Veterinary Technician - Lead

Veterinary Technician Lead

Westlake Animal Hospital, Austin, TX, Full-time

We're looking for a Lead Veterinary Technician to join our growing General Practice team. In this role, you'll remain hands-on with patient care while helping guide daily hospital operations, mentoring technicians and assistants, supporting surgery and anesthesia services, and partnering with hospital leadership to create an exceptional experience for pets, clients, and team members.

This is an excellent opportunity for a skilled technician who enjoys coaching others, improving workflows, and helping elevate the standard of care within a collaborative, team-focused environment.

Leadership & Team Development

• Lead, mentor, and support veterinary technicians and assistants through daily patient care activities
• Provide ongoing training, coaching, and skill development opportunities for team members
• Foster a positive, supportive, and accountable team culture
• Assist with onboarding and training new team members
• Partner with hospital leadership and recruiting to support interviewing, onboarding, and retention efforts for the technical team
• Partner with hospital leadership on staffing, scheduling, workflow management, and team development initiatives
• Help identify opportunities to improve efficiency, communication, and patient care standards
• Lead monthly meetings and quarterly check-ins/reviews to support communication, accountability, and team development
• Address performance concerns through coaching and corrective action conversations when needed
• Provide general floor leadership by supporting daily workflow, team coordination, and real-time problem solving

Patient Care & Technical Responsibilities

• Assist veterinarians during appointments, diagnostics, treatments, and procedures
• Provide high-quality nursing care for hospitalized and outpatient patients
• Perform advanced technical skills including:
• Venipuncture and IV catheter placement
• Laboratory diagnostics and sample collection
• Radiology
• Medication administration
• Patient monitoring and treatments
• Support surgical and dental procedures, including anesthesia induction, monitoring, and recovery
• Recognize changes in patient condition and communicate findings appropriately
• Maintain accurate and complete medical records

Hospital Operations

• Help ensure treatment areas remain clean, organized, and fully stocked
• Support inventory management and controlled substance compliance
• Maintain hospital protocols, safety standards, and medical quality practices
• Assist in creating an efficient daily workflow that supports both patient care and client service

What We're Looking For

Required:

• 3+ years of Veterinary Technician experience in a general practice setting
• Previous Lead Technician, Shift Lead, Supervisor, or mentoring experience
• Strong proficiency in surgery support, anesthesia monitoring, and patient care
• Excellent communication and client service skills
• Ability to prioritize, multitask, and adapt in a fast-paced environment
• Commitment to teamwork, professionalism, and compassionate care
• Experience coaching and training veterinary support staff
• Strong understanding of hospital operations, inventory management, and workflow processes

Preferred:

• Licensed Veterinary Technician

Physical Requirements

The physical requirements listed below are essential job functions and may be performed with or without reasonable accommodation.

• Must be able to lift 40 pounds.
• Must be willing to work long hours under high-pressure conditions while maintaining composure.
• Requires the ability to walk, bend, stand, and reach constantly during a minimum 8-hour day.
• Requires visual acuity sufficient to maintain accurate records, recognize people, and understand written directions.
• Requires the ability to speak and hear sufficiently to understand and provide information in person and over the telephone.
• Requires fine motor skills adequate for utilizing office equipment and hospital equipment such as laboratory and radiology equipment.

Additional Requirements

• Dependable attendance is required
• May be required to work holidays.
• May need to work overtime.
• Performs other duties as required.
• During slower periods, takes initiative to assist or assign the team to support other departments.

What Makes You Successful

• You lead by example and enjoy helping others grow.
• You are confident in surgery, anesthesia, and advanced technical skills.
• You communicate effectively with clients, doctors, and team members.
• You stay calm under pressure and can adjust priorities quickly.
• You are passionate about delivering outstanding patient care and creating a positive team culture.

Youll Grow with Us

Here, you can grow your career as best fits you through access to comprehensive learning and skillset programs. You can build your skills and earn credentials through:

• Our vast, diverse, and free library of continuing education courses - ThriveU
• Live, virtual interactive workshops to develop valuable leadership skills
• A program designed to teach you the fundamentals of running a pet hospital

And, with so many locations nationwide, you can find and move into any specialty, hospital type, or environment. Join us and provide your best care at a clinic that is deeply rooted within its community and bolstered by the resources of Thrive Pet Healthcare.

Benefits our care in action

Thrive offers a suite of benefits to support team members emotional, physical, professional, and financial wellbeing. In addition to our health and life insurance, and short- and long-term disability plans, we offer eligible team members:

• Competitive pay
• 401(k) with employer match
• Mental health resources, including easy access to therapy through Lyra Health
• Paid parental leave
• Purr-ental leave for when you adopt a pet
• Subsidized backup childcare and elder care
• Expert advice, support and network discounts for fertility and family planning
• FREE CE courses
• Pet perks and veterinary service discounts
• Student loan support tools and assistance

* Some benefits shown are only for full-time team members who work 30 hours or more per week. Certain Benefits may be subject to waiting periods or length of service requirements.

About the Hospital

We are a busy 7-doctor practice located in the lovely city of Austin, Texas! We nurture not only our clients and their pets, but also our staff. We offer professional and personal growth as well as promote a healthy work/life balance. We strive to make work fun, engaging, and rewarding and offer an excellent benefits package!

About Thrive

Thrive Pet Healthcare creates the future of pet well-being through medical excellence, innovative technology, and a connected community of teams and partners. Today, its network of 360+ primary, emergency, and specialty hospitals across the U.S. cares for pets of all ages and health needs, while portfolio companies provide tools and technology that help veterinary teams work smarter and deliver better care. Thrive invests in its peoplethrough mentorship, leadership programs, continuing education, and well-being initiativesso teams can grow and feel supported. For pet owners, convenient solutions such as a mobile app, digital booking, Thrive Plus TM membership, HereFurYou Helpline, an online pharmacy and flexible financial options* make accessing quality care simplergiving families the peace of mind their pets deserve. Learn more at thrivepetcare.com.

We welcome you to join our story and join where #WeThriveTogether.