Earlier this month, Dr. Karen Woodard, CVMA Secretary, attended the annual AVMA Leadership Conference which is to advance leadership within the veterinary profession. Dr. Woodard shared some key takeaways.
Leadership Continuing Education
- For leaders, Emotional Intelligence is a better predictor of effective teams than IQ or technical ability. This effectiveness is shown by 756% better net income, 682% increase revenues, and 186% increase in shareholder returns.
- In human medicine, medicine mistakes occur at a rate of 12%, and half those are considered preventable. Human hospitals perform anonymous “medical safety culture surveys” for their staff at least every 18 months to ensure all team members feel empowered to report safety concerns regularly.
- If a medical error occurs, must dig into the reasons to determine if (1) human error, (2) at-risk behavior present, or (3) reckless behavior present. Intervention is as follows: for 1 check processes and training, for 2 coach and incentivize good behaviors, and for 3 discipline appropriately.
- Veterinary Sustainability Alliance discussed how to move hospitals towards more environmentally friendly policies and SOPs. They have a website with great resources to help identify opportunities and pursue goals to improve. They have begun a certification program for hospitals around sustainability.
- We all know about “Burnout.” We need to learn about “Boreout”. Job boredom can also lead to team member dissatisfaction and needs to be combated by leaders helping develop all members of the veterinary team to achieve.
- We currently have five generations of workers in the workforce today and may soon have six. It is incumbent of all leaders and workers alike to learn and understand the norms of the other generations. All generations are looking for (1) respect, (2) connectivity, and (3) autonomy in their work to feel satisfied, but all generations may define those words very differently!
Economic and Future outlook of veterinary industry:
- Six interest rate cuts were made in 2025. The feel is similar to the 2022 slowing of the economy. Precious metals are currently reaching highest gains since 1979!
- Consumer sentiment is decreasing, but overall retail spending data is not following The highest 10% of income earners are still spending strongly.
- The average number of pets per home = 2.4
- 41% of homes only have 1 pet
- 14% of pet owners claim to have a relationship with a specific vet, but have not brought their pet(s) to the vet in more than 12 months.
- Average new-grad salaries for 2025 graduates (base + expected production bonus) = about $130k
- Average salaries of all DVMs of all types (base + expected production bonus) = about $155k
- Whole nation vet visit numbers are down 2.8% (2025 vs. 2024), and Revenue up 2.4%
Overall outlook for 2026: Pet owners are likely to struggle with affordability. Pet numbers in homes are stable/flat, and currently DVM salaries are stabilized.