Consolidate That! – Details, episodes & analysis

Dr. Ivan Zak and Ryan Leech are pleased to introduce the Consolidate That! Podcast. In this episode, we are talking about the reasons why we started this new initiative and what kinds of topics we’ll be discussing in the show. We want to share our domain knowledge and the meaningful insights we have gained from our experience working in the veterinary consolidation space.

In this episode, Dr. Ivan Zak and Dr. William Griffin from Veterinary Integration Solutions talk about the critical components of a value creation plan.

Topics Discussed:

• Value Creation Plan: Basic business plan used to effectively guide decisions
• Consolidator: Creates value for shareholder and practice seller within timeframe
• Reasons to Invest: Vision, mission, and values to start a consolidation
• Value Creation Plan/Strategy – Fundamental Components:
  – Arbitrage (acquisition and merger of small, independent practices)
  – Operations (what you can, should, and not do after acquiring a practice)
• Margin Expansion: Europe’s data, systems, processes cleaner than U.S. market
• COVID vs. Client Behavior: Human-animal bond continues to get stronger
• Healthcare Capacity: Reduce stress and strain by implementing changes
• Diligence: Create value by partnering and aligning with people and culture

This week on the Consolidate That! Dr. Julien Renard, Co-Founder of Vetstoria, joins Dr. Ivan Zak and Ryan Leech to discuss the successful execution of a clinical tech stack and the importance of knowing how to measure success.

Topics discussed:

• Vetstoria appointment bookings in the customer journey;
• Implementing software for large scale organizations;
• Change in the hospital workflow and clinical staff behavior;
• Key KPIs that Vetstoria provides for the veterinary groups;
• The importance and influence of having meaningful actions based on KPIs;

This week on the Consolidate That! Ryan and Ivan talk with Mark DeCourcy, CEO at Ellie Diagnostics, about diagnostics' role in the patient journey and the significant impact on EBITDA for veterinary consolidators.

Topics discussed:

• Percentage of revenue from diagnostics;
• Optimization of the clinic's workflow by transitioning to a laboratory partner;
• How eliminating contracts increases the practices’ value;
• Impact of preventive diagnostic tests on the total revenue for the clinic;
• Ellie Diagnostics’ innovative business model;

In our special episode of the Consolidate That! we are going to discuss with Dr. Bob Lester of WellHaven Pet Health and Dr. Thom Jenkins of PetsApp how an acquisition impacts the classic burnout triggers, why team culture is subject to due diligence, how consolidators can build a system to improve employee experience, and the costs of indifference.

Topics discussed:

• The importance of cultural assessment pre- and post-acquisition;
• Employee NPS score;
• A good question to ask employees: What would you change if you were the boss?
• When to communicate the acquisition to the team;
• Preserving the legacy, the team and making sure that the financial incentives are there when you’re picking the consolidator to sell your business to;
• Taking references from other clinics that already sold to a particular consolidator, a good strategy suggested by Bob;
• Change management vs continuous improvement culture

In our previous episode, a webinar, we received some great questions about change management versus continuous improvement. So, today Dr. Ivan Zak and Ryan Leech are diving into some of the best change management practices. From the ADKAR model, to McKinsey’s 7-S model, Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model and even Kubler-Ross, we discuss the continuous improvement and how it differs from change management. Change is inevitable, but when employees lead it, not only will it be better received, but it will touch on pain points they experience. 

So, rather than waiting for corporate change management, foster a culture of continual improvement and your organization is sure to flourish and weather whatever storm comes its way!

Topics discussed:

• Industry change management models;
• What the McKinsey 7-S model is most useful for; gap analysis to assess strengths and opportunities;
• Which steps are more important than the change management itself;
• What continuous improvement means and how it can be implemented in organizations;
• Why continuous improvement resonates with millennials in the workforce;
• Fostering a sense of continuous improvement in your business is more effective than implementing corporate change.

In this episode of Consolidate That! Ryan Leech and Dr. Ivan Zak discuss the main principles of goal settings and OKRs, or objectives and key results. What are they? How do they affect the business? How can consolidators use them to implement goals and objectives across the entire framework?

Topics discussed:

• Learn about OKRs and get to know how they affect business, and how can consolidators use them;
• Discover the Grandma Rule;
• SMART goals and OKRs: do they overlap, are they the same thing, or components of OKRs;
• How the OKR system allows every level to own the size of the task at hand for themselves;
• The difference between benchmarks and OKRs;
• Potential risks for missing OKRs for the organization;
• The difference in goal setting for technicians vs veterinarians;

In today’s episode, Dr. Ivan Zak shares his experience from a Harvard University course about assessing mergers and acquisitions. We begin the episode by talking about the importance of knowing what your capabilities are and who can most benefit from them. 

Expanding on this topic, we share vital insight on pinpointing your core values, what kind of culture is already present in your business, and how you can align the two. 

Topics discussed:

• First thoughts on Harvard University's mergers and acquisitions course;
• Why the consolidation process needs to cover aspects of synergy;
• The importance of knowing what your capabilities are and who needs them;
• Links between synergy and cultural integration in a company;
• Comparison of the business cultures at IBM and Lenovo;
• How alignment and decision-making between executive teams should look;
• Proper preparation of data before entering the consolidation process;

Our guest, Dr. Bob Murtaugh, is highly accomplished as a double-boarded internal medicine and critical care specialist. He is currently the Chief Professional Relations Officer at Pathway Vet Alliance, where he builds the talent pipeline for hospitals and looks for means to support research and community service. 

In this episode, Bob shares more about what consolidators need to keep in mind when looking to acquire a practice and the importance of community in the industry. Veterinarians have an incredibly unique career and set of job requirements, so we discuss the value of having someone who understands the vet and the operational side of things to ease the transition.

Topics discussed:

• The importance of community and culture and why consolidators should be aware of these aspects;
• Veterinarians drive the business, so it’s important to choose the right people;
• Insights into how consolidators starting out can look to scale their operations;
• How Pathway has dealt with consolidating during the pandemic;
• The key people who help make integration as smooth as possible;
• A look at Pathway’s Veterinary Incentive Program and what it offers associates.
• Veterinarian’s performance measuring tactics;
• Some of the benefits of being part of a larger organization;
• The importance of support rather than control for consolidators.

Today, David Strauss, Co-Founder of PetWell Partners, sheds light on PetWell Partners’ fundraising strategy, how they spotted value-unlocking opportunities, and hiring the right people for the job. 

David also shares some of his key learnings from his time in the space and what he would do differently, details around PetWell Partners’ decision to be acquired by NVA, and his latest project Roo.

Topics discussed:

• Why David believes the strategy of scaling fast and building operations after the fact is risky; 
• The value of knowing your strengths and weaknesses as a person and as a team; 
• The link between credibility and your team and why you cannot separate their importance; 
• How PetWell Partners financed their first two rounds and corporate overhead percentage; 
• Insights into how David and his partner identified opportunities to improve before purchasing; 
• Dealing with cultural baggage before the acquisition;  
• Why PetWell Partners decided to go with NVA and what’s on the horizon; 
• What David’s role looks like now that they are part of NVA;
• Details about another one of David’s projects, Roo.