Monica Dixon Perry has immersed herself in veterinary medicine for nearly 40 years. The University of North Carolina biology graduate was the hospital administrator at Bowman Animal Hospital and Cat Clinic in Raleigh before she joined Mark Opperman at his consulting firm, VMC Inc. A certified veterinary practice manager for over two decades, she has lectured at conferences and colleges and is the immediate past president of VetPartners, a network of veterinary business professionals. Today, she leads the Veterinary Division for the professional services company BerryDunn.
1. You chose a veterinary business path over veterinary medicine. Did you ever consider becoming a veterinarian?
I didn’t. I was introduced to veterinary medicine when I was living in the same neighborhood as Dr. Gale Bowman. She was a stay-at-home mom who needed a babysitter. For two years, I babysat on the weekends and after school. Then, Dr. Bowman decided to open a veterinary practice, Bowman Animal Hospital and Cat Clinic. She called my mom one evening and asked if I could be a part-time receptionist after school. I was in the ninth grade and 14½, which means I’ll be celebrating 40 years in this industry in October.
2. Did you have pets growing up?
My mother has severe allergies, so I couldn’t have pets. I remember that when we lived in California, my father purchased a cockatiel, so I did have a cockatiel.
3. What sparked your ongoing interest in veterinary medicine, and did you ever imagine doing what you do now?
When I graduated from high school, my ultimate goal was to become a genetics engineer. But as things happened, I changed my major and ended up with a biology degree. When I graduated, I thought I would go into clinical research trials, and I did that for about half a year. My mom saw Dr. Bowman at a local store. Dr. Bowman mentioned she was working with a consultant to hire someone with an MBA or CVPM. I had just gotten my undergraduate degree and didn’t have an MBA or CVPM, but Dr. Bowman wanted the consultant, who happened to be Mark Opperman, to interview me for the position. I was 21 years old and as green as they come.
4. How did the interview go?
Unbeknownst to me, Mark told Dr. Bowman, “Do not hire Monica. She’s green, and she doesn’t know what she’s doing.” Dr. Bowman had faith in me and told Mark that at the age of 12, I could get her boys to behave better than she could, “So, why not give Monica a chance to run the business?” Mark was very direct in his communication, but Dr. Bowman said, “This is what I want.” Mark went along with it, so that’s how I got into veterinary practice management on a professional career path.
5. What happened next?
I was finally hired as Dr. Bowman’s practice manager, overseeing three doctors and about 15 employees. We grew the practice into a nine-veterinarian, seven-day-a-week, Eastern/Western practice with close to 100 employees. I was there for 11 years. Mark visited the practice for over two decades, and I worked with him for those 11 years on monthly conference calls.
6. Did you ever think about taking a break from veterinary medicine to confirm it was the right career path?
In 2005, my husband and I got pregnant, and I carried a baby for five months. She came early, and unfortunately, she only lived for an hour. At that time, Bowman was a nine-doctor practice, and I worked 70-plus hours a week. I told Mark during a call, “I’m going to leave veterinary medicine. I don’t want to do this anymore. I’m probably going into pharmaceutical sales or something like that.” He said, “No, you’re not.” He also asked me to speak with him, Sheila Grosdidier and Mary Ann Vande Linde at VMC. Mark said, “We’re going to do a presentation, and we want you to speak.”
7. Did you accept the invitation?
I did not. We had a funeral, and Mark and Dr. Bowman were very supportive. I actually took an abbreviated maternity leave.
8. When did you think you were ready to enter the veterinary consulting space?
In 2005, Sheila and Mary Ann pulled me aside and said, “We’re looking for a consultant; you should ask Mark.” That was in November, and I had my monthly call with Mark the very next month. I said, “Hey, Mark, I hear you’re looking for a consultant.” He said, “You’re not ready.” I was like, “OK.” When Mark tells you that, you’re not ready.
