Big Data and the Business Analyst Job Description Management Resources

Big Data and the Business Analyst Job Description Management ResourcesBig Data and the Business Analyst Job Description Management ResourcesToo Big to Ignore The Business Case for Big Data, a current geschftlicher umgang title, seems to sum up the current thinking Big data will change everything about the way geschftliches miteinander is done. The advent of big data promises to breathe new life into the business analyst job description, opening new avenues of responsibilities and corresponding increases in salaries.To become a senior business analyst, you need three to five years of experience in the role, along with strong technology and analytical and skills.A senior business analyst is expected to perform tasks such as assisting with the implementation and support of business information systems across multiple departments. In addition, a senior business analyst is often required toconduct market analysis, and to analyze both product lines and the overall profitability of the busi ness. Other responsibilities of a senior business analyst may includeDeveloping and sharing reports that enable advertising, customer service, finance, sales and marketing managers to make better business decisions by understanding geography, supply chain and price.Ensuring that business data and reporting needs are met.Developing and monitoring data quality metrics.Clearly, these responsibilities mesh well with a big data future. TechRepublics Mary Schacklett would agree A big data team in most cases minimally requires an astute business analyst who can work with the end business so the right analytics queries are formed. Kupe Kupersmith heralds the major transformation that big data will bring to the business analyst job description. He writes that the business analyst job of the future will see the business analyst working less in project teams and more in strategy roles like enterprise or strategic BAs, business architecture, management consulting, and managing lines of busine ss.Encouraging numbersConsider this encouraging metric for the business analyst role According to the 2014 Salary Guide from Robert Half, salaries for business analyst managers in finance and accounting at large companies are expected to range from $83,500 to $119,000, an increase of 4.3 percent over 2013. A recent article from Robert Half Technology notes that business intelligence analysts are seeing a average starting salary increase of 7.4 percent.One of the most exciting aspects of big datas impact on the business analyst job description is that these professionals now inform key decisions and serve as business partners across multiple departments to provide the story behind the numbers.High-paying big data jobs await analysts with the right blend of knowledge and skills.Asking the right questionsNew York Times reporter Steve Lohr, based on research from Tom Davenport, sums up the value the business analyst will play in big datas future. Taking advantage of big data will inclu de the ability to ask the right questions, such asHow do you define the problem? What data do you need? Where does it come from? What are the assumptions behind the model that the data is fed into? How is the model different from reality?These skills have always been part of the business analysts toolbox, but the vastness of big data requires an exponential increase in the business analysts ability to tell a compelling story based on the right data.The business analyst of the future will use the analytical skills of today to skillfully - and lucratively - navigate the intricacies of a big data world. The knowledge they bring will, in fact, help narrow the margin of error for businesses by capturing key analytics and enabling sound business decisions.More resourcesIf youre a business analyst who is interested in finding new project and interim work opportunities, Robert Half Management Resources can be a valuable resource in your search. Explore our site to find assignments in your local area.Search Jobs8 Common Business Analyst Interview QuestionsWhether youre just embarking on thebusiness analyst career pathor youre a longtime professional in the field, preparing to address common types of business analyst interview questionscan help ensure youre ready to impress a vermgen employer when youre looking for projects. See this post for tips.

