| Time | Topic | Speaker |
| 7.30am | Breakfast | |
| 8.00am | Registration opens | |
| 9.00am | Welcome | |
| 9.15am | Connecting circles: you, work and life Wellbeing (being well) in a business is no mean feat. Your personal wellbeing is connected to the health of the business and vice versa. It is also a dynamic relationship, where too little challenge and too much can both be problematic. Seeing the connections between self, business and life, it’s possible to improve your business by discovering better ways of doing things. Growth is not just the luxury of good times. When times are tough, we can do more than just bounce back; we can actually ‘bounce forward.’ | Darl Kolb |
| 10.30am | Morning tea | |
| 11.00am | Moving Forward: Defining your workplace priorities and making it happen. In this workshop Sue will facilitate a workplace priority focus plan enabling you to execute and implement key drivers to move towards success for all areas of your business | Sue Crampton |
| 12.30pm | Lunch | |
| 1.15pm | Beginners guide to menopause: Good for women and good for business Dr Linda Dear will explain what menopause is and how the symptoms can impact some women in the workplace. She will provide guidance on how to approach conversations with your staff about menopause, as well as simple strategies to better support them. | Linda Dear |
| 2.15pm | Once bitten, twice tried and I still love being a vet Three years ago Liza was attacked in her clinic’s carpark by a rottweiler that broke her arm and caused injuries requiring extensive surgery. The course of court proceedings extended for nearly two years and a hateful online social media campaign which attempted to undermine Liza and her team ensued. Liza will share her experience, how the physical attack paled in significant to the relentless online attacks and about the impact of these on her and her team. | Liza Schneider |
| 3.15pm | Afternoon tea | |
| 3.45pm | The impact of social media and how to manage it | Zoe George |
| 4.45pm | Panel discussion: How can you support your staff to be motivated and engaged in the workplace | Darl Kolb Sue Crampton Nick Cooper |
| 5.15pm | BestPractice introduction and update | Kevin Anderson |
| 5.30pm | Happy hour | |
| 6.30pm | Dinner |
| Time | Topic | Speaker |
| 6.30am | Mindfulness exercise | |
| 7.00am | Breakfast | |
| 8.00am | Veterinary workforce data update | Adam Barker |
| 8.30am | A financially sustainable industry Practicing best practice medicine in a cost-of-living crisis | Mark Hosking |
| 9.00am | Beating burnout and boosting wellbeing Working in veterinary roles is very interesting and challenging work, which has many upsides. At the same time, it can present some challenges for those working in the sector. These include managing work-life balance, emotional strain, demanding client interactions, and dealing with grief. This talk focuses on practical approaches to dealing with stress in veterinary work. These include building a personalized self-care toolkit, and taking care of essentials like sleep, exercise, and diet. It talks about using stress management techniques, addressing emotional challenges such as grief and anxiety, fostering connections, seeking support, and helping colleagues. It highlights the Optimally webinars on these subjects developed for NZVA on these subjects https://www.nzvaevents.org.nz/24firstr. Finally, it looks at how you can use your professional experiences in veterinary work to deepen your understanding of life and, through that, further develop your own philosophy of life. | Paul Duignan |
| 10.00am | Morning tea | |
| 10.30am | Business case for people and culture | Megan Alderson |
| 11.00am | The future of workplace wellbeing - identifying psychological risk This workshop is an interactive overview of the current state of workplace wellbeing. It will cover the dynamics of the modern world and how these dynamics are affecting our wellbeing, WorkSafe’s angle on mentally healthy work, and an overview of psychosocial risks. It will also provide an opportunity to use a risk assessment tool to anonymously identify the top psychosocial risks for the roles of conference participants. Last, it will demonstrate how understanding these risks can be used to inform a practical and effective wellbeing programme. | Dana Carver |
| 12.30pm | Lunch | |
| 1.15pm | Transitioning into practice - make or break The first year in clinical practice is a critical period for new graduates and has been considered a make-or-break period of a veterinarian’s career. This presentation summarises the findings from a qualitative study that explored the experiences of new and recent graduates in New Zealand during their early years working in clinical practice. Using a strengths-based approach, the study highlights what helped these graduates successfully navigate the early stages of their careers. Drawing from in-depth interviews, the presentation will cover key themes that may contribute to new graduates thriving in practice, including the development of proficiency and confidence, mentor support, positive workplace culture, and managing work-life balance. This presentation offers valuable insights for veterinary business owners on how to effectively support their new graduates to have a positive start to their professional journeys. | Charlotte Cantley |
| 1.45pm | Workshop: creating your own toolbox | Darl Kolb Sue Crampton |
| 3.15pm | Day concludes | |
| 3.30pm | Bus departs for airport |