Job hunting in the equestrian industry can be hard. Positions with the same title can have vastly different expectations, responsibilities, and benefits. Make sure you know exactly what you will be asked to do before you agree to work as a groom or barn manager. Keep reading for BarnManager’s key questions to ask during a job interview.
Finding out what your duties will be is the most important thing to ask about a job or during an interview. For instance, be clear about whether the job is just grooming, running the barn, or a mix of those two things. Find out ahead of time if you will have to do any office work, like ordering hay, making hotel reservations, or turning in paperwork. This will help you plan your days and weeks on the job. The more you ask about what the employer wants from you in the role and how to do well in it, the better you will be able to tell if it is a good fit for you.
Want to be a barn manager? You need more than just a love of horses and good organizational skills. To get hired, you need to show that you are a good leader, know a lot about horses, are good at business, and can communicate clearly.
You have the chance to show why you are the best person to run all parts of an equestrian facility during the interview. To help you do your best, I’ve put together a list of the 27 most common barn manager interview questions, along with tips and examples to help you write great answers.
1. Walk Me Through Your Experience Managing a Barn or Similar Facility
Barn management is about much more than mucking stalls and feeding horses. Hiring managers want to know that you understand how difficult it is to oversee daily operations, manage staff, keep the buildings in good shape, and make sure the property runs smoothly.
In your response highlight specific responsibilities you held at past barns such as
- Overseeing schedules, feeding, vet care, and training regimens for the horses
- Maintaining cleanliness and safety standards of the property
- Managing inventory and placing supply orders
- Supervising and delegating tasks to barn staff
- Tracking expenses and maintaining budgets
Convey your familiarity with all aspects of management from horse care to human resources. Share an example that demonstrates competence as a leader overseeing a multifaceted operation.
2. What Steps Do You Take to Maintain the Structural Integrity of a Barn?
Keeping the physical barn structure and facilities in top shape is a key duty. The interviewer wants to know that you understand what it takes to maintain the property for safety and functionality.
In your answer, touch on:
- Regularly walking through the barn to check for any wear and tear or damage
- Addressing repairs immediately to prevent bigger issues down the line
- Keeping wood protected and free from moisture damage
- Managing pest control to prevent infestations that can compromise wood structures
- Maintaining strict cleaning routines to prolong life of materials
Convey your diligence in proactively caring for the barn itself, not just the horses inside it.
3. How Would You Handle a Severe Injury or Medical Emergency with an Animal?
Emergencies happen, and barn managers need to know how to respond calmly and appropriately. Demonstrate that you prioritize the animal’s wellbeing and safety in an emergency situation.
- State that you would first ensure the animal is stable and not harming itself or others
- Contact the veterinarian right away for guidance on care
- Administer basic first aid to the best of your abilities until the vet arrives
- Keep detailed records of the incident for the veterinarian
- Highlight proactive measures you take to prevent emergencies in the day-to-day
This response should instill confidence in your ability to handle crisis situations knowledgeably and professionally.
4. Explain Your Process for Ensuring Proper Care and Feeding of Different Animals
Caring for a variety of species means understanding their diverse needs. Share your knowledge of tailored nutrition, health management, and attentive daily care for each animal. Be sure to emphasize:
- Following veterinarian-approved diets appropriate for each animal’s needs
- Monitoring animals closely and adjusting care plans when necessary
- Maintaining meticulous records of feeding, medications, behaviors, etc.
- Prioritizing cleanliness of housing, feed areas, and water sources
- Watching for signs of distress or changes in behavior that could indicate issues
This demonstrates your commitment to individualized care based on each animal’s needs.
5. How Do You Manage Barn Staff to Ensure Efficiency?
This question is all about your leadership skills. Share how you oversee staff workflow while promoting productivity:
- Establish clear roles and responsibilities for each team member
- Maintain open communication – hold regular meetings to discuss workflows
- Lead by example by upholding standards for hard work and professionalism
- Use task boards or software to track progress on daily chores
- Provide feedback and training to help staff improve continuously
- Reward good work to motivate the team
Convey how you empower your team to do their best work in service of the animals and the operation.
6. What Protocols Do You Follow to Ensure Safety and Health of Animals and Staff?
This is a chance to share your understanding of safety principles and procedures. Be sure to touch on:
For animals:
- Regular veterinary visits and care regimen customized to each animal’s needs
- Rigorous sanitation procedures for housing, feeding areas, and equipment
- Emergency plans and first aid protocols
For staff:
- Training for handling animals and equipment properly and safely
- Providing protective gear like gloves, boots, masks as needed
- Posting safety information and holding drills on emergency procedures
- Fostering a culture of safety with regular meetings to discuss concerns
Demonstrate how health and safety inform everything you do as a manager.
7. Tell Me About Your Experience and Education Related to Equine Health and Care
You’ll need specialized horse knowledge to succeed as a barn manager. Rattle off any equine certificates or formal education you have acquired. Share specifics like:
- Coursework in equine first aid, dentistry, nutrition, rehabilitation
- Hands-on experience identifying illnesses and injury and administering treatment
- Knowledge of equine behavior and psychology
- Continuing education through veterinary articles, publications, workshops, etc.
