Veterinary Service Manager - Minneapolis, MN (Relocation Eligible)

General Mills' Pet Segment is the company's fastest-growing global platform, fueled by the Blue Buffalo brand and its leadership in the humanization of pet feeding and treatment. Blue Buffalo Natural Veterinary Diet offers veterinaryexclusive prescription formulas that combine the efficacy veterinary professionals expect with the features and benefits pet parents seek.

The Veterinary Services team is the medical and nutritional voice of Blue Buffalo within the veterinary channel. The team partners closely with veterinary sales, marketing, R&D, FSQ, Regulatory, and external key opinion leaders (KOLs) to advance our mission of "Love them like family. Feed them like family."

JOB OVERVIEW:

The Veterinary Services Manager ensures that the highest standards of veterinary medicine and nutrition are established, communicated, and maintained across General Mills' pet business.

This role will:

• Lead and develop a team of Professional Services Veterinarians (PSVs) and related veterinary specialists
• Set and execute the veterinary services strategy for the U.S. veterinary channel (clinic, key accounts, consolidators, teaching hospitals, and KOLs)
• Serve as a primary veterinary thought leader and internal consultant for the Pet Segment on pet food nutrition, therapeutic diets, and veterinary channel strategy

The role will include significant external interaction (veterinary conferences, KOLs, veterinary schools) and crossfunctional leadership with Research & Development, Marketing, Sales, Corporate Communications, Food Safety, Legal, and Regulatory.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

Define & Execute Veterinary Services Strategy

• Partner with Vet Channel sales and marketing leadership to define the veterinary engagement model across independent clinics, consolidators, e-commerce platforms, corporate buying groups, and teaching hospitals.
• Translate business needs into veterinary outreach initiatives (e.g., CE programs, targeted diseasestate education, KOL projects, pilot programs with corporate groups) that support channel sales initiatives and revenue goals.
• Use internal analytics and external data (e.g., corporateowned customer mapping, vet channel insights) to prioritize targets and measure impact.
• Ensure alignment of Veterinary Services activities with brand positioning and innovation roadmaps for therapeutic and OTC products.

External Representation, Education & KOL Management

• Represent Blue Buffalo and General Mills at national and regional veterinary conferences and industry events.
• Build and maintain a network of key opinion leaders (general practitioners, specialists) who can advise on product development, research, and educational content.
• Oversee development and delivery of CE content on disease states and nutrition (live, virtual, and ondemand), ensuring scientific rigor and compliance in line with corporate communication standards.
• Partner with select colleges of veterinary medicine to build brand awareness and familiarity with Blue Buffalo Natural Veterinary Diet among faculty, residents, and students.

CrossFunctional Technical Leadership

• Serve as a primary veterinary advisor to R&D, Legal, Regulatory, Marketing, and Sales on topics such as:
  • Therapeutic indications and diseasestate positioning for Blue Buffalo Natural Veterinary Diet and other vetrelevant products
  • Claims, labeling, and consumerfacing messaging in partnership with Regulatory and Legal
• Provide veterinary perspective into market research and product design.
• Review and approve nutritional content for marketing materials, sales tools, and digital assets directed towards veterinary professionals.

Field Enablement & Sales Partnership

• Partners closely with veterinary clinic specialists and key account managers to ensure they are technically equipped to represent therapeutic and OTC product offerings.
• Oversee the design and deployment of fieldbased selling tools (detail aids, diseasestate resources, talk tracks) that integrate medical, nutritional, and commercial messaging.
• Join priority customer meetings (e.g., consolidators, corporate groups, large hospital systems) to address technical questions and strengthen executive relationships.

Governance, Compliance & Operations

• Ensure that all veterinary communications, CE, and field interactions adhere to regulatory, legal, and internal policy requirements for prescription diets.
• Track and report KPIs (e.g., clinic reach, CE attendance, NVD distribution and recommendation rates, KOL engagement, corporateowned account progress) to senior leadership.
• Contribute to risk assessments and issue management related to nutrition and veterinary science topics (e.g., product quality questions, scientific debates, social media sentiment among veterinarians).

Lead the Veterinary Services Team

• Provide daytoday leadership, coaching, and performance management for the Professional Services Veterinary team and other veterinary professionals.
• Set clear goals and priorities that align with Pet Segment and Vet Channel strategies, including growth targets for Blue Buffalo Natural Veterinary Diet and other vetrelevant product lines.
• Develop team members' product technical depth and clinical application (nutrition, internal medicine, dermatology), plus commercial acumen (clinic engagement, key account support, conference presence).
• Foster an inclusive, collaborative culture that reflects General Mills' values and leadership expectations.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM/VMD) or equivalent from an accredited university with a valid U.S. veterinary license.
• 5+ years of clinical experience in companion animal general or speciality practice.
• 3+ years in an industry veterinary role, such as Professional Services Veterinarian, medical affairs, or equivalent in pharmaceuticals, nutrition, or supplements
• Previous experience as a Manager of Veterinary Services or in a peopleleadership role overseeing veterinarians or medical liaison teams.
• Demonstrated ability to:
• Communicate complex medical and nutritional concepts to both specialists and generalpractice veterinarians.
• Influence crossfunctional stakeholders and lead projects without direct authority.
• Build strong relationships with external veterinary customers, KOLs, and professional associations.
• Excellent presentation, written, and verbal communication skills, with comfort delivering CE in large and smallgroup settings.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office suite and virtual collaboration tools
• Willing to travel around 30%-40%, including external partner meetings, veterinary conferences (national and regional), and key customer meetings.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Experience within a pet food manufacturer or nutritionfocused animal health company, particularly in therapeutic or prescription diets.
• Advanced medical training or board certification in nutrition, internal medicine, or dermatology.
• Familiarity with clinical research, publication processes, or guideline development in veterinary medicine.

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS:

• Applicants for this position must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis, and General Mills will not sponsor applicants for this position for work visas.
• This role is open to relocation, but international relocation and remote assignments will not be considered.

Salary Range

The salary range for this position is $126700.00 - $190100.00 / Annually. At General Mills we strive for each employee's pay at any point in their career to reflect their experiences performance and skills for their current role. The salary range for this role represents the numerous factors considered in the hiring decisions including, but not limited to, educations, skills, work experience, certifications, etc. As such, pay for the successful candidate(s) could fall anywhere within the stated range. Beyond base salary, General Mills offers a competitive Total Rewards package focusing on your overall well-being. We are proud to offer a foundation of health benefits, retirement and financial wellbeing, time off programs, wellbeing support and perks. Benefits may vary by role, country, region, union status, and other employment status factors. You may also be eligible to participate in an annual incentive program. An incentive award, if any, depends on various factors, including, individual and organizational performance.

Reasonable Accommodation Request

If you need to request an accommodation during the application or hiring process, please fill out our online accommodations request form by following this link: Accommodations Request.