Report On ShopSmart Wholesale Pharmacy

Ways of Working of the Organisation and the Industry Context

Write a report on ShopSmart Wholesale Pharmacy.

In Western Sydney, ShopSmartwholesale pharmacy is considered as a trusted name since 2000. It enjoys the reputation of offering sound advice along with reliable services as well as large range of products of high quality (Westfield Retail Solutions, 2017). The centre that is located in Westfield Mount Druitt has shown the determination of meeting and exceeding the expectations which the local community holds. It has been instrumental in delivering a large variety of integrated as well as patient centred services in the medical field and also the “allied health services” in an environment which is a “one-stop” (ShopSmart Medical, 2014).

This project report will be taking into account the ways in which Shopsmart wholesale pharmacy works, methods used for the collection of data, explanation as well as justification of the organisational issues which will be identified, findings of the research and also the recommendations for bringing about improvements in the systems, processes and ways of working of the organisation. It will also discuss the timelines along with the resources that are required for the implementation of the recommendations and the ethical issues that will form a part of data gathering, storing and treatment of information which is a part of the current report.

The Shopsmart Group comprises six wholesale pharmacies that provide lower prices if purchases are made in high volumes by means of its network of trusted suppliers. This process results in the reduction of the cost that is incurred in purchase of goods. It also assists the group in holding sufficient stock for ensuring that when the customers order products they are delivered timely at the correct location. The company conducts regular training as well as development programs for its staff so that it is able to take care of all its customers ad provide services which are unrivalled. It deals with its customers in a courteous as well as professional way and its team of pharmacists and also their staffs is always ready to answer the queries of the customers. Since 2008, the group has been supporting groups of local community and is a leading sponsor of Kidney Kar Rally, Kidney Kids camps and Kidney Health Australia’s.

The products offered by the company include weight loss programs, baby formula and nappies, items of household cleaning, feminine hygiene, hair colour / hair care, makeup, cosmetics, allergy management, pain management, flu and cold medication, eye / ear care, sports supplements, vitamins, original and generic brands and prescription medication.

Methods of Data Collection

The services provided by the company include medication packaging, ear piercings, makeup, blood pressure checking, height weight checking, weight loss program and script storage.

In the context of the industry the pharmacy is trying to offer good quality products at competitive prices. It is well organised and is a great place to shop for the daily pharmaceutical requirements. The staff attempts to provide good quality of customer services. However, certain major issues were identified with the organisation. The main challenges or organisational issues include low wages of the employees, the lack of recognition which the pharmacists get as being professionals of healthcare and the declining rate of “PBS dispensary income”. Another challenge being faced by the organisation was the competition that was being posed by the other discounters. The low wages that the discount chains are paying have been impacting the employees’ capacity of offering services of high quality to the community. The pharmacists are not being paid as any other dedicated professional of healthcare (Paola, 2017).

An open ended questionnaire was utilised as the instrument for conducting interviews. a set of questions which were formalized were contained in it in order to obtain responses from the selected participants (Malhotra, 2011). It consisted of five questions. The respondents were the employees working in the company. The questionnaire provides assistance in the collection of data that is of good quality when it is compared to the observation method as the researcher here structures the questionnaire as per the study in order to collect the data which is relevant (Adler & Clark, 2011).

The secondary data for the study purposes was collected from various websites and also from reports related to the company in the periodicals. A number of academic journals as well as publications which are relevant in the context of the company being studied were also used for the collection of secondary data. For secondary data collection, utilisation was made of reliable sources such as publications that were corroborated from a number of sources. The verification of the data was done using triangulation methods which signify that utilisation of a number of methods was made for validation of data that had been obtained from different sources.

The description of sample is given as the chosen population’s subset. The sample size takes into account the number of individuals or the respondents of whom the sample is made (Adler & Clark, 2011). Use of convenience sampling was made for selecting a sample of respondents from the managers of the organisation in Westfield, Australia. The utilisation of this technique is made when the choice of sample is based on the ease of access of the researcher (Saunders et al., 2009).

Secondary Research Data

Feeling of being undervalued

This issue is mainly due to the lack of uniformity of pharmacy practice and diversifying into other businesses along with pharmacy. The pharmacists feel that they are not only underpaid but some of them also have been struggling with the feeling of being undervalued and being seen as just being “dispensers of medicine” instead of being “skilled and knowledgeable healthcare providers”. The main reason why the pharmacists feel that they are hugely under recognised is that they are viewed by the community at large as being merely medication suppliers instead of being considered a crucial component of the healthcare team who are easily accessible. The pharmacies and pharmacists provide a number of services but still this lack of recognition has resulted in them being not recognised or remunerated well enough. A lack of proper communication channels has been observed within the organisation which has added to this feeling.