Hi, Hey, Hello Why casual email greetings are the way to go

Hi, Hey, Hello Why casual emaille greetings are the way to goHi, Hey, Hello Why casual email greetings are the way to goWhen you start an email, do you go for the more casual, Yo, whats up, or for the more buttoned-up Dear Madam or Sir?Think carefully. A new analysis of 300,000 emails found that how you start an email can decide whether or not you get a response.Heres the best way to start an emailLooking at hundreds of thousands of messages in public online archives, researchers at email app Boomerangfound the best way to garner a response is use some form of greeting.Boomerangs Brendan Greenley recommended always using an opening in the beginning of an email chain, because emails that included greetings performed overall better than emails that did not have one. Once youve sent out your initial introduction email, though, you are free to drop the formality of a salutation.The study concluded that more casual language was the best way to increase your odds of getting a reply. Here a rethe response rates based on greetingHey64% - a 34.8% increase over the baselineHello63.6%- a 33.9% increase over the baselineHi62.7%- a 32.1% increase over the baselineGreetings57.2%- a 20.6% increase over the baselineDear56.5%- a 19% increase over the baselineBaseline (allemails in the sample) 47.5%Formal is taking back seat to conversationalMaybe its time to ditch the formal how-do-you-do greetings. The top response for generating an email response was the casual greeting of Hey, followed by Hello and Hi.Ladders is now on SmartNewsDownload the SmartNews app and add the Ladders channel to read the latest career nachrichten and advice wherever you go.Perhaps we should move past the era of formal salutations, asmessages that struck a more informal, conversational tone from the start got more responses, Greenley wrote about the findings. Online communities tend to be more informal, so you might find a different distribution of openings, and different response rates across them, in more formal settings.Why do we tend to respond more favorably to casual salutations over more formal language? Greenley cites research on formality in online discussions, which found that we linguistically signal how much we like or know someone through an online salutation. This study found that we tend to use formal language when there is less of a shared context, or when the speakers do not like each other, two characteristics you want to avoid when you want to buddy up to someone. People are less inclined to respond to your networking email when youre stressing the fact that youre a stranger.So next time you need to cold email someone youve met through a networking event, try opening that email with a friendly Hey

Apply and Network in One Step

Apply and Network in One StepApply and Network in One StepThe next generation of job application software will let you see whom you already know at the company, so you can apply for a job and network at the same time.Thats the latest feature from one of the leading automatic online job application software packages, SilkRoad Technologys OpenHire. Thanks to a software update SilkRoad introduced last spring that is being adopted by many HR departments, once youve submitted your resume to a job site using OpenHire 5.0, youll be able to view potential connections between the organization and your existing professional network.OpenHire5.0 connects to your LinkedIn account to show you who in your network may be connected to someone at the organization that lets you follow up your job application with an mail to a colleague to request a referral or set up an introduction to someone who can.Referrals matter, even in the world of automated Applicant Tracking Systems like SilkRoad. Studies hav e shown that more than 60 percent of jobs are filled through referrals. Employers fast-track job candidates who are recommended by current employees statistically speaking, employee-referred hires prove to be better hires, have longer job tenures and therefore represent a far sounder investment on the part of employers, according to Thomas Boyle, SilkRoad director of product strategy.ATS programs that connect to your social networks will be more common as businesses look for more efficient ways to pre-screen candidates, writes Jim Holincheck, managing vice president at Gartner Research and a human resources software analyst, in a blog post.The employee referral and a direct connection are among the strongest screening tools available, said Lisa Rowan, program director of HR, Learning and Talent Strategies for Framingham, Mass.-based analyst firm IDC. If Im an employee, Im not going to recommend poor candidates, generally, she said.Most ATSes are sophisticated enough to know this. If an ATS has ranked Candidate A as being 80 percent qualified for a given job requisition, a source note that flags that candidate as also being an employee referral will raise that candidates ranking.Job seekers will find themselves applying via OpenHire if they look for jobs at companies including Urban Outfitters, food and agriculture giant The J.R. Simplot Co. or Hillel, the worlds largest organization of on-campus Jewish groups. A long list of companies with familiar names use SilkRoads other products, including Boston University, the Washington Post, United Way, jngste im bunde Moore Paints, Crate Barrel and Sony Pictures. In a nutshell, theres a good chance job seekers will cross paths with SilkRoad on the job search.Share, cause thats fairBeyond easing the path for candidates to identify connections within an organization, OpenHire encourages job seekers to use the other end of networking to help others find jobs with a single click. The Share part of the new Apply. Connect. Share. feature helps candidates do what theyre already doing Pass along job listings to friends.Ninety-nine percent of sites allow job seekers to e-mail a listing to a friend, Boyle said. But we also realize that social media is growing 10 percent faster than e-mail. If you think theyll only share jobs through e-mail, youre limiting how theyll be shared and youre limiting the likelihood theyll be shared.If you land at an OpenHire site and cruise the job listings, you might see a position that wasnt perfect for you but might be a perfect fit for a friend. With two clicks, youll now be able to post that opening directly on Facebook, for example, or any of some 320 social-media venues SilkRoad supports. Beyond the typical suspects such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, that list includes a mind-boggling array of bookmarking sites and blog sites.And the practice will help you in the long run after all, the most powerful way to acquire job leads and referrals is not to ask for them but to help others and wait for them to return the favor.In other words, apply. To bolster your chances of getting an interview, connect. To make koranvers the right jobs get to the right people and they potentially return the favor, share, share, share away.CORRECTION Chipotle Mexican Grill is not a customer of SilkRoad technologys OpenHire software. A previous version of this story incorrectly included Chipotle in a list of OpenHire customers.

