Offering the right compensation and benefits package can make or break your veterinary practice—but not all benefits are created equal. While some perks might seem appealing at face value, they could be quietly draining your profitability behind the scenes.
In the video below, we explore a more strategic way to approach employee compensation using a framework called the “Three Rs”:
- Recruitment – How to make your practice more attractive to top-tier talent.
- Rewards – Why targeted rewards outperform broad bonuses, and how to align them with controllable behaviors.
- Retention – Ways to implement exclusive benefits like deferred compensation to keep your best people around.
If you’re a practice owner looking to motivate your team and protect your business, this video is a must-watch. Take a few minutes to evaluate whether your current benefits are truly working for you—or if they need a thoughtful refresh.
Transcript:
Let’s talk about employees for a second.
You might have owned a practice for years. Maybe you are a new practice owner and you’re considering some opportunities to put in some benefits, programs, maybe a 401(k) for your employees. Maybe you already have a lot of benefits and perks that you offer.
Sometimes the cashflow is used or the profits in the business are used to create programs for employees to where they become more of a win-lose for the owner, so they become a win for the employee, but then a loss for the owner.
And when you break this down of what you’re actually offering your team, well, how are they being able to provide the most bang for your buck?
There are the three R’s that we should focus on when it comes to implementing some sort of programs or benefits. The first R is what are you putting in place for recruitment type opportunities? What makes your practice attractive? Why would someone want to work at your practice?
The other one here is we want to talk about our rewards. So how are you rewarding your team? And are they getting rewarded off of specific behaviors that they have done, or is it off of things that they have very little control over? And a lot of practice owners, a lot of business owners, get stuck in this sort of dilemma where, the business did better this month, and then everyone gets a blanket bonus. Christmas comes around and everyone gets a blanket bonus. How is that actually enriching and motivating the team to work harder? A reward program should be focused more on the idea of focusing on a specific thing to where it can be able to increase profits in the business.
And then the last one that we talk about is retention. There are certain people in the business that maybe you want to keep them around for a while. You really appreciate them. You want to offer them a very exclusive benefit. The 401(k) with a profit share is not an exclusive benefit. Health insurance is not an exclusive benefit. But when it comes to what they call deferred compensation, cert plans, there are double bonuses. There are things that can be offered to certain employees where you can pick and choose who you want to offer it to. A lot of other perks you have to provide to everyone.
So, when you think about the monies that you’re using for your business to kind of motivate your employees, bring good talent into your business, really focus in on the three R’s.
What are you using to recruit? How are you rewarding and motivating people? And what are you doing to really provide the extra bang for the buck for those that really matter for your business?
If you find that you’re kind of scrambling around or at the same time, you really want to dive deeper into “how do I maximize and create the most effective and efficient plans to engage my staff, to keep the ones that really matter in the business?” maybe now is the time that you should be considering your opportunities to be able to create or redesign what you’ve already put in place.
Video Recap:
When most veterinary practice owners think about exiting their business, they picture retirement or selling to a corporate group. But exit planning isn’t just something to think about in your final years—it’s a foundational part of running a healthy, profitable practice from day one.
Whether you’re just starting out or already thinking about your next chapter, here’s why early exit planning matters.
This material is intended for general public use. By providing this content, Park Avenue Securities LLC and your financial representative are not undertaking to provide investment advice or make a recommendation for a specific individual or situation, or to otherwise act in a fiduciary capacity. Guardian, its subsidiaries, agents, and employees do not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. Consult your tax, legal, or accounting professional regarding your individual situation. Tom is a Registered Representative and Financial Advisor of Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS). Securities products and advisory services offered through PAS, member FINRA, SIPC. Financial Representative of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America® (Guardian), New York, NY. PAS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Guardian. Florida Veterinary Advisors and The Next Step Planning Group are not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. California Insurance License #0K80141. AR Insurance License #15823672. Florida Veterinary Advisors is not registered in any state or with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as a Registered Investment Advisor. The individuals associated with Florida Veterinary Advisors do not maintain specialized licenses or qualifications for the financial services provided to veterinary professionals. 7993217.1 Exp 5/27