As speaker Andy Roark says, the 2018 VetSummit is laser-focused on building the business aspects of veterinary practices. But it’s not just for practice managers. We designed this year’s VetSummit event for all roles in the practice, from practice owner to front desk staff.

No matter what role you play in your veterinary practice, you’ll learn a lot more than just five things. This conference is packed with classes on software training, human resource management, customer service, revenue-generating strategies, risk management, and much more. It’s the only conference of its kind where you can dive in to all-things practice management – from C.E. courses on veterinary business to hands-on software training to make you more efficient.

But, we thought it would be fun to highlight the five most unique, compelling tidbits for practice owners/managers as well as veterinary technicians and front desk staff. Enjoy!

For Practice Owners/Practice Managers

New strategies for growing revenue. We’ll cover things you probably haven’t thought of before, such as how hiring decisions can impact revenue growth, how to develop a revenue growth plan that maximizes your strengths, and how to evaluate your pricing strategies. (The fees you charge for services have a huge impact on practice revenue, yet most practices don’t really have an effective pricing strategy.) 

Interviewing, hiring, and coaching staff for peak success. Hear from the HR pros! Learn effective ways to identify, retain, and grow top talent using effective interviewing techniques and coaching skills. The war for great talent is real. (And these classes are filling up!)

Taking the paperless journey. If you’ve considered going paperless or paper light but haven’t made the full jump, this track is for you. For AVImark, ImproMed, and eVetPractice users, you’ll learn how to set up your practice to electronically capture charges and signatures, manage patient flow with the whiteboard, use electronic consent forms and medical records, and more. 

Manage your risk. Every practice owner and manager needs to understand risk management and internal control systems in the practice environment. Maintaining positive cash flows, effectively utilizing resources, and maintaining the practice’s overall value are contingent on well-maintained systems. You’ll gain an overview of key risk areas and learn basic principles for minimizing those risks.

Measure and improve your practice valuation. How do you value your practice? Valuation is like medicine: art and science intertwine with an appraiser’s professional judgment and knowledge of the profession’s important factors. You’ll receive an overview of the entire small business valuation process, study current issues in veterinary practice values, and learn what you can do to improve value.

And because we couldn’t help ourselves, here are two more takeaways we thought were worth mentioning:

• Using key performance indicators. Your software collects valuable data in real-time. But then what? Managing and building profit requires selectively using data to interpret results, adapt activities, and plan for the future. You’ll understand how to refine and use the mega-data collected in your practice, learn the differences between lagging and leading performance indicators, and interpret current industry trends.

• Accounting for practice profitability: Managing your practice by the numbers doesn’t have to be hard. You just need a systematic approach, like the one you use to tackle a physical exam. Learn consistent, reliable methods for collecting practice data and understand how systems integrate to enhance profit planning and growth.

Front Desk Staff/Veterinary Technicians

Basic software bootcamp. Are you new to the practice, or new to your AVImark, ImproMed, or eVetPractice software? Attend our Back to the Basics series. (It’s like basic training for your software.) You’ll learn how to schedule appointments, add new clients and patients, update the medical record, and even basic whiteboard usage. (Not using the whiteboard? You’ve got to learn it! You’ll absolutely love it.) 

Tips and tricks for streamlining front desk duties. The front desk can be a crazy busy place. These software tips and tricks can help. You’ll learn how to quickly search for clients and patients, process over-the-counter sales, check clients in and out, and quickly complete end-of-day activities. We’ll even address uncommon tasks like reprinting certificates, discounting on the fly, declining services, transferring patients, and entering past medical records! You’ll be the hero of the practice when you return home.

Handling angry clients. Ever deal with angry clients? (Like, maybe, every day?) You’ll learn a six-step program created using data from the hotel, restaurant, and airline industries. It is a systematic approach to dealing with angry or complaining clients that will make those tense moments calmer.

Ten techniques for getting colleagues to do what you want. Oh boy. This class from Andy Roark will teach you classic communication and negotiation tips to help you work more efficiently with others in the practice – including your boss! (You’ll feel like you’ve mastered a Jedi Mind trick.).  

Simplifying Labs. How much time do you spend storing and cataloging lab test results? Too much? You’ll learn how to use your software to synchronize, organize and display your in-house and reference lab diagnostics automatically. These tasks can eliminate manual lab data entry and ensure every charge is captured. (This class is filling up fast!)

And because we couldn’t help ourselves, here are three more things we thought were worth mentioning:

• Automate medical record note entry using your software. This will save hours each day! Your software contains all kinds of tools to speed up this process AND link to charges. You’ll learn them all here.
  
  
• Use your software to track dental charting. Learn how to efficiently chart each tooth, track progress, monitor changes and keep each pet’s permanent dental record updated electronically.
  
  
• Market your practice on social media. You may be a social whiz with your personal feeds, but do you know how use social media to market your practice and connect with pet owners? Learn how to budget, build and measure effective social media campaigns that can lead to more clients.

Oh … and did we mention, bring your software questions? We’ll have our software experts on hand, so you can literally sit down with a support technician and work through any questions you have. Attendees consistently rank this service as one of the most valuable at VetSummit.

See you in Dallas! Register today at VetSummit.com.