Eating chocolate at lunch and 8 other ways to beat SAD at work

Eating chocolate at lunch and 8 other ways to beat SAD at workEating chocolate at lunch and 8 other ways to beat SAD at workSeasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) impacts over two million people each winter. SAD is characterized by feelings offatigue, depression, and anxietythat occurs at the same time each year.1. Eat dark chocolate.Keeping a bar of dark chocolate at your desk can do more than satisfy your sweet tooth it can also elevate your mood. Studies show that dark chocolate promotes the release of endorphins that provide an instant boost to happiness. Dark chocolate is also rich in serotonin, the neurotransmitter that contributes to feelings of well-being andhappiness.2. Drink turmeric tea.Turmeric is a powerful plant that serves many functions and has beenproven to ease symptomscaused by major depression. The main component of turmeric, curcumin, modulates various neurotransmitters, so swapping out your morning coffee for a cup of turmeric tea may be the little boost you need to keep the winter blues at bay.3. Invest in a desk plant.While every season has its positives and drawbacks, having most greenery die is one of winters pretty big downsides. Instead of waiting around for March or April to roll around to experience signs of life, take matters into your own hands and invest in a plant for your desk.4. Dab on an essential oil.An essential oil is a concentrated aromatic liquid extracted from plants that are commonly used to promote relaxation. To help deter the winter blues, look for an essential oil with soothing properties such as lavender or lemongrass, and dab it on your wrist throughout your workday. Essential oils are easily available in drugstores, some health shops, and through multiple zugreifbar vendors.5. Declutteryour desk.Spring may be the first season that comes to mind when you think of giving your space a thorough cleaning, but in winter, a fresh start can be what you need to help keep the blues at bay. Getting rid of things you dont need and straightening up your everyday items can give your space a more peaceful feeling.6. Get rid of your office blinds.Because winter provides so little opportunity to take in light, its essential to make the most out of the hours that light is available. Ditch the shades in your office, and let as much sunlight in as possible.7. Practice guided imagery.While you may not have time for a full-onmeditationsession during the work day, practicing guided imagery during a short stretch of downtime may give you the boost of relaxation you need to make it through your day. During a guided imagery session, you may picture something as simple as sitting on a beach or walking through a park at dusk. They key is to pick an image that engages all of your senses to help you momentarily disassociate and relax.8. Cut carbs.While the first instinct after experiencing a hit of SAD may be to load up on comfort foods like chips and cake, reaching for carbohydrate-rich foods can actually be counterproduc tive to fighting the blues. The happiness delivered is short lived, as the spike to blood sugar levels will leave you feeling worse after.9. Eat asparagus.Get the most out of yourlunchbreak by using it to help combat SAD. Asparagus contains heaps of tryptophan, an amino acid that is essential to producing serotonin. Add it to a salad or use it as a side to reap thebenefits.A version of this deutsche post ag previously appeared onFairygodboss, the largest career community that helps women get the inside scoop on pay, corporate culture, benefits, and work flexibility. Founded in 2015, Fairygodboss offers company ratings, job listings, discussion boards, and career advice.

