Give Raises—Budget for Them
You couldn’t give your lead tech a raise this past year.
They were offered a new position and left.
Budgeting stops that.
You wanted to invest in new exam tables.
You didn’t know where to find the money for them.
Budgeting ensures you do.
I see too many vets just reuse the same budget year after year.
Yes, it seems easier just to rehash the old budget and then stop thinking about it.
But when you do that, you don’t account for changes in profit, market changes, or get the chance to plan for important financial needs.
Take the time to look at what you have accomplished in your practice.
Determine what you can accomplish in 2024, and think about what you want to accomplish in the future.
Reconsider the way you’ve been setting your budget based on these goals.
If you don’t know where to start, here are 3 items to reconsider in your yearly budget:
Payroll: Your practice can’t run without your staff. Review how much your other practices are paying their staff. Decide if you need to raise pay to stay competitive and budget for it. Ensure that you are dedicating at least 20% of profit to payroll.
New Equipment: Don’t keep thinking “maybe one day” about that CT machine—budget for it. Decide what’s needed to make the CT machine (or any other new equipment) a reality.
Inventory: Look at your current inventory, including basic supplies and medications, for areas where you spend too much or too little. Are there drugs that consistently expire and are wasted, or are there some that are never in stock when you need them, so you’re always spending more on expedited shipping?
Don’t just reuse the same budget plan you’ve had.
Use your budget to empower growth factors in improvement and growth.
One way I identify areas of improvement and profitability in practices is with key performance indicators (KPIs).
I list the 5 KPIs I suggest all practices implement in my Guide to Tracking Practice KPIs.
