The Importance of Systems and Process in a Community Pharmacy
Pharmacy Owners never seem to have enough time. They work the bench, pay bills, manage inventory, pay bills, make deliveries, make sales calls, etc. The ultra successful owners, however, do none of these jobs they only oversee them. Essentially they work on their business rather than in their business.
These “ultra” successful owners can do this because they have systems in place for every little task or responsibility that has to occur in the pharmacy. Whether this is data entry, filling up vials or accounting practices. Having systems allows them to let go of the responsibility, assign to someone else and easily train that individual on how to do the role or task.
Now this is not easy, it takes focus, time and will make you uncomfortable. But mastering this will allow you the pharmacy owner to have the freedom you hoped to have when you got into business for yourself. Plus it will be the biggest driver of growth your business has ever had as it will allow you time to grow the business.
Give it a try, trust that creating systems for everything is one of, if not the most important, roles a business owner can have.
About the author
Owen BonDurant, President: Owen is 2nd generation (his Dad is part owner in a 9 store pharmacy chain) in the pharmacy business and has worked in independent pharmacies since before he can remember. He has worked in almost every role a small pharmacy has to offer from cleaning the bathrooms, working as a pharmacy technician, marketing, starting and running a durable medical equipment company and managing employees. Owen graduated from Miami University of Ohio with a degree in marketing and a minor in management information systems (MIS). After graduating he briefly worked for Western and Southern Financial Group before deciding he wanted to return to the pharmacy industry where he started medical equipment business for a chain of 9 independent pharmacies. From there he moved to Chicago and started working for Experian QAS and for the last 7 years has been selling software to major retail organizations along with managing the Midwest sales team. Recently the itch to come back to the pharmacy industry, as it truly is all he knows, and Independent Rx Consulting was born.
