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Competing with Corporate Consolidator
The landscape of veterinary practice is definitely changing, with corporate buyers investing heavily - and this isn't a brand new trend. In fact, DVM 360 offers up these
examples from 2007
:
- Summit Partners, a private equity and venture capital firm, invested $128 million in National Veterinary Associates (NVA); at that point, NVA owned the most freestanding veterinary hospitals in the United States: 99 of them in 29 states.
- VCA Antech, Inc. bought Healthy Pet Corp. and its 44 hospitals for $152.9 million, bringing their holdings to 450+ clinics in the country.
By 2016, approximately ten percent of practices are corporately owned.
Some people, upon hearing these stories, have rung the death knell for single-doctor practices. DVM 360, in the 2007 article, begged to differ, pointing out that VCA Antech - after more than 20 years of being in business - still only owned approximately 450 hospitals out of the country's 31,000-plus practices.
So, is it possible for you to continue to maintain your own practice, and even compete with the corporate giants? Definitely. Although the percentage of corporately-owned practices has increased, in 2016 there are still 90 percent that are NOT owned by corporations.
The bigger question, really, is how to compete. Before we share strategies, here are reasons why veterinary practices are being seen as attractive investments, and why practice owners sometimes decide to sell to corporations.
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VBA Extern - Cedar
Pieprzyk
I am a veterinary student at Michigan State University, and the first person in my family to pursue a doctorate degree. I am the eldest of my siblings, all of whom are college age. I have a Persian cat named Ariel and 5 goldfish who keep me company while I'm at school.
I am funding my dream of becoming a veterinarian by working odd jobs such as dog sitting and walking, working full time over summers, and picking up the odd bartending shift during school at my undergraduate workplace. I conducted research with a professor in the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences last summer, and I try to stay involved in clubs as much as possible during the academic year.
I am involved in the Veterinary Business Management Association's Business Certificate Program, so that I have the skills necessary to own my own small animal clinic one day. I am an active member of the AVMA, MVMA, and SCAVMA, and I've served as a board member at MSU's Zoo, Exotics, and Wildlife club. I am interested in bridging environmental conservation and animal welfare.
The idea of One Health is very popular, but the environmental aspect of it is often overlooked. I would love to learn more about business management, ethics of veterinary medicine, and veterinary law, because I believe a firm grasp on these practical life skills are necessary no matter what direction my career may take me.
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New Year, New Employee Manual
 Been putting off creating or updating your employee manual? The new year is a great time to implement new policies. If you contact us by December 1st and mention the newsletter, we will include a free on-boarding script to use when implementing your brand new manual with your staff!
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2017 Calendar for Human Resources Related Events
2017 - Is it really here in just the blink of an eye? We have updated our calendar with additional events that you should be addressing in 2017 regarding Human Resources related activities. Please take the time to at least scan the list and pencil in on your appointment book or mark on your outlook calendar or for you techies with the smart phones or tablets, maybe there's an app for that - so that you are proactively prepared to administer or address each event in a timely manner. Our list is based on a calendar year and your Practice's fiscal year running concurrently. But any listed activity below, can be scheduled in the month that you need to begin the activity, so that you have enough planned lead time to get the event executed successfully according to your own schedule. Not all activities may pertain to your Practice (some depend on the number of employees working for you) and the list is comprehensive but not all inclusive - it is meant to get you thinking about Human Resources related activities and functions for the upcoming year. And as a reminder, some of the new HR related activities that are listed due to their prescribed implementation dates may change as we get closer to the deadline dates because sometimes legislative acts may get challenged, postponed or shelved. As we hear of updates, we will post them in our newsletter.
Click here for Calendar
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Is employer provided pet health insurance coverage a taxable benefit?
Here are three sources that explain that this benefit IS taxable:
Information sources:
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