Layered Pharmacy Leadership

Blogs

11/28/2023
Snow storms and the growing theme of the pharmacist waitlist
Pharmacy is like a snow storm. During a heavy storm, we cannot keep up with the falling snow even with constant shovelling. We end up going about our lives, then dealing with the damage when the storm is over. The act of shovelling is put on hold until after the storm is over.
11/21/2023
One pharmacist’s rant—we need to discuss debt and ‘owings’
For the pharmacy world struggling with back orders, recalls and mixed-up orders, owing is a part of the job. But owings – or debt – for a pharmacist are analogous to the problem of lost luggage.
11/14/2023
What to look for while conducting a pharmacy job interview
With a very sparse number of pharmacy staff in the neighbourhood to choose from, we now often select workers without actual pharmacy experience. This means that leaders need to have an even keener eye for detecting the cross-over skills hidden in the stories of those we are interviewing.
11/7/2023
Pharmacists, it’s time to think like the scientists we are
By their scientific method, scientists’ actions demonstrate that they do not know the true answer but have ideas as to what it could be. Scientists resist the urge to form irreversible public opinions. Instead, they let the process show them the way, then steer in that direction in full willingness to pivot as necessary.
10/31/2023
Pharmacists, use your filter to understand the true problem
Pharmacy does not come with a user guide. Pharmacy leaders must hear what is going on in the game and help the players find a solution that fits within the rulebook. To do this, we do not necessarily need to invent the answer ourselves. Instead, we must understand the problems, leave emotion aside and generate ideas from other people.
10/17/2023
3 ways your pharmacy can fail
Pharmacy is a little like jumping out of an airplane. It takes bravery, practice, training and most of all, a parachute. While the primary parachute is obvious, there is another essential need before jumping out of the plane: the back-up chute.
10/16/2023
Pushing your pharmacy stress threshold is good for you!
Gone are the days of a "druggist" using leeches or being the only druggist in town. Gone are the product-driven experts solely paid for dispensing. Pharmacists have stretched the limits of their horizons before us and now it is our turn. It’s time to prescribe!
10/10/2023
Why pharmacists should avoid cutting their own lawn
Some bets in life are simple once you wrap your mind around them. For years, my wife and I resisted paying someone to cut our lawn. Despite the insane schedule that comes with being connected to a few pharmacies, triathlon training and everything that two children brought our way, I was fixated on the cost of paying someone.
9/28/2023
Hiring pharmacy staff without actual experience
Like many pharmacy manager-owners, I have conducted a few interviews in my time. Some were highly collaborative and resulted in all-stars still working strongly with us today. Other résumés turned into napkins or scrap paper.
9/26/2023
Are you a jaded pharmacist?
The problem with pharmacy is that it is all practice. It is training without race day. The daily grind offers much of the same training as it did the day before. After a short time, we become jaded.
9/19/2023
Negotiating 101 for pharmacists
Important negotiations are about relationships, something pharmacists know a ton about. Each day we make friends with strangers needing health advice and tools to pair them with.
9/12/2023
A pharmacist’s journal: writing to find answers in pharmacy
In writing about the anecdotes and lessons offered by managing people, the business and the profession, I found seven recurrent themes, which I called the seven dimensions of the ideal pharmacy leader.