Chief Veterinary Officer - Remote Position

As the Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO), you will help shape and guide the clinical direction of Fear Free, ensuring our work remains grounded in both scientific rigor and real-world applications.

As a core member of the Fear Free Leadership Team (FLT), you will partner across the organization to connect our mission of better care with meaningful growth and impact. This position plays a key role in ensuring that Fear Free continues to evolve in ways that support veterinary professionals, pet care providers, and the broader animal care community.

The CVO is more than a clinical leader. You will serve as a bridge between veterinary science and practical implementation, helping to advance standards of care while meeting professionals where they are. You will collaborate with internal teams, subject matter experts, and industry partners to strengthen education, support adoption in practice, and expand Fear Free’s impact across a diverse ecosystem - including veterinary practices, shelters, boarding and daycare facilities, groomers, trainers, and pet parents.

In this role, you will help bring together these communities around a shared commitment to reducing fear, anxiety, and stress in animals. Success means ensuring Fear Free is not only respected for its clinical integrity, but also valued for its relevance, accessibility, and impact in everyday care.

Key Responsibilities:

Executive Strategy & Medical Governance

• Clinical Standards & Evolution: Serve as a steward of Fear Free methodologies, ensuring all educational content remains evidence-based, practical, and relevant to today’s veterinary and pet care environments. Support professionals at all stages by meeting them where they are and encouraging continued growth.
• Strategic Alignment & Financial Stewardship: Partner with the CEO and leadership team to align clinical initiatives with organizational priorities, contributing to budget planning, resource allocation, and program strategy. Ensure investments support both clinical integrity and measurable growth.
• Revenue, EBITDA & Program Impact: Share accountability for program growth and financial performance, including contributing to revenue and EBITDA goals. Ensure clinical strategy translates into programs and initiatives that drive member engagement, retention, and long-term value.
• Clinical Voice Across the Organization: Provide clinical guidance across teams, helping ensure that education, marketing, and alliances reflect both scientific integrity and real-world application.

Thought Leadership & Industry Diplomacy

• Brand Representation: Represent Fear Free at industry events, in media, and through professional channels, serving as a trusted and relatable voice that reflects both clinical expertise and real-world application, while helping elevate a broader network of Fear Free subject matter experts and voices.
• Professional & Academic Integration: Build relationships with veterinary organizations, academic institutions, and credentialing bodies to support the integration of Fear Free principles into education, training, and professional development.
• Strategic Industry Relationships: Develop and maintain relationships with C-suite leaders across the animal health and pet care industries - including corporate groups, associations (e.g., American Veterinary Medical Association, World Small Animal Veterinary Association, American Animal Hospital Association), and industry alliances - to expand awareness, credibility, and adoption of Fear Free.

Clinical Innovation & Content Excellence

• Scientific Advancement: Oversee the evolution of the Fear Free ecosystem, ensuring content adapts to emerging behavioral science and modern learning modalities.
• Certification Standards: Lead the development of facility accreditation standards, maintaining the delicate balance between commercial scalability and clinical integrity.

Advocacy & Network Management

• Expert Network Management: Lead the Fear Free Advisory Group and Speakers Bureau, curating a world-class network of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs).
• Network Activation: Leverage external advocates and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to maximize brand sponsorship and industry promotion.
• Compliance & Governance: Oversee contract management for the expert network, ensuring all agreements align with legal and regulatory standards.

People & Organizational Leadership

• Clinical Culture: Foster a high-performance, mission-driven culture that attracts and retains top-tier talent.
• Interdepartmental Synergy: Provide clinical "guardrails" for Sales and Marketing to ensure brand messaging is both commercially potent and scientifically accurate.

Required Skills & Qualifications:

• Credentials: Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM/VMD)
• Executive Experience: 8+ years of progressive leadership, including at least 4 years in a senior level role within the animal health or pet tech industry.
• Commercial Acumen: Demonstrated ability to manage large budgets and translate clinical initiatives into measurable EBITDA growth.
• Communication Mastery: Exceptional public speaking skills and a "writer’s pen"—able to influence both a room of specialists and a room of investors.
• Strategic Vision: Proven track record of scaling professional organizations or certification bodies.
• Must have a stable high speed internet connection capable of handling video conferencing and cloud based tools.

Preferred Skills & Qualifications:

• Global Network: An existing "rolodex" of key opinion leaders (KOLs) and decision-makers in the veterinary corporate and academic space.
• Data-Driven Leadership: Proficiency in leveraging CRM data (Salesforce) and market analytics to drive strategy.
• Change Management: Experience leading through rapid scaling, acquisitions, or organizational restructuring.

The Ideal Candidate Will Be Able to:

• Travel up to 25% (domestic and international) by both car and/or airplane for key industry events and partner meetings.
• Effectively lead and inspire a remote, cross-functional team across multiple time zones.
• Maintain an unwavering commitment to animal welfare and the Fear Free mission
• Remain in a stationary position for an extended period while operating a computer.
• Position themselves to install tech equipment, including under desks.
• Move objects weighing up to 25 pounds.
• Participate in virtual and/or in person meetings.

What We Offer:

• A collaborative, creative, and innovative work environment.
• Opportunities for growth and professional development.
• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• The chance to work on meaningful projects contributing to Fear Free’s mission and brand.
• Total Compensation & Benefits: Our comprehensive benefit package includes medical, dental, vision, pet insurance, 401K with company match, Self-Managed PTO at the time of posting.

Fear Free is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. We believe everyone deserves a workplace built on mutual respect and professional dignity. Our commitment is simple: equal opportunity for every applicant and employee. We focus on your skills and potential, ensuring a fair and inclusive process that honors both the law and the person.

We seek to recruit from the widest possible pool of talent to ensure we find the best candidates from all backgrounds. Employment at Fear Free is based on merit, competence, and qualification, and we are committed to providing equal opportunities for training and advancement for all employees.

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