As Americans, we often rally around symbolism. We believe in the effectiveness of a logo to establish a community identity. After the disaster of 9/11, we all salute the Stars and Stripes. We are bound by patriotism. In California, the "bear" flag flies with pride. What is the "flag" that flies in your veterinary practice? What are the pride factors?

The "client-centered" habits that build most practices, during those first few years after the doors opened, soon shift to a "bottom line" fixation on the profit and loss statements. Then the "flag" of caring for clients often changes to caring about the average transaction fee. The staff starts to fret about their "bonuses", rather than client satisfaction.

The veterinary practice of the new millennium must do more with less. The margin of profit has dwindled. A business cannot spend the gross, it can only spend net! The reason for the dwindling net varies with the practice, from increased community competition, to veterinary price wars, to poor management techniques, to under-utilized veterinary extenders. Regardless of the cause, the best tools available to change trends are the human resources within the practice. Veterinarians work hard to produce the gross, but the paraprofessionals are the ones who can easily increase the practice net.