Employee Spotlight: Morten Aas

In this series you will meet different members of the VetFamily team. We are currently around 100 people with 16 different nationalities working in 9 countries, and we are always looking for new stars to join us. This time we interviewed our rock in Norway, Morten Aas.

How long have you worked with VetFamily, and what is your role in the company?

I joined VetFamily over 6 years ago as Country Manager for Norway. My task then was to build up VetFamily in Norway, now the focus is more to develop our organization to make sure we in the best way can support independent veterinary clinics all over the country.

What are you proud of achieving at VetFamily?

Today approximately half of all vet clinics in Norway are members of VetFamily, that is a great achievement by the team, and great for the clinics as we are stronger together. We also see a continuous increase in how our members rate us meaning they appreciate what we do. I am also really proud of finding the two best colleagues (Linn and Hanne) to run VetPlan and VetBusiness together with me.

What does working in the veterinary industry mean to you?

It means working with very good and very smart people in an interesting and meaningful industry where we can help create positive change.

How do you in your role make life better for an independent vet clinic?

Our goal is to help them be more efficient and better prepared for the future – we provide better buying terms and reduce administrative workload. We also focus on how we can help independent clinics create better results and be a good workplace for the whole team, both nurses and vets. I work with all of this for our Norwegian member clinics and also make sure we learn from insights and experiences in other VetFamily countries.

How did you end up at VetFamily?
I was approached by a headhunter company and immediately felt that this was the right position for me. My background is not from the veterinary field, but from both retail and wholesalers in other industries and I am used to working with independent owned branches. So I have a lot of valuable experiences to bring to this field from a business and people perspective.

What do you like to do when you are not working?

I love skiing, cycling and to spend time with the new generation – we have four grandchildren. My goal is to learn one new thing each year, last year I learned randonee (peak skiing) and this past summer how to not fall out of a race kayak.

What are your top advice based on experience on how to create a great team?
Always let people be seen and support the opportunity to work independently within the framework we have. Give constructive feedback and listen. Make the whole team involved in plans, results and challenges.