A Deadly Mistake Uncovered on Download Resume from Indeed and How to Avoid It

A Deadly Mistake Uncovered on Download Resume from Indeed and How to Avoid It The ideal thing that you ought to do is to already catch the interest of your possible employer in the initial five seconds so he or shes going to keep on reading the remainder of your resume. One other great issue is that you find it possible to supply plenty of info in an easy and cool way. Lots of people dont even are conscious of the sorts of resumes out there. Fortunately, theres a great deal of those. Since you can see, font size is vital portion of your resume and you ought to ensure that it remains in your thoughts, when you writing your document. A number of the templates are free while others cost a couple of dollars. Conduct an angeschlossen search of the kind of resume samples youd love to download. Youre able to add a URL to your professional website if youve got one and to your LinkedIn account also. You may create each of the documents offered in addition to make future edits and up dates on any or them all. One other great template on the list is known as Flux. Downloading a number of free resume samples from the Internet can be exactly the thing you have to kick-start your resume writing. Giving a PDF copy will be a better choice. Free resume templates dont need to sacrifice quality. Free resume template is the perfect minimalistic and clean. Youre searching for simple resume templates. You just have to adhere to the format. Make a decision as to what sort of resume samples you want to download. Resume samples may give you a clearer idea of how you desire your resume to look, what kind of resume you ought to use and even some examples of sections you might include. Our resume builder is the quickest approach to create a resume that can help you get your fantasy job. The capacity to edit your resume from any place in the world is a significant asset that youre able to utilize to assist you land that upcoming great job. Together with mentioning the work type, if youre going to give a small description of your work in the cv then it is going to be best too. A great eye catching resume easily attracts the employer and raises the work opportunity. To start with, once the recruiters go through your resume, they receive a very first impression of your profile. 1 advantage for employers to internet resumes is the substantial cost saving in comparison to traditional hiring methods. Hiring managers are busy people and youve got a limited time to pull their focus to your candidacy. As long as the hiring manager can read your resume readily, youve completed a great job. At the moment theres leise an opportunity to stick out from the competition being different. In the world today, a very first impression can either make or break your odds of landing your dream job. Do not practice writing resume only as long as youre going to apply for employment. Make certain you didnt miss whatever could cost you the job that you dream about T he training programs and conferences youve attended are also vital to be set in a fresher resume. When youre applying for jobs, youll be able to select from any of the resumes youve uploaded. A lovely, minimal and user-friendly template that you may edit in accordance with your abilities and experience. The style of resume you will use greatly is dependent on your professional work background and qualifications. Later, you will use the exact same keywords and phrases to write about your previous roles. Also, mention your prior job position in which you have applied all the abilities and abilities which youve stated in your resume. Research about the technical skills necessary for the work position that youre applying for. Choose a specific position which you would love to submit an application for so you are going to be easily guided by what things to put in your resume.

Most Noticeable Resume Profile Statement

Most Noticeable Resume Profile Statement The Ultimate Approach to Resume Profile Statement Your profile ought to be customized to coordinate with the qualifications the employer is seeking. If you believe you dont have enough experience for the appropriate job, then it is possible to combine your experiences designation wise. Utilize your resume to highlight why youre the proper candidate for those accounts receivable job and prepare for the work interview. If youre a beginning teacher, you may want to check out the way to compose a new teacher resume or CV free of experience. What Resume Profile Statement Is - and What it Is Not An expert profile summary is nearly always best. The profile section ought to be placed right on top of the page following your name and contact details. Resume Profile You should have the ability to compose your profile in one short paragraph which can be inserted into your CV. It is extremely important to be wholly honest in your profile. If y ou are searching for Profile Sample For Cv youve come to the proper location. The Professional Profile is intended to give the possible hiring manager a reason to carry on reading your resume. Writing a winning Resume Profile Statement will need a lot of work but itll be well worth it. Many resume suggestions to secure you from begin to finish too. How to Choose Resume Profile Statement Basic resumes typically have an extremely classic and standard tone. Chronological resumes are the ideal place to highlight your accomplishments. Resume is a continuous procedure and it is going to likely to call for updates in your whole career life. As soon as it is under a complete sentence, you are going to wish to be certain that the phrase is worded in a manner that sounds professional and polished. After all, its intended to supply a clear, concise statement outlining the sort of employment you seek. Whether youre applying for work, a grant, or using your resume to construct your o wn client base, a skilled and well-organized resume is advisable. Additionally if you want to transmit your invoices throughout the net youll have to undertake their mail-merging for their automated transmission. To keep an eye on your customers you will require a suitable invoice system. The Dirty Truth on Resume Profile Statement Employers would like to know about your capacity to successfully meet with the job requirements and objectives. Resume profiles are the very first chance to highlight an individuals relevant career experiences, skills, and what goals they are trying to achieve while in their next position. In addition, you can find out mora about IT careers on Monster. A Startling Fact about Resume Profile Statement Uncovered You must do all you can to demonstrate you will meet their need. As soon as you receive a job, you barely have enough time to do laundry. Your resume says a great deal about you. As soon as it isnt exactly an ideal solution, it is a heck o f a good deal better than applying with a resume that has ZERO relevance to the work opening. Many a times it is crucial to compose the work objective at the entry level. The value of a resume mission statement can be found in the fact it highlights the mission and the basis of the resume. No matter your degree of job practical understanding, your resume structure is very important to making your application stick out. Whatever your level of job experience, it is vital to making your program stand out. Moreover, a CV permits the reader to easily skim through the document to locate the information thats of interest. You have to offer relevant, concise details. Resumes are usually categorized by the style in which the info is presented. There are several different formats and varieties of resumes to use, and which you select can depend on lots of factors.

