry two anti-inflammatory products. We also do not carry every flea and heartworm preventative available. I am amazed at veterinarians that say I have to carry all of them because people ask for them. Why not carry one and have your staff 100% up to date on that product and then educate your clients as to why they should use that one? I never knew that the client knew more than the veterinarian. By following these steps, we have kept our inventory at 14% for over a year now. Most experts say 17-18% is ideal, but in my opinion that is way too high. Once again, run your practice like a business; this does not mean inferior care but just being careful as to what sits on the shelf and then is wasted. Next time we will talk about how to keep your employee numbers down without affecting your care and which employees should stay and which ones need to go.
If you understand every aspect that determines good veterinary practice management, then that means you understand what motivates your workers. As a manager, what are you going to do in order to build an environment where every employee feels comfortable and able to participate? What can you do to increase the productivity and satisfaction of your employees at the same time? How can you employ talented people and keep them? How will you train your staff in an effective way, introducing them properly to the practice while involving others in the process? All these questions are the fundamentals of veterinary practice management that must be answered sooner or later.
