Hiring for Personality vs. Experience: Lessons From the Front Desk

In a perfect world, every new hire at the front desk would have both: a great attitude and years of veterinary experience. But in the real world? You’re often choosing between one or the other.

And after years in the industry, training, onboarding, and watching people thrive (or burn out), here’s what I’ve learned.

Lesson 1: A Great Personality Doesn’t Guarantee Staying Power

I once hired someone who was perfect on paper, not because of her experience, but because of her personality. She was bubbly, warm, and made clients feel welcome from the moment she picked up the phone.

But she had no previous vet clinic experience. So, as her trainer, I took her under my wing and walked her through everything, from answering phones and learning our software, to understanding services, products, inventory, and internal communication.

I basically downloaded my brain into hers.

And then, just as she was starting to grasp it all…she left.

She realized the job was more than she expected. And honestly? I get it. This role is emotionally and mentally demanding. But it still stung. Because as a trainer, you pour your time and energy into someone, you see the potential, and it’s heartbreaking when it doesn’t work out.

Lesson 2: When the Right Personality Also Has the Right Mindset

After that, I’ll admit, I was hesitant. We were hiring again, and this new candidate also had zero vet experience. I remember feeling this pang of frustration. I didn’t want to go through all of that again.

But this time, it was different.

She had the same warm, client-friendly personality, but she also had the drive. She wanted to learn. She picked things up quickly. And the difference that made in my day-to-day as her trainer was incredible. I wasn’t constantly reassuring her. I wasn’t pulling teeth to explain things. She thrived, and so did the front desk.

Lesson 3: Experience Doesn’t Always Mean It’s the Right Fit

We also hired someone else around that time, this one did come from another clinic. She knew our software better than we did. She had the lingo down, could book appointments with her eyes closed, and even taught us a few tricks in the system.

But…she just didn’t click.

She was cynical. She got a kick out of saying “no” to clients. She didn’t understand why we’d ever go above and beyond to make things easier for a pet owner in distress.

And it wasn’t just her client interactions, she also struggled to adapt to our clinic’s way of doing things. She’d constantly say, “Well, at my last clinic, we did it this way.” That’s not always a bad thing, fresh ideas are welcome! But when those changes aren’t introduced collaboratively, it just creates confusion and division.

Experience didn’t make her a better fit. In fact, it made her harder to integrate.

What’s the Takeaway?

I still believe in hiring for personality. But I’ve learned that not every good personality is the right personality for this job.

It’s about more than being bubbly, it’s about:

• Having emotional endurance

• Being able to learn under pressure

• Knowing how to listen, adapt, and function in organized chaos

And if you’re hiring for personality? You need to commit to real training. Not just shadowing or sink-or-swim. Actual, structured training that builds confidence, competence, and clinic flow.

That’s what I’ve built with Pawsitive Reception. Whether you’re onboarding someone brand new or refreshing a team member who’s lost their spark, I’ve created tools to support you, and them, through every step.

Hiring someone without vet experience? Let’s make sure they stay and succeed, in other words: Let’s Gain, Train and Retain.

Explore our training resources, or reach out if you’re looking for custom onboarding support.