After 10 successful years of recruiting within the animal health and veterinary sector, we’re delighted and proud to be launching Langhill Veterinary Practice Partners. Langhill VPP’s mission is to help veterinary practices find and attract top talent, while also helping veterinary professionals find the best career opportunities within the industry.

At Langhill, we help both hiring clients and candidates achieve their ​Veterinary Practice recruitment goals by building long-term relationships based on trust, delivering a very professional service and, most importantly, by delivering results.

Jenny Bowman is the brains behind Langhill VPP with a little added direction and a kick from Lindsie Cooper and Holly! Let’s get to know them a bit better.

1. Lindsie, Jen and Holly, how would you describe your roles at Langhill VPP?

Lindsie: “I manage all things VPP and I’m also the Office Manager. In fact, I’m basically the office dogsbody. Whatever needs doing, I’m your man!”

Jen: “Officially I’m managing director. Unofficially, I am the maker of rules, the payer of bills, the master of recruitment, the mother of dragons. Wait, scrap that last one.”

Holly: “ I head up the clinical division of the company, recruiting RVNs, Vets, Clinical Directors and other associated roles.”

 

2.Langhill VPP is your new venture, but you’re not new to the industry, are you?

Lindsie: “Yes, we’ve both been round the recruiting block a few times – I’ve been in the industry for almost 10 years, and for Jen it’s closer to 15 years.”

Jen: “You could say we are ‘seasoned veterans’, but that just makes us sound really old…”

Holly: “ I have been working in scientific recruitment since 2010 but now love my niche area of veterinary science.”

 

3.What makes Langhill VPP unique? What separates you from the competition?

Lindsie: “Our approach has always focused on the quality of our service. We want to be the best at what we do, and we try very hard not to over-promise and under-deliver. We do exactly what we it says on the tin. That’s why our clients trust us, and it’s why they keep using us. We try to keep things informal and non-corporate. We don’t like stiff and formal – we much prefer fresh and original.”

Jen: “I would add that we have excellent people working for us. So much of recruiting is about people and building relationships. At Langhill, our people are superb. We deliver excellent service and results, and we like to be professional yet offbeat.”

Lindsie: “What’s not to love?!”

Holly: “Cultural fit is everything.  If you can do your job but don’t feel comfortable then you won’t stay there for long!  So we get to know our candidates and clients so we can match them successfully every time!”

 

4.Can you tell us a bit more about the services you provide to your clients?

Lindsie: “All of our clients have different recruitment needs, so we’ve built our online platform to be as flexible as possible. Think yoga plus recruiting – that’s Langhill! Our clients can have as much or as little interaction as they want with candidates, to find the best talent for their business, given their available time and budget.”

Jen: “We provide a range of options to our clients, from a comprehensive and fully managed account service, through to managing their own recruitment needs. Clients can advertise available roles on our job board, they can search for suitable candidates on our database, and can contact candidates directly to arrange interviews. We can also provide a full referencing service on new candidate offers.”

Holly: “We offer a consultative recruitment process to ensure we know exactly what our clients need.”

Lindsie: “Whatever our clients want, we’ll try to accommodate them. Well, within reason…! We’re also very transparent. Any fees we charge are fully disclosed and agreed in advance, so that there are no nasty surprises.”

 

5.How do you work with your clients in practice?

Lindsie: “We like to build strong working relationships with our clients. If we have a good understanding of their business, their people and their needs, it’s much easier for us to help them to find the right candidates.”

Jen: “We also make use of all available recruitment methods, traditional and modern. This of course means we also harness the power of social media to identify potential candidates. Research shows that only about 21% of candidates are actively searching for a new role, meaning that the majority are what we call ‘passive candidates’. We try to make sure we leave no stone unturned, and that means searching for the most enthusiastic and experienced people, whether they’re actively looking or not.”

Holly: “We are happy to meet people on site as required and don’t shy away from good old fashioned face ot face meet ups!  Also a lot of Zoom and Teams too!

 

6.What roles does Langhill VPP typically recruit for?

Lindsie: “We recruit for all roles within veterinary practices. They include veterinary receptionist, veterinary practice manager, veterinary surgeon, senior veterinary surgeon, ECC vet, registered veterinary nurse, head veterinary nurse, head veterinary nurse, veterinary nursing assistant, veterinary care assistant, and veterinary clinical director.”

Jen: “You name it, we recruit for it!”

Holly: “Lindsie has them all covered and we also recruit for specialist roles that require certificate holders such as ophthalmologists, internal medicine specialists and neurologists!”

 

7.What about candidates – how do you work with them?

Lindsie: “We’re committed to helping all candidates to achieve their career goals and aspirations. Our online platform means that candidates can choose whether or not to allow clients access to their CV and details, and also whether or not to allow clients to contact them directly. Candidates can also use our online platform to make very specific job searches, according to their needs. And our 24/7 platform means clients can upload new roles around the clock. Candidates can therefore always see the most up to date opportunities.”

Jen: “It doesn’t matter what job you’re in, or how experienced you are. We have long-standing and great relationships with independent vet practices and larger vet practice groups throughout the UK. We’ll always try to make our service personalised and tailored to our candidates’ needs.”

Lindsie: “We can also help candidates to create the best possible CV, and help with how to succeed during interviews. We will also provide honest and hopefully constructive feedback to candidates.”

Jen: “It’s also worth saying that candidates will never pay a penny to Langhill VPP for our services. We are only ever paid by our recruiting clients We also promise to treat candidates’ personal details with 100% confidentiality and respect, in line with the GDPR requirements.”

Holly: “We try to get to know candidates on a personal level so that we can understand their motivations and characteristics, to fit in with the correct team.”

Lindsie: “Whatever happens between you and Langhill, will stay between you and Langhill.”

8.Okay, we’ve learned a lot about Langhill VPP and how you work with clients and candidates. What about when you’re not working – what else do you like to do?

Lindsie: “I love to swim and read. I also work hard at keeping my children alive.”

Jen: “I have recently become a gym enthusiast. I also love travelling and eating. A lot.”

Holly: “I am a big foody so I will be in the kitchen making vegan curries, soups and cakes.  We eat a lot of cake in our house”

 

9.What’s your favourite film quote?

Lindsie: “Get your stinking paws off me you damn dirty ape!” [Planet of the Apes]

Jen: “Nobody puts baby in the corner” [Dirty Dancing]

Holly: “Life is like a box of chocolates – you never know what you’re gonna get!” [Forrest Gump]

 

10. And finally, tell us a joke

Lindsie: “I can’t believe someone broke into my garage and stole my limbo stick. Honestly, how low can you go?”

Jen: “Today at the bank, an old lady asked me to check her balance. So I pushed her over.”

Holly: “What did one snowman say to the other? “Can you smell carrots?”

 

If you’d like to talk with one of the team at Langhill VPP, don’t hesitate to call us on 0113 263 2031 or email us at info@langhillvpp.com.