9. What did you do next?
The very next month, we were preparing to speak at the NAVC conference, and he heard me tell someone about Veterinary Management Consultation [VMC] services. At the end of NAVC, Mark pulled me aside and said, “It’s a no-brainer. You need to come work for me.” He hired me as a consultant in March of 2006. I eventually made partner and was with VMC until July 2020. I decided to step down as a partner in 2019 because our daughter, Avery, was 11 years old. I remember her saying, “Mommy, I know you have to travel, but do you have to travel all the time?” At that time, I was on the road three, sometimes four, weeks out of the month. I realized I probably needed to step down and not travel as much. I ended up transitioning to Mission Veterinary Partners and worked there for about a year and a half. Then, I decided to get back into my consulting roots. So, I called veterinary accountant and consultant Gary Glassman and said, “Gary, keep your eyes and ears open for an opportunity.” Lo and behold, it worked out that his firm, Burzenski & Company, hired me in early 2022. I’ve been with Burzenski, now BerryDunn, for three years and absolutely love what I do.
10. Did you remain in contact with Mark?
Yes. We had a good relationship. June 2024 was a month I didn’t speak with him because he was traveling in Italy, and we were all just busy. His passing in July 2024 was completely unexpected. Soon after, I presented a keynote speech and shared that I lost my spark for vet med around the time my husband and I lost our daughter. It was because of Mark that I didn’t leave vet med.
11. Your mom was an early cheerleader for opportunities. Was your dad also supportive?
When I was in eighth grade, my father looked at my curriculum and said, “There’s a public speaking and debate class. You’re going to take that.” I told him no. He said, “I don’t know when, I don’t know where, but your voice will need to be heard, and it’s very important to be articulate.” The fact that Mark wanted me to be on the speaking circuit, I never would have imagined way back then that it would be a huge part of what I do today.
12. How do you get through challenging moments?
Faith, hands down, got us through losing a child. I’m faithful that if her death were meant to be, we would have another. Now, we have a daughter, Avery, who will be 18 later this year. If there is a challenge, I meditate, pray about it, and ask for guidance and direction. I was saying at Mark’s celebration of life, “There’s God, my dad, and then there was Mark.”
13. What’s the next chapter in your life?
I don’t see myself retiring anytime soon. We’ve got to get Avery through college and all that stuff. I’ll be 54 in August, so I still have gas in the tank. I don’t plan on doing anything else.
14. How do you define leadership?
Leadership is having a strong sense of emotional intelligence. When you let people feel valued and appreciated and they have a voice, it’s very easy for them to want to be part of a great thing. That’s what I see as leadership.
15. What are some of your non-work interests?
In high school, I played softball. I absolutely love softball. I didn’t play it as much as an adult, but if someone were to start a softball game in our neighborhood, I would be there. I also love spending time with my family and my mom and dad. I’ve been a youth director for five years at our church. I love kids. For me, it’s really important to help them prepare for life. I also have spent a lot of time serving on boards, like with VetPartners and a school board.
16. What do you do for self-care?
This is probably not what most people would say, but what is very therapeutic for me is being Avery’s personal assistant. I think it’s the planner and organizer in me. Just making sure I’m taking good care of her is therapeutic. It’s probably corny to say, but Costco is also therapeutic for me. I go there weekly.
17. What will you do when Avery heads off to college?
Dennis and I will rekindle being a couple because, for the last 17 or 18 years, our sole focus has been on Avery. I look forward to us getting back into couple mode.
18. Relationships are?
Essential, but they have to be healthy and not one-sided. Relationships must be productive, whether on the professional or personal side.
19. Anything you’d like to share with the next generation of veterinary professionals?
My hope and prayer are that this industry is able to be available and accessible to everyone. We know that the spectrum of care — affordability — is an issue. We must find a way to provide that and be financially sustainable enough so that people can stay in our industry. We can’t afford to keep losing people who can’t afford to be a receptionist or technician. It’s sad when we have hourly employees who devote decades to our industry and can’t put their kids through college or build upon generational wealth or retirement.
20. Is there anything else you’d like to share?
COVID-19 proved how strong the human-animal bond is. Many people probably felt they couldn’t get through the pandemic without their pets. All these practices, owners, managers and team members were on the front lines all that time. What our veterinary teams do is breathtaking to me. I just wish people would understand that their work is not in vain and that they are truly making a difference in the world.
FAREWELL
Longtime Today’s Veterinary Business columnist Mark Opperman wrote about his career and recognized Monica Dixon Perry and others in his last article, “Thanks, It’s Been Awesome!” He died unexpectedly months later. Read his 2024 story at go.navc.com/Opperman-TVB.