First-Time Manager Tips for Entrepreneurs

First-Time Manager Tips for EntrepreneursFirst-Time Manager Tips for EntrepreneursFirst-Time Manager Tips for Entrepreneurs ChildersBack in 1989, Rebecca Congleton Boenigk and her mom, Jaye, launched Neutral Posture, a family geschftlicher umgang featuring a line of ergonomic chairs designed by Boenigks father, Dr. Jerome Congleton.Fast forward to today. The company now boasts 80 employees and recently expanded into the systems furniture business. Yet Boenigk still remembers her companys early days when she was learning how to manage a staff while also working to grow her business.In retrospect, I think the transition from entrepreneur to first-time manager would have been easier if I had tapped into a seasoned mentor, says Boenigk. She started the business from her familys garage in Texas and hired her first three employees a year later.Like many entrepreneurs, I thought I needed to do everything by myself, but over the years, Ive met many business owners who are willing to help fir st- time managers.Having a mentor is one way that first-time managers can learn how to grow and adopt managerial habits, says Melinda Emerson, the SmallBizLady on Twitter, and author of the bestselling book, Become Your Own Boss in 12 Months.Managing a staff can prove to be a challenge for many small business owners, says Emerson. It takes time for entrepreneurs to develop their own management style.If youre a small business owner looking to hone your staff management skills, here are some lessons to help you build a strong company, while also keeping your employees motivatedSet a Good Example. Its hard to demand professionalism from your staff if you dont model that same behavior.As a business owner, you set the tone for your small business and your employees will always look to you for advice, or how to handle situations, Emerson says. Do you pay vendors chronically late? Do you go off when a customer complains? Do you come in late every day? Do you openly favor certain employees? Everyone is watching you and they will treat your business just like you do or worse.Inspire and Motivate Staff. Good managers make koranvers they give their employees what they need to feel valued.Your employees are the most valuable business asset in your business, so youd better be good to them or your business will suffer, Emerson says.At Neutral Posture, Boenigk says her employees enjoy profit-sharing, flexible schedules, excellent benefits and extra perks such as a rewards program for employees who go above and beyond.Be a Great Communicator and Listener. Emerson says poor management communication is one of the biggest challenges she sees with first-time managers.Rather than hiding in your office, its important to engage your staff in brainstorming sessions, Emerson says. You need to have regular staff meetings to make sure everyone is kept in the loop and held accountable. Dont demand updates from everyone without offering the status of your own projects. It will help keep the lines of communication open with your team.Succeed as a Team. Take the time to understand the challenges and needs of your employees. Boenigk believes in creating a culture of innovation by soliciting regular feedback from staff members on areas where the company can make improvements.More formal strategic planning sessions are held on a regular basis to address strategies for things like increasing sales and product development.Learn to Delegate. As a small business owner it can be tempting to want to oversee all aspects of your business, but as your company grows thats usually not realistic.When Boenigk and her mother first started to hire managers, they looked for smart people who had skills that complemented their own, and were passionate about their work.In addition to delegating the right tasks to the right people, small business owners must take time to onboard new managers, Emerson says. Dont just throw them in the deep end and hope for the best invest in their employee training so that you can make sure that your customers and employees are being taken care of just like you would handle any situation.

