Dr. Ivan “Zak” Zakharenkov is a veterinarian, entrepreneur, and a passionate advocate for the well-being of veterinary professionals. After graduating from the Atlantic Veterinary College, he worked in various settings across Canada, from emergency to general practice.
After 12 years in veterinary medicine and a severe case of burnout, Ivan pivoted to creating products that improve the workflows and experience of veterinary teams. In 2012, he launched his first startup – Smart Flow, a first-in-the-industry workflow optimization system. Smart Flow was subsequently acquired by Fortune 500 company IDEXX, where he became General Manager of the software division. After consulting 650+ practices worldwide on workflow optimization, he decided it was time for a new adventure.
In 2019, Dr. Zak founded Veterinary Integration Solutions, a consultancy serving veterinary consolidators, and in 2021 he launched Galaxy Vets, an employee-owned veterinary healthcare system that prioritizes burnout prevention. Along the way, Ivan obtained an MBA degree in International Healthcare Management with a thesis, “Implementation of Lean Thinking to Improve the Employee Experience,” and continued his burnout studies annually to explore factors influencing veterinary well-being.