Ryan Davis is a director at Southwater Veterinary Group in Telford and has been in his current job for 24 years.
IN ONE SENTENCE, WHAT DOES YOUR JOB INVOLVE? I am a pet mechanic!
HOW IS YOUR JOB IMPACTED BY FLUCTUATIONS IN THE ECONOMY? Possibly less so than other walks of life, but we are a very experienced team so we can leverage that knowledge to optimise outcomes during testing times.
WHAT’S YOUR VIEW ON HYBRID AND FLEXIBLE WORKING – IS IT STILL NEEDED, OR PRACTICAL? It is essential in our profession. We have a lot of people who choose part time or portfolio careers alongside a chronic shortage of skilled staff.
WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ON YOUR BUSINESS? We are starting to see algorithms creep into clinical work but currently it helps reduce the burden of paperwork. I don’t feel it is costing jobs as yet, but it is evolving at such a fast rate I wouldn’t like to guess the future.
HOW DO YOU HOPE YOUR COLLEAGUES WOULD DESCRIBE YOU? Kind
YOUR GREATEST STRENGTH IN THE WORKPLACE? I have skills across a broad variety of disciplines and I work hard.
BIGGEST CURRENT CHALLENGE IN YOUR JOB? Managing the mental health crisis in our profession. Suicide and depression are all too common and touch everyone in the industry
YOUR PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENTS? My children, my surgical advanced practitioner status from the RCVS, baking a mean focaccia.
PET HATES? People chewing ice
IF YOU COULD GO BACK AND GIVE YOUR YOUNGER SELF SOME WISE ADVICE, WHAT WOULD IT BE? Worry less
HOW DO YOU RELAX AWAY FROM WORK? Being in the beautiful Shropshire countryside
FAVOURITE THING ABOUT SHROPSHIRE? Living here - it is the best county in the UK. It is definitely the countryside and the welcoming Salopian community.
SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM OF CHOICE? Meh
FAVOURITE MOVIE AND/OR TV SHOW? The Crow/ Reacher
EARLY BIRD, OR NIGHT OWL? Definitely night Owl
DREAM DINNER PARTY GUESTS, DEAD OR ALIVE? Richard Branson, Tupac, Jimmy Carr, my partner, my kids and Homer Simpson
TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOU THAT MOST PEOPLE PROBABLY WOULDN’T KNOW. I love Rap music and don’t drink Red wine
AND FINALLY . . . WHAT DO YOU THINK THE NEXT 12 MONTHS HAS IN STORE FOR YOU, PROFESSIONALLY AND PERSONALLY? I hope our business continues to get the great feedback it has so far. We are launching an Oncology service and expanding the amount of CT scans we provide to the local community. They make a massive difference to the level of diagnosis we can make and having the surgical experience in our team, allows us to do everything in-house.
On a personal level, work takes up a huge amount of my life. If I am not actively operating, then I will be doing paperwork at home at evenings and weekends. I would like to take some time out to travel though - and I would love to learn more about car engines - cars are definitely my second passion!
