Culture


At some point, in primary school we are all asked in a group session, “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

Jimmy wanted to be a spaceman.

Sarah wanted to drive a tractor.

Jane wanted to be a Veterinary Surgeon.

John wanted to be a Veterinary Nurse.

Jimmy and Sarah ended up on a different path but Jane and John achieved their goals and now work under our blanket. Our organisation’s leadership mission is to simply ensure that the big person that the little person dreamt of being, comes to life.
Our Purpose
The Journey / Where are we going?

I am not sure if we will ever arrive at a final destination.

The ‘we’ I am referencing is our business, which if you are reading this; could be you at some point down the track.

The ‘destination’ is a place that we are striving for our business to reach where upon arrival, we plant our flag and all feel smug for a few minutes. Look! We will boast. We made it! Then we will all start feeling confused not knowing what the hell to do next. Maybe, arriving at the final destination isn’t a good thing. Maybe we should just travel.

Vets 1 has been travelling since the 1st May 2013. Travelling, for the most part, has been fun.

We didn’t start our journey with a detailed itinerary, no maps, no sat nav. We just started and made decisions on the basis of, “that feels good” or, “no, that is clearly wrong”. We haven’t always called it correctly. We have learnt that gut feeling is a useful human trait, but also an incredibly unreliable science. We haven’t always got it right.

We have though always tried to put our team first and we always will. We want to travel with friends. We accept that our friends will join our journey at one stop and then leave further down the line whilst we continue. When the friend leaves, we want it to be a happy parting and we want fond memories left for both parties.

Psychological safety
Most people have in their back garden a BBQ or some decking, maybe a hot tub. We have a Veterinary Hospital. It is the place we head to each to day to hang out with like minded people who we call friends. Some days are tough, so we spend time discussing why. Some days run smoothly, so we might head to the garden and end the day sharing wine. We take the time to understand each other - from the most senior to the most junior. Sure, we fall out. We are human. Human’s are complex and inconsistent. But running through the DNA of our team is an understanding that we have each other’s backs.

Team engagement
We have ‘Bob’. Bob is our own, unique social media site for Vets 1. It lives as an APP on all our phones and ‘big” Bob lives on our desktops. Bob on one level is the place we share success (similar to a FB wall). It allows us to consult with our team through polls. It acts as our appraisal system and it keeps our teams fully updated. Bob asks you to list your hobbies and interests, then introduces you to others in the team with the same life choices. Bob is a valued team member!