Summary:

Overview: 

The Vice President ASPCA Animal Hospital (VP) is the Department Head (DH) of the ASPCA Animal Hospital (AAH) in New York City.  AAH provides emergency and urgent care for approximately 6,500 of the most vulnerable animals in the city, including victims of suspected cruelty or neglect identified through our partnership with NYPD, and animals with good prognosis whose owners have severely limited resources. A primary focus of AAH is research and training with special emphasis on contextualized care, forensics, and animal sheltering to advance access to care nationwide, with 6 full-time, year-long internships for new veterinarians and multiple extern and intern opportunities for roughly 40 veterinarians and veterinary technicians annually.   

The VP ensures efficient, effective hospital operations that deliver high-quality, accessible care and support AAH’s training and research priorities. This leader builds a strong, mission-driven team culture and works closely with the Senior Vice President of Veterinary Medicine, the Senior Vice President of Community-Centered Medicine, and the Vice Presidents of ASPCA Spay/Neuter Alliance and Community Medicine to support effective matrix management and to align hospital efforts with organization-wide goals that expand access to care and improve animal welfare.

The VP leads the team in carrying out the AAH’s part of the ASPCA’s overall strategic direction, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities and goals. The role oversees 6 staff, reports to the Senior Vice President of Community-Centered Medicine (CCM) and participates on the Community-Centered Medicine Leadership Team.

Where and When You’ll Work

This is an onsite, NYC-based role supporting a 24/7 hospital operation. While structured as a 5-day workweek, responsibilities may occasionally require evening or weekend availability. The role is open to eligible candidates residing within the United States and includes up to 10% travel annually, as needed.

What You’ll Get

Compensation:

Starting pay for the successful applicant will depend on a variety of factors, including but not limited to education, training, experience, location, business needs, internal equity, market demands or budgeted amount for the role. The target hiring range is for new hire offers only, and staff compensation may increase beyond the maximum hiring range based on performance over time. The maximum of the hiring range is reserved for candidates with the highest qualifications and relevant experience. The expected hiring salary range for this role is set forth below and may be modified in the future.   

• The target hiring range for a candidate who does not hold a Veterinary degree is $220,000-$235,000 annually. 
• The target hiring range for a candidate who does hold a Veterinary degree is $240,000-$255,000 annually.

  

Benefits:

At the ASPCA, you don’t have to choose between your passion and making a living. Our comprehensive benefits package helps ensure you can live a rewarding life at work and at home. Our benefits include, but are not limited to:

• Affordable health coverage, including medical, employer-paid dental, and optional vision coverage.
• Flexible time off that includes vacation time, sick and bereavement time, paid parental leave, 10 company paid holidays, and paid personal time off that allows you even more flexibility to observe the days that mean the most to you.
• Competitive financial incentives and retirement savings including a 401(k) plan with generous employer contributions — we match dollar for dollar up to 4% and provide an additional 4% contribution toward your future each year.
• Robust professional development opportunities including classes, on-the-job training, coaching and mentorship with industry-leading peers, internal mobility, opportunities to support in the field, and so much more.

Responsibilities:

Responsibility buckets are listed in general order of importance, and include but are not limited to:

Strategic & Operational Leadership:

• Develop, own, and execute annual plan for AAH, translating the 1–3 year organizational strategy and annual priorities into clear team-level goals, projects, and success metrics.

• Create short-term action plans that improve hospital operations and service delivery, ensuring AAH leaders and staff understand how their day-to-day work delivers on the broader ASPCA mission and vision.

• Provide timely data, insights, and recommendations to ASPCA Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and Executive Leadership Team (ELT) to inform strategic planning, annual priority setting, and decision-making.

• Think strategically about how to execute initiatives within AAH, partnering with other department heads and leaders and assessing cross-departmental impacts.

• Build and maintain strong collaborative relationships across CCM and with key ASPCA partners (ARC, R&R, Adoptions/Kitten Nursery, Community Medicine, Community Engagement, IT, People Team, Facilities, Legal, Safety) to ensure alignment and seamless operations.

• Lead the hospital team in building collaborative, effective relationships with external partners (e.g., NYPD, ACC, veterinary partners) as well as internal stakeholders across the ASPCA.

• Regularly monitor hospital metrics, patient volume, and flow; adjust staffing and operations as needed to drive performance and improve service.

• Ensure careful financial stewardship by overseeing the development and management of  the annual budget, making department-level spending decisions within approved guardrails, and submitting informed budget proposals and resource recommendations during the annual planning cycle.

• Foster strong decision-making at all levels by clearly defining authority, equipping leaders to act confidently, and ensuring operational decisions are made closest to the work.

• Resolve cross-departmental resource or operational conflicts, escalating to SLT only when necessary.

• Represent AAH in cross-functional meetings, taskforces, and organizational initiatives, offering a clear departmental perspective; coach and guide members of the Leadership Team to do the same.