This issue has in turn resulted in lower levels of job satisfaction, morale and decreasing motivation leading to declining standards of services being offered to the consumers.

Low Wages, low levels of Job Satisfaction, Morale and Motivation

The wages of the pharmacists have been low mainly due to the presence of too many pharmacists who offer products and services at discounted prices. The wages have been low despite the fact that the store also carries out other retail businesses like a superstore. Job satisfaction is one of the most crucial determinative factor as far as the organisation’s efficiency as well as productivity is concerned (Aziri, 2011). The reason for this is that it is a predictor of several factors when it is considered in relation to work such as commitment, productivity and performance which help in the determination of success of any organisation (Sweis, 2010) (Marzuki et al., 2012). The lower wages due to rising competition in the pharmacy business has resulted in low levels of job satisfaction among the employees.

The research findings indicate that there are far too many employee pharmacists in the industry which has resulted in increased competition and lowering of wages to the pharmacists. The pharmacy is facing several challenges which include both behind the counter and in front. The pharmacists are highly undervalued for their contributions in comparison to the other professionals of healthcare. They are struggling to remain price competitive and also in changing their “clinical advise into actual sales” (Scott, 2014). Even though the services being provided by Shopsmart Wholesale Pharmacy is one of the best, there is a need for further improvement in services. The focus on the main business of pharmacy has decreased as the organisation has also diversified into other products and services. The pharmacists are also struggling for optimising their market strategy and focus so that customers can view them as valuable sources from where they can seek advice. Work in today’s world has become increasingly complex and fast and thus, higher coordination is thus required for it. Lack of communication between the managers and the employees has added to the issues. Patterns of communication are highly lateral. Distribution of the workers has also increased while simultaneous as well as distributed work processes are the norm. The employees are reported to having low job satisfaction, low morale and lower levels of motivation due to all the above issues.

Sample for Primary Research

Conclusions

On the basis of the above research findings, it can be concluded that due to lack of proper communication channels within the organisation and increasing competition levels in the industry the organisation has been suffering from low employee job satisfaction and low morale. The motivation levels of the employees are also low. The employees have developed a feeling that they are undervalued. The improper channels of communication existing within the organisation has resulted in a number of issues for the organisation as a whole which has been affecting its actual sales even though the products and services that are being provided are of good quality and have been priced competitively.

The organisation’s systems, processes and ways of working need to be improved. Change is introduced when something that is different is done by someone. When a need that is real or is perceived is met by someone, money is made for the innovator. If innovation is absent, whatever is being provided by the will turn into be obsolete at a very rapid pace (Thompson, 2001). A study of the history of pharmacies indicates that the “pharmacy entrepreneurs” are the ones who have played the role of practice innovators. These are the people who have taken the risks. The employee pharmacists cannot be considered as the risk takers even though they at times are can be innovators inside a system. The pharmacy therefore requires “out of the box” thinkers who can solve problems for the patients and make the pharmacy advance even if it means putting their careers at risk. For this the managers have to develop a different mentality in the pharmacists and recruit distinct personalities who have the ability of remaining motivated even in times of adversities. For obtaining maximum competitive advantage in the highly competitive types of environments, the company needs to have an inclination towards innovation (Jimenez & Sanz-Valle, 2011). There is a need for enhancing the effectiveness as well as the quality of the products. Innovations should be introduced in the value chains of the organisation (Vyas, 2009). Introduction of new products can be done (Rubera & Kirca, 2012). Technological competencies can also be introduced along with transformation of resources by utilisation of the capabilities that are innovative (Therrien et al., 2011). Alternatively, the company can bring enhancements in the shopping experiences, bring increment in the product range and also offer higher more number of discounts (Team, 2015).

If a particular pharmacist can perform a certain function it does not mean that it can be done well by all the pharmacists. The issue of uniformity of pharmacy practice consists of two parts. Firstly, are the right programs present in the pharmacy like the “practice site accreditation programs” or “practitioner certification programs” for ensuring that the customers are able to get the experience of similarity when services are received for different pharmacies or pharmacists? The pharmacy needs to progress on this front. Secondly, the issue is of “pharmacist practice model”. Is dispensing the drug an end or it forms a means for a role that is more important. This will help to determine the future of the pharmacy. The role played by the technician of the pharmacy and training provided to the pharmacy students will add to the accreditation of the pharmacy in the community.

