What is the Real Value of Associations for Members? Consistent with the Start the Conversation work undertaken by VMAE with marketing consultant Christopher O’Toole of Breightly.com, this brief and focused perspective from Amanda Kaiser (at Smooth the Path) provides insightful answers to the question of real value.  Read more here.  Source: AssociationSuccess.org Newsbrief 05/24/19 Telling the Advocacy Story: Moving Members From “Me” to “We” How can associations tell their advocacy story in a way that connects advocacy work back to member value and retention?  Tommy Goodwin writes that demonstrating collective action “moves the...

The Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges has developed this Cost Comparison Tool to help prospective students further develop a financial plan for veterinary school. Data is presented from all 30 US colleges and 12 Canadian and International colleges. The visualization presents the total cost of attendance (tuition, living expenses, and loan interest accumulation) for 2019 graduates. It includes data about whether students can establish residency for the purpose of playing discounted tuition and the average scholarship awards made to DVM students at each college. The visualization was expanded this year to...

The Pet Nutrition Alliance (PNA) announced a new resource to help veterinary healthcare teams make more informed decisions when recommending pet food for their patients. This new tool – Dare to Ask: We Did! – was created by compiling information about pet food manufacturers. PNA is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to providing resources to support veterinary healthcare teams in helping pets live longer through better nutrition, and to assist teams in providing nutritional assessments and recommendations for every patient. With thousands of choices of pet foods, it is confusing for pet owners and the...

A bill introduced in the Pennsylvania legislature is the latest in a series of state-level measures that threaten certifications offered by associations and other private organizations, according to the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) and the Professional Certification Coalition.  (Note – Participants in the VMAE Summer Conference will have the opportunity to hear from Coalition representatives about these legislative threats.) Read More ...

AVMA is offering a new certificate program that empowers veterinarians and team members with the knowledge and skills to create a culture of wellbeing in their veterinary workplace. The Workplace Wellbeing Certificate Program, created with the assistance of an educational grant from Merck Animal Health, is the first certificate program to be offered through the AVMA Axon digital education platform.  Taught by subject matter experts and leaders across the veterinary community, the program is comprised of five modules that connect all veterinary team members with critical resources for group and individual problem...

With staff, volunteers, and vendors often dispersed across the country, virtual meetings have become indispensable for getting work done in many associations. To ensure your virtual meetings are successful, follow these three tips. Read more. Source: ASAE Associations Now Daily 4/24/19...

Think “third Thursday” of each month, at noon Mountain time, and you’ll be tuning in to the new webinar series VMAE | Live!  The series will focus on association management and professional issue topics, with each 50-minute session hosted by VMAE colleagues who will share their expertise and external subject matter experts who will provide their insights. The inaugural webinar will feature a trio of VMA executives who will share examples and results of using different messages for targeted member segments, with an emphasis on ease of implementation for VMAs of...

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....