2023 SPEAKERS

Topics: Know Your Money Scripts

Triage Your Personal Finances: Interactive Edition
Student Loan Payments Are Restarting: Here’s What You Need to Know

Meredith Jones is a veterinarian and financial planner. After paying off her school debt in under four years, she founded the Debt-Free Vets Facebook group and completed training to become a financial coach. She is passionate about empowering veterinarians and vet students with the knowledge and understanding to achieve their financial goals.

Topic: Veterinary Management Benchmarks: Guidelines, Goals, or Garbage?

Dr. Hargrove has been a small animal practitioner since 1991 and is currently Co-Owner and Medical Director of a nine-doctor small animal practice in Duluth, Minnesota. In addition to his clinical and ownership duties, he has worked as a management consultant, specializing in business valuation, since 2001. He has been a member of Summit Veterinary Advisors for the past twelve years. He is a charter member of VetPartners and has been active on the Valuation Council of that organization for the past fifteen years. Dr. Hargrove is a three-time graduate of Colorado State University, including a DVM in 1991 and an MBA degree in 2001. He became a Certified Valuation Analyst in 2010.

Topic: How to Attract Talent With Social Media

Dr. Caitlin DeWilde is a practicing veterinarian and the founder of The Social DVM, a consulting firm devoted to helping veterinary professionals learn how to manage and grow their online reputation and client connection technologies. She is the author of a new book “Social Media and Marketing for Veterinary Professionals,” and a columnist for Today’s Veterinary Business.

Topic: Hot Topics: Bitcoin Fundamentals

Isaiah Douglass is a Certified Financial Planner, Certified Exit Planner, and Fee-Only advisor. He also hosts The Veterinarian Success Podcast, interviewing guests and discussing topics related to clinical, business, financial, and personal lives of veterinarians.

Topic: Building Your Negotiation Toolkit

Melanie is a veterinarian, entrepreneur, speaker, educator, and mum. Melanie loves working with teams and individuals to create change, find new ways to think through problems, and collaborate.

Melanie has held roles in many fields of vet med including sport horse medicine, consulting, laboratory, surveillance, not-for-profit/ NGO, and charity sectors. She is the CEO of Vets: Stay, Go, Diversify, the largest community dedicated to career development in vet med. She is also the acting CEO of Community Veterinary Outreach, a charity that provides pro bono veterinary and human health care to homeless people and pets. Melanie’s MBA research focused on veterinary career paths.

Topic: Navigating Private Vet-to-Vet Transitions / Using Benchmarks to Identify Opportunities

Denise Tumblin, owner of WTA Veterinary Consultants, provides management, valuation, and transition services to independently-owned veterinary practices across the U.S. Her company co-authors the Well-Managed Practice® Benchmarks Study, and Denise is the co-founder and facilitator of the WellMP® Management Groups.

Denise speaks regularly at national and regional meetings on valuation and management topics and has authored numerous veterinary management articles.

Topics: Keynote – 5 Surprising Things You’re Afraid to Admit About Your Practice & Practical Advice for Emotionally Charged Client Convos

Bash Halow is a veterinary business advisor and veteran practice manager with over 19 years of experience. Mr. Halow has helped dozens of veterinary hospitals understand how to build stronger teams and responsibly and ethically grow their business.

Topic: How to Retain Talent When the Big Guns Are Throwing Cash

Dr. Dave Nicol has more than 20 years of experience in general practice and has previously owned or part-owned four veterinary practices on two continents. He has written three books, including So You’re A Vet…Now What? – which is about how to survive as a veterinarian after graduation. Through his VetX ecosystem, Dave produces tools, training, and systems to help vets and practice owners reach their full potential.

Topic: Investing for the Future

Ryan is a veterinarian and financial planner at Vincere Wealth Management. After 10 years in clinical practice, Ryan decided to make the switch to focus on financial planning. He is passionate about the different ways finances can be used to accomplish goals.

Dr. Wendy Hauser is the founder of Peak Veterinary Consulting and has practiced for 30+ years as an associate, practice owner, and relief veterinarian. She has worked in the animal health industry as a pet health insurance executive and as a technical services veterinarian. Dr. Hauser, passionate about education and innovation, consults with both industry partners (emerging and established) and individual veterinary hospitals. She is a regular presenter at veterinary conferences, facilitating workshops on hospital culture, associate development, leadership, client relations, and operations. Frequently published, she is the co-author of “The Veterinarian’s Guide to Healthy Pet Plans.”

Paul Diaz is a United States Marine Corps Veteran with over 22 years of recruiting leadership experience. As the Vice President of Veterinary Recruiting for one of the nation’s largest veterinary employers, he led his team to over 1,100 DVM hires in just 2 years.

Paul is now the Founder and CEO of Offer First, a revolutionary start-up technology company, launching later this year. Paul is also the leading advocate for ending the veterinary non-compete.

Jeff Sanford is the Director of Financial Literacy and Practice Outreach at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. Mr. Sanford teaches Practice Management at the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine and consults with veterinarians in Georgia and across the country. Each year Mr. Sanford reviews over 60 employment contracts and offers 3 contract negotiation labs to 3rd and 4th year veterinary students. He teaches specialized business education programs for veterinarians and has developed industry assessment tools including the Veterinary Engagement Surveys, Practice Mapping Growth Tool, Practice Performance Health Check, Strategic Marketing Assessment for Veterinary Practices, Activity Based Costing Analysis for Understanding Fees Structures and the Practice Valuation Assessment.

Alissa Edoff is the owner of Longevity and Wellness Veterinary Services, LLC, a mobile veterinary medical acupuncture and canine rehabilitation practice. Alissa is currently working full-time as a Talent Acquisition Specialist for CityVet. She also owns a second business, The Contented Vet, where she offers an online course for veterinarians who want to start and run their own mobile veterinary acupuncture practice. Several times a year Alissa teaches acupuncture to veterinarians with CuraCore Vet Academy.

Dr. Jason Balara is the CEO and Co-founder of Lark Capital Group, and host of the Know Your Why Podcast. Jason is a veterinary surgeon with extensive experience and training in his field. He additionally has many years of experience in real estate investing on the residential side with
single-family fix and flips and small multifamily rentals. As a real estate syndicator and fund manager, Jason is focused on Class B and C multifamily and small businesses, in order to achieve excellent returns for his investors.

Dr. Theresa VonAlmen is a 2015 graduate of Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine who has been in small animal practice most of her career both in emergency and general practice.

After graduation, she decided to pursue student loan payoff on a standard 10-year plan. After a year in general practice, she elected to join an emergency hospital, followed by a transition to general practice in 2019 where she still practices today. In pursuit of an early loan payoff, she has taken on various “gigs” to support her financial goals. Both as an adjunct instructor and working for a pet insurance company as a second appeals and consulting veterinarian. She also continued as a locum ER veterinarian over the years. In doing so she has broadened her experience and gained valuable insight.