Here are 22 of the best day-to-day, time-saving tips to use now

Here are 22 of the best day-to-day, time-saving tips to use nowHere are 22 of the best day-to-day, time-saving tips to use nowIve been testing and adjusting various productivity techniques for the past five years, read lots of books (most of them repeating) and heres some of my findingsIts leid about time. Its about energyWe try to squeeze as many hours in one work day, to be productive, but in the end everything depends less on time, and more on your focus, motivation and overall well-being (all of them linked directly with energy levels).Looking for an inspiring way to start your day? Sign up forMorning MotivationIts our friendly Facebook ? that will send you a quick notenzeichen every weekday morning to help you start strong. Sign up here by clicking Get StartedIve recently talked about my productivity techniques obsessions in an internal presentation at Grapefruit, and the resulting presentation is on SlideshareProductivity pornSome of the key findingsDecide whats importantbecaus e in five years, 80% of what you do today will not turn into anything. Its just busywork, no useful outcome.Sleep, food and exercisecan help you triple your outcome, because they increase focus, motivation and energy levels.The 2-minute rule if you can do something (like replying to an email, or a house chore) in two minutes, do it now. Planning it for later, remembering it, doing it in the future will take 5 minutes or more.The 5-minute rule the biggest cure against procrastination is to set your goal not to finish a scary big hairy task, but to just work five minutes on it. Youll find out that most times it continues well beyond the five minutes, as you enter a flow state.Seinfelds productivity chain if you want to be good at something, do it every day. Including on Christmas, Easter and Judgement Day. No exceptions.Tiny habits(Tiny Habits w/ Dr. BJ Fogg), highly linked with the five-minute rule, helps you create good habits quickly. It works, I tested it.Your memory sucks. Get ev erything out of your head, even if youre a genius. Write it down in a notebook, put it in your todo-list app, on your phone, talk to Siri, I dont care.As few tools as possible. Ive tested most of the todo managers and finally stayed withCultured Codes Things app and Google Calendar (iCal is ok, but Google Calendar integrates well with Gmail, my default client). It doesnt matter what you use (pen paper are fine) if you understand the next rule.Routine beats tools. You need discipline, and this means for me two things I plan my day first thing in the morning, and I write a short daily log every day. This helps me stay sane, prioritize well, scrap useless tasks, and do what matters. This saves me hours.Pomodoros.Thats timeboxing- for 30 minutes do only the task at hand. Nothing else no phones, email, talking to people, Facebook, running out of the building in case of fire. Nothing else.Always wear your headphones. You dont have to listen to music, but it will discourage people to appr oach you.Email scheduling and inbox zero. Dont read your email first thing in the day, dont read it in the evening (it ruined many evenings for me), and try to do it only 3 times a day at 11am, 2pm and 5pm. And your email inbox is not a todo list. Clear it every message should be an actionable task (link it from the todo app), a reference document (send to Evernote or archive), or should be deleted now.Same thing for phone calls.Dont be always available. I always keep my phone on silent, and return calls in batches.Batch small tasks.Like mail, phones, Facebook etc.MI3. Most important three tasks (or the alternative one must three should five could). Start with the most important first thing in the morning.Willpower is limited. Dont think that willpower will help you when you get in trouble. Make important decisions in the morning and automate everything possible (delegate, batch etc.). US presidents dont have to choose their menu or suit color everyday- otherwise their willpower w ill be depleted at that late hour when they should push (or not push) the red button).The most powerful thing. Always ask yourself what is the most powerful thing you can do right now. Then apply rule 4.Ship often. Dont polish it too much- as they say in the startup world, if youre not ashamed of your product, youve launched too latePressure can do wonders. Use rewards or social commitment. Weve recently done this with the newGrapefruitwebsite. The previous one took two and a half years to launch. The new one took two and a half days and we did it over one hackathon weekend (+Monday).Scheduled procrastination.Your brain needs some rest, and sometimes that new episode fromArrowcan do wonders that the smartest TED talk wont.Delete. Say No. Ignore. Dont commit to schedules.I love the last one, its from Marc Andreessen, because it allows him to meet whomever he wants on the spot. A lot of people will hate you for this, but youll have time to do relevant stuff. Do you think youll regret that in 20 years, or doing something for someone you dont really care about, just to be superficially appreciated.Fake incompetence. Its a diplomatic way to apply the previous rule.Thats it for now. My procrastination break is over, Im going back to work.This article first appeared on Quora.com.