Convey your commitment to staying up-to-date on the latest equine care practices and procedures.
8. How Do You Handle an Employee Who is Underperforming?
Dealing with personnel issues is part of the job. Share how you work with struggling staff in a professional manner:
- Have a private conversation to understand if any issues are impacting their work
- Provide constructive feedback focused on specific areas needing improvement
- Implement a performance improvement plan with clear objectives and deadlines
- Revisit progress frequently and offer coaching/training as needed
- Aim for improvement but be prepared to let go of staff who ultimately don’t meet expectations
Demonstrate how you balance compassion with upholding standards — an essential management skill.
9. Share Your Experience Managing Finances and Budgets for Barn Operations
Hiring managers want to know you have the business savvy to manage barn budgets. Illustrate your understanding of the key costs and how to keep them reasonable:
- Animal feed, bedding, supplements
- Facilities costs – utilities, maintenance, repairs
- Labor – staff wages, insurance, training
- Equipment purchases and upkeep
- Hay and grain inventory
Share how you have implemented cost-saving measures in the past, such as:
- Buying in bulk when prices are low
- Renegotiating rates with vendors
- Prioritizing preventative maintenance to avoid major repairs
- Monitoring inventory closely to avoid unnecessary purchases
Position yourself as someone who understands the bottom line and how to optimize it through smart financial decisions.
10. What Measures Do You Take to Maintain Excellent Sanitation and Cleanliness in the Barn?
Barn cleanliness is about more than just appearances – it affects the animals’ health. Demonstrate your understanding of proper sanitation principles:
- Removal of manure, soiled bedding, and leftover feed at least twice daily
- Disinfecting stalls, feed buckets, and grooming tools regularly
- Ensuring proper ventilation and air circulation
- Pest control measures like fly traps and rodent bait stations
- Checking that staff follows cleaning schedules and protocols
Make it clear that cleanliness is an unnegotiable priority central to maintaining the animals’ wellbeing.
11. How Do You Organize Scheduling of Vet Visits, Farrier Visits and Other Necessary Appointments?
Timeliness and coordination are essential when managing care appointments. Highlight your system to keep everything running smoothly:
- Maintain a shared calendar noting regular vet, farrier and dental appointments
- Notify staff ahead of appointments so horses are prepped and ready
- Build padding into the schedule to accommodate add-ons or emergencies
- Coordinate with trainers and owners to understand optimal timing based on competition schedule
- Use reminder alerts to avoid missed bookings
- Follow up after visits to check on animals’ progress
Convey your diligence in managing these crucial aspects of equine care.
12. Describe Your Experience Handling Unplanned Emergencies in a Barn
Even the most organized barn manager will encounter surprises. Outline how you respond decisively when the unexpected strikes:
- Remain calm and swiftly address any immediate safety issues
- Follow emergency response procedures (call vet, isolate animal, etc)
- Communicate clearly with staff to coordinate an appropriate response
- Prioritize the safety of animals and people first and foremost
- Document the details of the incident for future reference
- Later, assess what can be improved in protocols to prevent or better respond if a similar emergency happens again
You want to instill confidence that you can handle stressful scenarios professionally.
13. How Do You Train and Mentor New Barn Staff?
Part of your role as barn manager involves onboarding and developing staff. Share your approach:
Size and Business Model
Another thing to think about when looking for a job is how many people work there and how many horses they usually have. Also ask how many people do certain jobs, including the role you are interested in performing. This information will help you figure out how much you need to work together or share duties and how busy everyone is on a normal day. Find out about the barn’s business model as well. When it comes to running their businesses, sales barns are very different from boarding barns, and competition or discipline-specific stables have different needs than pleasure, trail, or big lesson barns.
While some people want riding opportunities as part of their employment, others do not. If you want to know if it is required or not, it is a good idea to ask. Some farms let their employees flatten horses once in a while, while others expect them to ride several horses every day. Make sure everyone knows what you want to say about this important subject before the interview.
Barn Manager interview questions
FAQ
What does a barn manager do?
What type of questions are asked in a manager interview?
What questions do farm managers ask?
Most interviews will include questions about your personality, qualifications, experience and how well you would fit the job. In this article, we review examples of various farm manager interview questions and sample answers to some of the most common questions. What experience do you have managing a farm? What type of farms have you managed?
How do you interview a farm manager?
The interviewer wants to know how the farm manager plans to improve the farm’s productivity and profitability. It is important for the interviewer to know that the farm manager is aware of the challenges facing the farm and has a plan to address them. Example: “There are a number of ways to address the challenges faced by farmers.
What makes a good barn manager?
Before we delve into what it is that makes a good barn manager, let’s definite what the barn manager’s role entails. While this varies from discipline to discipline and from barn to barn, the first priority is generally the proper care and maintenance of the horses. That might mean overseeing: – and more!
