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One of the many challenges of running a thriving vet practice is keeping high performers happy, but with the right approach you can retain your best staff members and create a healthy work culture at the same time. By Johanna Leggatt
Staff retention is a vital strategy for keeping your business running smoothly, especially at a time of vet shortages and increasing pet ownership. Not only do high levels of staff turnover disrupt the business’s operations, but it’s also costly. A 2026 study by workplace platform Foremind confirmed that Australian businesses face significant turnover costs, averaging 100–150 per cent of a departing employee’s salary. These costs often exceed simple recruitment fees, incorporating lost productivity, training, and the impact on team morale, rising to 150–200 per cent for specialist or senior roles.
So how do you stop your top dogs from jumping ship?
Sydney Animal Hospitals director Sam Haynes says that hiring the right people is the first, crucial step. “Experience has shown me that taking the time to find the right fit delivers far better outcomes than filling roster gaps too quickly,” says Dr Haynes, who co-runs seven practices across suburban Sydney. Some of Sydney Animal Hospitals’ 170 staff, he adds, have been with the hospital network for decades.
Once you have a great team in place, however, the workplace environment should be at the centre of your staff retention strategy. “Workplace culture is one of the most important things in retention,” says Dr Haynes. “The biggest builder of culture is always going to be at the grassroots—that coalface level of support and understanding.”
Creating a thriving culture
Enter practice managers, who play a huge role in promoting a healthy work environment, Dr Haynes says. “Our practice managers across the seven clinics regularly check in with the team and help support a positive culture.
“This is done formally in reviews and meetings as well as informally by making sure staff know that the door is always open to raise concerns.”
Emotional intelligence is essential in these leadership positions, especially when staff are struggling with personal issues, but are unable to say so out loud.
“We don’t need people to bring their personal life to work, but we do want to be aware if someone is struggling so we can provide support where needed,” says Dr Haynes.
“That’s why your practice manager needs to have that sort of empathy, to be able to understand their people.”
Dr Haynes also engages an HR advisory firm to ensure best practice across reviews, opportunities and staff development. Vet staff at Sydney Animal Hospitals generally work 10-hour days across a four-day week to give them an extra day of breathing space and recovery time. There is an employee assistance program offering legal and financial advice, access to further education, as well as discounts on health insurance and gym memberships.
He says ensuring vets and nurses feel well-supported clinically, with the equipment they need to do their job, is another important retention strategy.
“We’ve got highly equipped veterinary hospitals, giving our veterinarians the best opportunity to deliver exceptional care to their patients.”
Staff also need to feel there are development opportunities as well as career progression within the organisation. To this end, Dr Haynes says a pay rise may be discussed with high performers as early as six months after they commence a new role.
Vets and nurses are also encouraged to apply for courses and further training so they can “design the way they want their career to go. That way, they feel embedded in the practice, and they can see a future.”
Staff wellbeing
Practising vet Dr Martine Perkins owns The Village Vet, which has 30 staff across two locations in Sydney.
Workplace culture is one of the most important things in retention. The biggest builder of culture is always going to be at the grassroots—that coalface level of support and understanding.
Sam Haynes, director, Sydney Animal Hospitals
Dr Perkins’ track record of staff retention is also strong, with many nurses having been with the business for seven years or more.
“We usually lose staff because they relocate overseas or move,” she says.
Since she launched the first clinic in 2012, Dr Perkins has instituted a series of wellbeing and organisational procedures to keep nurses, vets and reception staff connected and thriving.
She takes staff on a mid-year retreat—think hot air ballooning and yoga retreats—where they can step away from the pressure cooker of clinical life.
“The veterinary clinics are really an intense environment sometimes, and it’s really important to know that we all have each other’s back,” says Dr Perkins.
She also hosts regular ‘Vet Rounds’ dinners, where staff talk about interesting or engaging cases or conference insights.
Of her six vets, four are new or recent graduates, which Dr Perkins says has turned out to be a great retention strategy.
“I love hiring vets now as new grads and training them up,” she enthuses. “They’re inspiring, they’re up to date with everything and they’re excited and enthusiastic.”
During clinic hours, vets, nurses and reception staff across both clinics host their own separate meetings every three weeks on Zoom. The role of these meetings is to check in with clinical and operational procedures and approaches to ensure everyone is singing from the same song sheet.
“Each team leader keeps records of any issues that crop up in between meetings and then we nut them out,” says Dr Perkins.
“This is what makes us happy and keeps us all on the same page.”
These regular meetings are also important for staff morale and help identify any inconsistent approaches. “It’s much better just to say, ‘Okay, let’s just make a policy for that’,” she says.
“If everybody’s agreed upon it, well, that’s the way it’s going to be done.”
