Veterinary Practice Assistant Director

Summary:

Play a pivotal role in our brand-new Community Veterinary Clinic by serving as the Veterinary Practice Assistant Director, ensuring excellent patient care, team leadership and client experience.

Who we are:

Have you ever wondered what happens to cats and dogs whose owners are unable to afford veterinary care? We have. The ASPCA’s Community Medicine (CM) team provides expert veterinary care to support the welfare of animals and their people through our stationary and mobile veterinary clinics, serving the most underserved communities in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. We help pet owners overcome barriers to care, bringing quality services directly to the communities that need us most and partially or fully subsidizing the cost of basic and preventive care. CM treats people and pets with dignity and respect, assisting pet owners in making informed decisions about their pets’ health and wellbeing regardless of their financial circumstances. When you come to work at the ASPCA, you join a team of over 1,000 dedicated colleagues with deep knowledge, skills, and passion for the animals we serve.

What you’ll do:

Under the general direction of the Clinic Director, the Assistant Director, will oversee a fast-paced and dynamic nonprofit Community Veterinary Clinic (CVC). This role enjoys a broad range of responsibilities: lead an engaged, high-functioning team, ensure patients receive the highest-quality care, and deliver outstanding client experiences to maximize the CVC’s impact in the community. You will help ensure the clinic meets its impact goals while providing financial and administrative oversight. If you have a passion for mission-driven work, a desire to serve pets and people, and strong professional operations and people leadership experience, this may be the perfect opportunity for you!

When and Where You’ll Work

• This is typically a Monday – Friday position with flexibility needed to work beyond the scheduled work day to respond to issues that arise outside normal business hours

• This is an on-site position primarily based at the Community Veterinary Clinic. Occasional flexibility in reporting to other ASPCA locations throughout the Greater LA Area is required based on operational need.

• Occasional travel outside Los Angeles metro area (5% or less) may be required.

• This position reports to the Director, Community Veterinary Clinic and has four to six direct reports.

What you’ll get :

Compensation

Starting pay for the successful applicant will depend on a variety of factors, including but not limited to education, training, experience, location, business needs, internal equity, market demands or budgeted amount for the role. The target hiring range is for new hire offers only, and staff compensation may increase beyond the maximum hiring range based on performance over time. The maximum of the hiring range is reserved for candidates with the highest qualifications and relevant experience. The expected hiring salary range for this role is set forth below and may be modified in the future. 

• The target hiring range for this role is $102,000 - $107,000

Benefits

• Work/life balance:

  • paid vacation time to relax

  • paid sick time to heal

  • ten paid holidays to observe

  • plus - paid personal time to celebrate what and when you like

• Terrific benefits package: medical, dental, and vision insurance, pre-tax dependent care and health flexible spending accounts (FSAs), 401(k) plan with generous employer contributions beginning after one year of service, employer-paid life and long-term disability insurance and more (note that benefits are reviewed and subject to change annually)

• Room to grow: the ASPCA has robust professional development programs to support your growth as a leader

• Support: we are one of the largest and most impactful animal welfare organizations in the world, so you will always have a strong team to lean on and cheer you on

Responsibilities:

Responsibility buckets are listed in general order of importance. They include, but are not limited to:

People Leadership

• Communicate effectively with the Clinic Director and the Regional Management Team to execute the department’s strategy and achieve the clinic’s impact goals

• Directly supervise Patient Liaison team members and fill in as needed to support front desk

• Help ensure efficient workflows and high-quality service from the front door, through high volume surgery and appointments to optimize the clinic’s impact

• Be a consistent and visible presence “on the floor” to answer questions, make timely operational and staffing adjustments, offer support, receive/give feedback, lend a hand, and foster commitment to ASPCA’s mission

• Make day-to-day operational decisions in alignment with CM department priorities: Team, Animals, Clients, Operational efficiency

• Support a culture of kindness, respect, belonging, high performance and teamwork through regular 1:1s, recognition, supervision, developmental coaching, performance evaluation and fun

• Foster open, 2-way communication with CVC team members to ensure they have timely, relevant information to succeed, understand the why behind decisions, feel heard and empowered to give input

• In lockstep with the Director, lead change management in the clinic – champion technological and process changes – to help the clinic operate more efficiently

• Support staff development by engaging in career conversations, connecting them with professional development opportunities

• Assist in recruiting, hiring, onboarding and training new team members

• Effectively manage clinic in the Director’s absence

Planning, Execution & Administration

• Deliver and model superior client experience and patient care for every client, every animal, every day

• Provide support in escalated client situations, including intervening directly to de-escalate, listen, apologize and problem-solve

• Oversee financial & administrative functions at the CVC, including cash management & daily reconciliation, expense reporting, supply procurement, payroll processing, medical records accuracy

• Create and publish staff schedules to ensure smooth operations, within budget, and optimal service delivery

• Ensure all staff adhere to all time and attendance guidelines & state and local labor laws regarding overtime, rest and meal breaks

• Maintain a safe and healthy workplace for all staff, clients and animals: comply with all OSHA regulations and ASPCA safety guidelines, support a culture of safety and injury/incident awareness and prevention

• In Director’s absence, monitor inclement weather and emergency events that may impact CVC operations; partner with regional leadership to prepare and execute plans to prioritize safety for people and patients in our care

• Prioritize gentle animal handling for patients by ensuring Fear Free® techniques are practiced consistently with patients in care to minimize fear, anxiety and stress

• and Fear Free® certifications are obtained by all staff

• Work effectively with inter-agency partners – generally animal welfare groups or municipal animal services agencies – to achieve ASPCA priorities in the region