Learn About Being Small Animal Veterinarian

Learn About Being Small Animal VeterinarianLearn About Being Small Animal VeterinarianMore than 68% of American households owned a pet in 2017, according to a report from the National Pet Owners Survey. Thats roughly 85 million families with a small pet - a figure that is expected to grow. With that growth, theres bound to be more demand for veterinarians. Small animal veterinarians are practitioners who specialize in the health management of dogs, cats, birds, exotics and other companion animals. Heres a look at whats you need to become a vet and the overall industry. Duties Small animal veterinarians are licensed animal health professionals who are qualified to diagnose and treat a variety of companion species. Small animal practitioners commonly treat dogs and cats as well as other small mammals, birds, and reptiles kept as pets. A small animal vet can work in a variety of environments, but will generally have routine interactions with patients and their owners by appointment in the clinics exam room.? The typical routine for a small animal vet includes performing wellness exams, giving routine vaccinations, drawing blood, prescribing medications, evaluating and suturing wounds, performing surgeries (such as spay/neuter procedures), performing post-surgical follow-up exams, and cleaning teeth. Other duties may include performing health exams on young animals, monitoring the reproductive health of breeding animals, assisting with problem births, using ultrasound machines and taking x-rays. It is common for veterinarians to work both day and evening hours, and they are often on call for potential emergencies that might arise on weekends and holidays. Some veterinary offices, especially small animal clinics, are open on Saturday for a half or full day, though most are closed on Sunday. A few small animal practitioners offer mobile veterinary clinic services, traveling to visit their patients in a specially modified van equipped with the necessary medical g ear. Career Options According to statistics from the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), more than 66% of vets worked in private practice and catered exclusively to companion animals in 2017. While some vets choose to work exclusively on small, companion animals, others may operate mixed practices that also provide equine or other large animal veterinary services. Outside of private practice, vets also find work as college professors or educators, pharmaceutical sales representatives, military personnel, government inspectors, and researchers. Education and Training All small animal veterinarians graduate with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree, which is the culmination of a rigorous course of study involving both small and large animal species. According to the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), there are 30 accredited colleges of veterinary medicine in the United States that offer a DVM degree to their graduates. Upon graduat ion, vets must also successfully complete the North American Veterinary Licensing Exam (NAVLE) to become professionally licensed. Approximately 3,000 veterinarians graduate, pass the NAVLE exam and enter the veterinary field each year. At the end of 2017, the most recent AVMA employment survey available, there were 110,531 practicing U.S. veterinarians. About 9% operated in small animal predominant practices. Professional Associations The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) is one of the most prominent veterinary organizations, representing over 91,000 practitioners. Another large veterinary organization is the World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA), which is comprised of 105 member associations representing 200,000 small animal vets worldwide. Salary The median wage for veterinarians is approximately $90,420 according to the April 2018 BLS salary survey statistics.Earnings in the survey varied from under $53,980 for the lowest 10% of all veterinarians to more than $159,320 for the top 10% of all veterinarians. According to the AVMA, the average starting salary for a new veterinarian varied based on the type of practice. Small animal exclusive vets started out with the highest average salary of $71,462 in the first year. Alarge animal exclusive vet started at $68,933, while the starting salary for a mixed-practice vet (who practices both large- and small-animal medicine) welches $62,327.Equine vets started at the lowest first-year salary, with just $38,468. Veterinarians who are board certified in a particular specialty area (ophthalmology, oncology, surgery, etc) generally earn significantly higher salaries as a result of their advanced education and experience. As of 2017, AVMA data indicated there were 416 board certified canine and feline diplomates and 707 board certified small animal surgeons (nearly double the number of board-certified small animal surgeons since 2010). Some vets may hold both certifications. The total numb er of active board-certified diplomates as of the end of 2017 was 13,035. Job Outlook According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the veterinary profession will expand at a faster rate than the average for all professions surveyed, about 20% over the decade from 2016 to 2026.The limited number of graduates from vet programs will translate to excellent job prospects in the field. According to a 2017 report from the AVMA, 4,477 new veterinarians entered the profession at the end of 2016 after successfully passing the licensing exam. The AVMAs most recent employment survey (December 2017) found that there were 71,393? vets in private practice. Of that number, there were 47,545 vets in companion animal exclusive practicesand an additional 6,368 in companion animal predominant practices. With the steadily increasing numbers of animals kept as pets, as well as the steady increase in medical spending on those pets, the veterinary profession should continue to be a rewarding business over the next decade and beyond.