At Vision Express, we appreciate that every optometrist is different, which is why we offer career routes that are slightly different too. From speaking to optometrists, they have been surprised by the scale of opportunity and how compelling the offering is.
This position gives you the opportunity to not only be an optometrist, but also run a store. It’s a unique and exciting career route that's perfect for optometrists who have a business mind, an entrepreneurial spirit, a natural passion for managing people and, ultimately, want to develop beyond the test room (as well as in it, of course).
Be the driving influence
We caught up with some of our optometrist store managers (OSM) to ask how they found the OSM role with Vision Express. Joanne, OSM at our Ulverston store, tells us: 'As an OSM, you have the ability to have a big influence in your store from inside and outside of your testing room. Being able to have a major part in our team which aims to deliver the best experience for all our customers.'
'You’re basically running a practice! You have the freedom to look at the store as a whole and do what you want with it. You manage the finances, the KPIs, you lead your team and help them improve. As an optometrist, you’re in control of just the test room, but as an OSM you’re in control of the whole store.'
For this role, it’s perfect for optometrists who want to develop beyond the test room, as you don’t need managerial experience - we provide our OSMs with two months training before they start the role. You’ll shadow another manger during this time so you can get a real insight into what it’s like on the job. This allows you to really get to grips with our processes, all whilst receiving your full wage.
Continuous support
Once you’ve had your training, we’ll still provide you with the best support from our Store Support Centre as well as other Game Changing leaders across the business, including your regional manager and in store colleagues.
Hasnain, who has been OSM since February, highlights the support he received in his role: 'One thing I've really liked about Vision Express as an OSM is the support you get from the Central Ops team - you just send an email to anyone and it gets done straight away. You don't worry about it. It's just one email and it's done really easy. If you're stuck on something, there's a really good support network with the other store managers in the region, you can message the WhatsApp group and someone will reply very soon after with what you need to do.'
A role that gives you freedom beyond the eye test room with full training and the support that you need from your Game Changing leaders, Hasnain adds: 'I’m not going to lie the package is good! You get to run a store and be rewarded for it.'
Our colleagues always tell us what they enjoy most about the OSM role and the most commented favourite is that the role is varied. They enjoy the mix of building their management skills and being able to have an input into their own store - more than they would get from a solely optometrist role - while still being able to progress their optometrist skills. It's a perfect step if you’re looking to advance or maybe become a Vision Express Joint Venture Partner.
Could this be your next career step? If you’d like to find out more about our OSM roles, you can simply register your interest and our team will be able to reach out to discuss your opportunities further.
Submit your details to our Eye Care Professional Quick Apply and our team will reach out to discuss Vision Express Opportunities at bit.ly/39QyGlO.