Talent Partner – First Opinion – 12 Months FTC

Remote - Covering the South West Region

About us

At inspiring vet care, our people are at the heart of everything we do. As the UK’s number one vet care provider, we're trusted with the care of over 2 million animals, delivering our purpose of healthier animals and happier owners.

We’re looking for an accomplished recruiter to partner with our UK first opinion network, identifying and engaging exceptional veterinary professionals within one of the most specialised talent markets in the profession.

First Opinion recruitment requires a distinctly proactive and relationship-led approach. Success in this role will be driven by your ability to understand specialist talent markets in depth, identify and engage individuals who may not be actively considering their next career move, and build credible relationships over the longer term.

Combining headhunting, executive search principles, talent mapping and market intelligence, you’ll develop sustainable pipelines of specialist veterinary talent in multiple disciplines while partnering with senior clinical leaders to deliver both immediate and future workforce requirements.

This is a fully remote, home-based role, covering the South West of England therefore occasional travel will be required for meetings, veterinary congresses and industry events across the UK and Europe.

How You’ll Make a Difference

You’ll take ownership of recruitment across a portfolio of specialist first opinion vacancies, acting as a trusted Talent Partner to senior clinical and commercial leaders across our network.

Developing a detailed understanding of individual clinical disciplines and their respective talent markets will be central to your success. You’ll use this insight to shape recruitment strategies, advise on market conditions and provide an informed perspective on talent availability, compensation, attraction, relocation and international recruitment.

A significant focus of the role will be the proactive identification and engagement of specialist veterinary talent. Through systematic market mapping, targeted search and sustained relationship management, you’ll develop networks and pipelines that extend beyond current vacancies and strengthen our long-term ability to attract exceptional clinicians.

You’ll also:

- Lead sophisticated headhunting and search strategies across first opinion disciplines, using market mapping, professional networks and targeted sourcing to identify and engage high-calibre talent across the UK and internationally

- Build and maintain meaningful long-term relationships with specialist clinicians, developing sustainable talent pipelines and communities across priority disciplines

- Partner consultatively with senior clinical and hospital leaders, providing market intelligence and using evidence to influence recruitment strategy, compensation positioning, attraction approaches and realistic hiring expectations

- Manage complex recruitment processes from initial engagement through to appointment, including assessment, candidate management, offer negotiation, relocation and visa sponsorship where appropriate

- Represent inspiring vet care at specialist veterinary congresses, professional events and networking forums across the UK and Europe, strengthening our presence and relationships within the referral community

- Use recruitment data, talent intelligence and pipeline analysis to continuously refine recruitment strategies, strengthen direct hiring capability and reduce reliance on external agencies

You Might Be a Great Fit If...

You bring significant experience of recruiting within specialist or talent-scarce markets, together with a strong track record in headhunting and/or executive search.

You are skilled at looking beyond the active candidate market: understanding where specialist talent sits, developing a comprehensive view of the market and establishing credible relationships with individuals whose career decisions may develop over an extended period.

Previous veterinary recruitment experience would be advantageous but is not essential. Of greater importance is your ability to apply sophisticated search methodology, develop specialist market expertise and operate as a credible recruitment partner to senior stakeholders.

You’ll bring:

- Demonstrable expertise in headhunting, executive search, talent mapping and proactive direct sourcing within niche, specialist or difficult-to-source markets

- Proven ability to identify and engage passive talent, establish credibility and develop long-term relationships through extended recruitment cycles

- Strong stakeholder consulting capability, with the confidence and credibility to influence and constructively challenge senior leaders

- Highly developed candidate management, assessment, negotiation and closing skills, with a focus on delivering an exceptional candidate experience

- Strong commercial judgement and the ability to interpret market intelligence and recruitment data to shape effective talent strategies and prioritise activity

- Excellent research, communication and relationship-building skills, combined with a proactive, resilient and highly collaborative approach

- Experience within veterinary recruitment, healthcare or another specialist professional market would be advantageous, as would exposure to international recruitment, relocation and visa sponsorship.

How We’ll Support You

At inspiring vet care, we’re committed to supporting your ongoing development and wellbeing.

You’ll join an experienced Talent team and work closely with colleagues and clinical leaders who bring extensive knowledge of the veterinary profession and our referral network. We’ll support you in developing detailed knowledge of referral disciplines, specialist career pathways and the clinical communities you’ll recruit within.

You’ll have the autonomy to build and develop specialist talent networks, shape sourcing strategies and establish your own presence within the referral community, supported by opportunities to attend leading veterinary congresses and professional events across the UK and Europe.

You’ll also have the opportunity to take a genuinely long-term approach to talent acquisition. Alongside delivering against current recruitment priorities, you’ll build the relationships, market intelligence and talent pipelines that strengthen our ability to attract specialist clinicians well into the future.

What We Offer Our Team

- Work-life balance

- 26 days annual leave (Including bank holidays)

- Cycle to Work scheme

- Initiatives focused on employee wellbeing

- Pension

- Discretionary annual bonus

- Discounted staff pet care and pet insurance

- Discounts and cashback across many popular retailers

The window for applications will close at 8am on Monday the 14th of September.