Operational Assessments

Operational assessments can be conducted on any specific segment of your program or they can be comprehensive, depending on your needs. 

Assessments are conducted to pinpoint weaknesses that may contribute to 

• high euthanasia,  

• low adoptions, 

• high staff turnover, 

• increased workloads, 

• increased costs, 

• overcrowding, 

• disease outbreaks, 

• bottlenecks in animal flow, 

• animal suffering, 

• factors contributing to an increased length of stay (LOS), 

• operating beyond your capacity for care (CFC), 

• or unnecessary stress on staff, animals, and the public.

The assessment will also identify areas where you are excelling and will become part of the final report. Recognizing your strengths is an integral part of understanding your complete operation. It also establishes a firm foundation for future growth and improvement.

Assessments may be done virtually, but some will require on-site visits. This will be determined by your specific needs and the overall scope of the project.

You will receive a detailed report outlining potential problem areas and recommendations to address them. Recommendations for improvement will be focused on life saving, operational efficiency, best practices, and enhancing public safety and animal welfare

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As a former Animal Services Director, I can attest to how easy it is to get into a daily routine where important issues are put on hold or overlooked entirely.  The old adage about not being able to see the forest for the trees holds true, at least for me it did. We get focused on the immediate issues and lose focus on making long term plans and meaningful change that takes effort, time, collaboration, and planning. We get lost in the urgency of the day and the senseless minutia. I have used consultants myself because I am intimately aware of the pitfalls and shortcomings we don’t always see. Shelter leaders live in a crisis management environment where it is never a question of if there is a fire but rather one of where and how bad it is.