Meagan Larrea, Joy 4 Cats
December 3, 2019
Valerie Sheppard, Association for Animal Welfare Advancement
December 10, 2019
It is getting cold and snowy outside, so it is a good time for more webinar reviews.
Here are a couple Maddie’s Fund Webinars that were of interest to me:
Toolkit for the Time-Starved Leader: A Practical Guide to Hiring and Retaining Engaged Employees
Presented by Jocyeln Kessler, MBA, Senior Director of Operations, Community Medicine at the ASPCA
This was presented at the 16th ASPCA Cornell Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Conference.
Jocelyn stresses the importance of spending a lot of time on the front end when hiring so that you don’t make a mistake and hire someone that isn’t a good match for the organization. Also, if you hire someone who is not working out in the position, you need to let them go quickly.
Jocelyn recommends behavioral interviewing and defines what this is. The webinar page has some templates you can download and use for behavioral interviewing. It is based on looking at the person’s past performance to help assess whether they have the tools needed for success. Some of the key factors in behavioral interviewing include having a solid job description, identifying core competencies, creating an interview, and interviewing promptly.
A few tips I learned from this webinar: When crafting a job description, be realistic and ask yourself if this is a job you would want. Keep the fluff and jargon out. Include anything unique about the job. When interviewing, you want to ask situational questions about the past, like, “Tell me about a time when….” In addition, make sure you use a rating system to evaluate your candidates. Post on indeed.com and make sure you refresh your posting so it doesn’t show as more than 30 days old. Acknowledge that you have high turnover positions, but that they need to be refreshed regularly. You also need to respond to candidates within 2 business and keep the process moving. After a new staff member is hired, Jocelyn takes a deep dive during a one-to-one conversation (more than just a check-in) with them.
These are just a few of the great takeaways I had from watching this presentation, along with the idea that a leader’s job is to make others successful. I have always found the HR side of things very challenging in the animal welfare space, but Jocelyn’s presentation was very clear and not at all intimidating.
Access to Veterinary Care: A National Family Crisis
Presented by Dr. Michael Blackwell and Dr. Susan Krebsbach
WOW, double WOW—or as the folks at Maddie’s Fund would say, this was definitely an “aha moment.”
In other words, this webinar was really impactful. Dr. Michael Blackwell and Dr. Susan Krebsbach (CCP Episode #49), leaders of the Access to Veterinary Care Coalition at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, really outdid themselves during this webinar. I was so blown away by their statistics and information I just couldn’t even take notes.
The suggestion that many families will suffer and go without in order to take care of their pets is well documented. We need to acknowledge that pets are part of the family. Families will have pets, regardless of their income level, and we need to provide for those pets as we would other family members. Drs. Blackwell and Krebsbach have a really interesting idea on how to solve this healthcare crisis for our pets.
I won’t give you too many spoilers, as this is simply a “must watch” for anyone interested in thinking strategically in the community. If you have a spare hour or so, please check this out.
Do you enjoy reading my book and webinar reviews? Please let me know by emailing me at stacy@communitycatspodcast.com. I really would like to hear from you.
