As a co-lead organization of the Veterinary Debt Initiative (VDI), VMAE (along with AVMA and AAVMC) is committed to helping veterinarians thrive in rewarding and financially sustainable careers. A component of the VDI action plan is creating awareness throughout the veterinary community of the many helpful tools that exist to support veterinarians in understanding and managing educational debt.  To support that goal, VMAE has added a VDI section to the Resources page on the VMAE website – and suggests that you add a link from your VMA website to this...

VMAE members are uniquely positioned to hear about on-the-ground examples of how individuals and practices are addressing educational debt – and VMAE invites you to share those success stories! Perhaps you have a story from your Power of Ten participants who benefitted from a financial literacy program … or from a veterinary practice whose owner(s) found a way to help new graduates address educational debt … or from a young professional who successfully navigated debt repayment options … or about the workshop that your VMA created to help address the...

Have your members ever asked you “How many potential clients and pets live in my local area?” There’s an answer! AVMA members now have access to a tool that makes it easy to estimate the potential size of the local veterinary market and what share of that market the veterinarian currently serves. Regardless what kind of companion animals – dogs, cats, or companion birds or horses – the AVMA Market Share Estimator tool provides important insight veterinarians can use to support their business planning.  Read more here....

In response to several recent inquiries received from VMA executive directors, the AVMA has clarified how access to member sections of the AVMA website is determined. Additionally, the AVMA notes that, just as they have done in the past, veterinarians who serve as executive directors must continue to pay for AVMA membership to receive access to full member benefits. The AVMA protocol is this: “As a courtesy to non-DVM executive directors of organizations represented in the AVMA House of Delegates, AVMA will provide an AVMA member ID that provides access to...

Pride Veterinary Medical Community (Pride VMC) is partnering with VMAE and all interested veterinary associations, veterinary organizations, and industry partners to gather up to 400 parade participants this coming June 30th for World Pride 2019 in New York City. The date corresponds with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising. Having the veterinary profession represented on the world stage is a unique and rare opportunity. Part of Pride VMC’s mission is to foster acceptance and inclusivity, and in that spirit it is providing the opportunity for individuals to march together and...

Reach Members on the Air with Podcasts Tim Ebner writes that podcasts are growing in popularity right now, and it could be a medium ripe for associations to recruit, retain, and engage members. Read more here. Source: Associations Now Daily 3/20/19 Reinventing Association Governance Nick Marzano shares his thoughts following the second annual Association Charrette to explore key challenges facing the association management profession’s present and future.  One of the three issues identified was governance, which Marzano says “often gets short shrift relative to the impact it could have on strategy and member engagement.” ...

You may recall a recent VMAE survey that asked you about podcasting. We wondered, for example, if you were interested in creating podcasts and if you were already doing so. In a nutshell, what you indicated was a VERY high interest in getting into podcasting – and you also indicated that very few VMAE members are actually delivering podcasts. These findings precipitated a few actions: The VMAE Podcast Task Force was empaneled by your Board of Directors. Tim Atkinson (executive director at the New York State Veterinary Medical Society) graciously...

A core component of VMAE’s mission is to provide compelling learning opportunities that stimulate VMA executives, provide thought leadership, and foster peer-to-peer sharing of exptertise. Thanks to the Professional Development Committee and its ThinkWORKS Program Committee, VMAE’s educational offerings for 2019 are game changers in professional development. Save the dates and read more about our upcoming conferences. VMAE | ThinkWORKS 2019 – San Francisco, April 11-13. The single-topic, deep-dive, think-tank format distinguishes ThinkWORKS.  The 2019 program is focused on the future of learning – with an emphasis on how technology...

At the membership luncheon on January 12 in Chicago during the AVMA Veterinary Leadership Conference, VMAE President Dan Tjornehoj, Treasurer Phil Hinkle, and CEO Ralph Johnson presented information on recent accomplishments and forthcoming initiatives: Strategy – Dan thanked members for providing valuable input about what “you and your members need” and for “affirming how valuable VMAE is to your professional satisfaction and success.” He was referring to the member survey that informed the Board of Directors strategy session held in November, which was “very capably facilitated by our own Doug...

Pride Veterinary Medical Community (Pride VMC) is partnering with VMAE and all interested veterinary associations, veterinary organizations, and industry partners to gather up to 400 parade participants this coming June 30th for World Pride 2019 in NYC which corresponds with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising. Having the veterinary profession represented on the world stage is a unique and rare opportunity. Part of Pride VMC’s mission is to foster acceptance and inclusivity, and in that spirit it is providing the opportunity for individuals to march together and unite in...