• Contribute to enterprise-wide initiatives linked to the Strategy House (e.g., fundraising, cross-functional projects), offering leadership and support as requested.

People Leadership/Management:

• Lead and develop a senior leadership team of 5 – 6 Senior Directors and their teams, fostering unity and shared commitment to delivering and advancing accessible care for at-risk animals.

• Provide consistent supervision, coaching, and mentorship to direct reports and managers, including regular 1:1s, skip-level meetings, and real-time feedback.

• Strengthen cross-functional collaboration in a matrixed environment by ensuring productive relationships between straight-line and dotted-line managers, regular communication, and quarterly shared performance input.

• Play an active role in developing and continually improving the hospital’s matrixed structure to ensure it functions effectively, streamlines operations, and advances the growth of staff skills and expertise.

• Build a strong culture of learning and psychological safety by establishing clear expectations, encouraging continuous staff development, leading after-action reviews, and ensuring a respectful, welcoming environment.

• Champion understanding and enactment of the ASPCA’s mission and goals and CCM vision, empowering staff with clear roles, responsibilities, and decision authority to contribute at the highest level.

• Identify and cultivate leadership potential at all levels, actively developing high-potential employees and creating opportunities for growth, lateral experiences, and future leadership roles.

• Ensure managers provide day-to-day coaching, feedback, and performance guidance to their teams, modeling and reinforcing a culture of continuous improvement.

• Complete quarterly goal reviews and annual evaluations for direct reports; make promotion and salary recommendations; coach managers to perform effective evaluations and hold their teams accountable.

• Monitor staff performance, engagement, and retention across AAH; analyze trends and recommend strategies to improve the employee experience and reduce turnover.

• Support AAH leaders in hiring, staffing, and termination decisions in close partnership with Legal and People Teams; escalate exceptions when needed to ensure fairness and consistency.

• Lead change through strategic ASPCA and CCM decisions.

• Promote strong hospital culture and employee engagement aligned with ASPCA core values, in partnership with Learning & Development and People teams and the whole CCM Leadership Team.

• Drive constructive union partnerships and employee engagement, actively participating in negotiations and working closely with other VPs to advance shared approaches, resolve issues efficiently, and support a healthy, collaborative environment.

• Engage regularly on the hospital floor to stay connected to staff, understand operational realities, receive feedback, and provide hands-on support.

Qualifications

• Exceptional leadership skills; inspires, guides and supports individuals and teams to build strong, healthy culture and work together toward shared goals 

• Highly effective people- and team-management abilities 

• Excellent communication skills; engages constructively with different personalities and groups; provides direction while inspiring teams to innovate and explore new directions; clarifies decision roles prior to leading difficult conversations 

• Innovative, creative and solution-minded; shows superior problem-solving abilities and a positive, proactive attitude in the face of complex challenges  

• Thrives in a fast-paced, changing environment; works efficiently and calmly and can motivate teams to do the same 

• Consistently demonstrates a high level of professionalism

• Thorough understanding of the veterinary and animal welfare fields; eager to maximize impact, elevate work and move the needle on a national level

• Strong organizational and info-tracking skills; ability to multi-task, delegate, and meet deadlines 

• Always treats people and animals with care and respect; must be a compassionate animal advocate and have a genuine interest in leading and interacting with people  

• The ability to work closely with behaviorally and medically compromised animals and feel comfortable working in an environment where humane euthanasia is performed on a regular basis 

• Demonstrated track record of building and leading effective, high-performing teams

• Exemplifies the ASPCA’s core values and behavioral competencies

Education and Work Experience

 

• BS or equivalent required, DVM degree preferred

• For DVM candidates, a valid NY and DEA license required within 12 months

• Experience managing a large budget required

• 10 years of management experience required

• Experience managing within a veterinary or animal welfare environment preferred

• Experience with data analysis, presenting data to senior leadership, and using data to drive strategic initiatives required

• Experience managing supervisors and leading others who manage teams required

 

Additional Information

 

• This is a full-time exempt position.  The incumbent must be flexible with schedule, as some early mornings, evenings and weekends will be required based on operational needs. 

• Regular travel required – up to 10% 

Qualifications:

• Ability to be flexible and make decisions within a fast-paced environment, • Ability to travel approximately 10% per year, • Critical thinking ability to create a strategic plan connected to the ASPCA’s vision and theory of change, • Exceptional leadership to manage a large team with an incredibly positive culture, • Leads with innovation and creativity in problem-solving, • Strong relationship builder to ensure productive internal and external partnerships

  

Language:

English (Required)

Education and Work Experience:

Bachelors (Required), DVM

  

Experience Managing within a Veterinary Environment, Minimum of 15 Years of Business Experience, 7+ Leading Teams and Managing a Budget