• Represent the ASPCA and CM’s work to external partners as needed, including facility tours, media appearances or donor events

• Coordinate and support community outreach as needed

Qualifications:

• Highly motivated self-starter capable of providing leadership and support to complex, high-volume clinic

• Strong written and verbal communication skills; ability to communicate effectively with clients and colleagues

• Ability to build and maintain positive and productive relationships with internal and external stakeholders

• Excellent time management skills with the ability to respond to shifting priorities

• Ability to coach others by providing clear feedback and expectations

• Readily able to work with animals who are behaviorally and/or medically compromised; support staff in humane euthanasia situations

• Fear Free® Shelter certification is required within 60 days of hire

• Ability to exemplify ASPCA’s core values and behavioral competencies

Education and Work Experience:

• High school diploma, GED, or equivalent professional experience required

• Minimum of 3 years of professional work experience within one or a combination of the following fields is required: veterinary industry, animal welfare, healthcare and/or operations or business management, or other similar experience in a related field

• Minimum of 1 year managing a veterinary clinic, veterinary animal hospital, or managing a similar environment strongly preferred

• Minimum of 2 years managing direct reports required

• Experience managing managers a plus

• Operational management experience, including scheduling, and managing operating expenses, preferred

Language:

English (required)

Spanish language skills strongly preferred; other languages a plus

Qualifications:

Language:

Education and Work Experience:

Our EEO Policy:
The ASPCA is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, gender, gender identity or expression, age, marital or domestic partner status, citizenship status, sexual orientation, disability, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws, regulations or ordinances.

Applicants with disabilities may be entitled to a reasonable accommodation under the terms of the Americans with Disabilities Act and certain state or local laws. A reasonable accommodation is a change in the ASPCA’s standard application process, which will ensure an equal employment opportunity without imposing undue hardship on the ASPCA. Please inform the ASPCA’s People Team if you need an accommodation in order to complete any forms or to otherwise participate in the application process.

Individuals seeking employment are considered without regards to race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, gender, gender identity or expression, age, marital or domestic partner status, citizenship status, sexual orientation, disability, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws, regulations or ordinances.

ASPCA is an Equal Opportunity Employer (M/F/D/V).

About Us:
The ASPCA was founded in 1866 on the belief that animals are entitled to kind and respectful treatment by humans and must be protected under the law. As a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation with more than two million supporters nationwide, the ASPCA is committed to preventing cruelty to dogs, cats, equines, and farm animals throughout the United States.

The ASPCA is headquartered in New York City, where we maintain a full-service animal hospital, spay/neuter clinic, mobile spay/neuter and primary pet care clinics, a rehabilitation center for canine victims of cruelty, kitten nursery, adoption center, and two community veterinary centers.

The ASPCA also operates programs and services that extend nationwide. We assist animals in need through on-the-ground disaster and cruelty interventions, behavioral rehabilitation, animal placement, legal and legislative advocacy, and the advancement of the sheltering and veterinary community through research, training, and resources.

At the ASPCA, we are committed to fostering a collaborative and compassionate culture and we welcome all voices to contribute to our lifesaving mission. Our staff represent a vast array of backgrounds and diversity dimensions, bringing with them valuable experiences and perspectives. They join the ASPCA to learn, grow, and continually do their best work on behalf of animals. We are inspired by our staff, partners, and the communities we support across the country who work to improve animal lives. We are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion at the ASPCA because it elevates our organizational culture, aligns with our Core Values, and enables us to move further and faster toward the ASPCA’s vision – that all animals live good lives; valued by society, protected by its laws, and free from cruelty, pain and suffering.

Your Employee Rights Under the Family and Medical Leave Act:
Pursuant to regulations of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), we provide this notice to applicants about eligible employees’ protected leave for certain reasons. Click on the link to learn more.

Applicants that are residents of Colorado and Oregon: Per CO Senate Bill 23-058 and ORS 659A.030, we cannot generally request or require any age-related information (i.e., age, DOB, attendance or graduation dates from an educational institution) on an initial employment application; this includes any age-related inquiries through completion of the initial interview. We can require/request additional application materials; if those materials contain any age-related information, an applicant should redact the information before submitting an initial employment application.

Indiana Applicants: Pursuant to Indiana law, we are providing notice that it is an unlawful employment practice for an employer to discriminate against a prospective employee on the basis of status as a veteran by: (1) refusing to employ an applicant for employment on the basis that the applicant is a veteran of the armed forces of the United States; or (2) refusing to employ an applicant for employment on the basis that the applicant is a member of the Indiana National Guard or a member of a reserve component. Should you feel that you were a victim of discrimination on the basis of veteran status, please let us know at [email protected]. Alternatively, you can file a complaint with the following agencies at any time: Indiana Civil Rights Commission (ICRC) 100 North Senate Avenue, Room N103, Indianapolis, IN 46204; Office: (317) 232-2600 | Toll Free: (800) 628-2909; Hearing Impaired: (800) 743-3333 | Fax: (317) 232-6580; E-mail: [email protected] | Website: Equal Employment Opportunity Commission - Indianapolis Field Office; 115 W. Washington Street South Tower Suite 600; Indianapolis, IN 46204; Phone: 463-999-1240; Fax: 317-226-7953; TTY: 1-800-669-6820;ASL Video Phone: 844-234-5122.

Massachusetts Applicants: Per Massachusetts law, we are providing notice that it is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Philadelphia Applicants: You may view your rights under the Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Act here .