For the pharmacists to be valued better by the community and with changing responsibilities of healthcare, it becomes critical of have a better documentation of the activities that the pharmacists perform. For the true acceptance of the pharmacist’s value proposition, their contributions have to be documented in a proper way so that the patients understand that when there is involvement of the pharmacists, improvement takes place in the access as well as outcomes for patients and the cost of patient care also decreases. With changes in pharmacy, what and where documentation is done by the pharmacists becomes essential.

The need of the profession is a standardised system of documentation which can be utilised by all the pharmacists. Use of a uniform process in patient care rather than own system will prove to be advantageous. Lack of standardisation is the main reason for undervaluing the pharmacists which has also impacted their acceptance as healthcare professionals (Eckel, 2013). Use of proper email and non verbal communication is critical (Jung-ran, 2008).

Explanation and Justification of the Organisational Issues that have been identified

The managers should have the aim of focusing on providing conditions to the employee where they develop are feeling of job satisfaction. This can be done by building trust among the employees. This will in turn boost their morale enhance their motivation levels and eliminate factors that go on to impact it in an adverse manner. Trust and communication with the employees needs to be developed as strong links have been observed between the interpersonal skills of the managers and communication levels as well as workforce commitment. More the interpersonal skills of the managers’ better will be the communication, credibility of the message, trust will be engendered and commitment among organisational members will also develop (Bambacas & Patrickson, 2008). The managers also need to keep the horizontal, upward and downward networks open and at the same time maintain a supportive supervisor-subordinate relationship. The acceptance and awareness of “grapevine related information should be accepted.

Besides this, as it is a wholesale pharmacy, the focus should me more on the pharmacy business and the departmental interactions need to be competitive and cooperative. For increasing work effectiveness social contact will have to be increased particularly face to face interactions in cases where working in virtual environments occurs over extended periods (Johnson., 2009). The employees should be trained to make use of appropriate styles of speaking and language so that verbal as well as non verbal communication forms are delivered in an effective manner. They should be encouraged to convey to others that they are not only listening but also acting on the information. They should be able to express their thoughts in a clear manner and should be given encouragement to elicit information from others and gain an understanding to what is being said by others. This way they can learn to handle difficult people and gain credibility. By means of their interpersonal the employees should be in a position to add value to the planning, decision making and problem solving activities of their work teams (Patridge, 2011-2012).

The recommendations that have been mentioned above cannot be implemented overnight but can be done gradually over a period of one year. The resources that will be needed for this will be in the form of efficient manpower which can come up with innovative ideas, which can provide assistance in the standardisation of the processes and in systemisation of the documentation process. Documentation processes will require monetary resources for be properly standardised and made uniform. Improvements in the processes of communication that already exist within the organisation will take almost a year to change and be streamlined. Once this is done, the recognition of the pharmacists as efficient healthcare practitioners will definitely increase.

Research Findings

The study consists of human beings as the respondents and therefore ethical considerations are highly essential in this study. The respondents had been given large number of explanations and were also informed about the advantages that this study will be having. All the respondents were handled in a manner that is very ethical. Firstly, their proper consent was obtained by the researcher regarding their willingness to participate in the study. Secondly, they were properly informed about the purpose for which the study is being undertaken. The responses that have been obtained from the participants have been kept privately and the use of the data was made for academic purposes only. The reason for the selection of this pharmacy is that it is one of the leading pharmacies of Westfield in Australia and it is a wholesale pharmacy that offers discounts to its customers but still it has been facing certain issues. The pharmacy has diversified into other products and services also which have adopted different strategies and shown different levels of performance.

The facts in relation to the pharmacy have been collected from authentic sources containing published information. The validity of the study has been taken into consideration along with the willingness of the respondents to take part in the research in a voluntary manner as  they were not coerced to  be a part of the study. A total appreciation of the individuality of the participants has been made and they have been given high respect. Hence, all the answers that have been provided by them have been awarded high value and no misinterpretation has been done of the facts as well as information which are of relevance to the study.

Adler, E.S. & Clark, R., 2011. An Invitation to Social Research: How It’s Done. Wadsworth Publishing.

Aziri, B., 2011. Job Satisfaction: A literature Review. Management Research and Practice, 3(4), pp.77-86.

Bambacas, M. & Patrickson, M., 2008. Interpersonal Skills that enhance Organisational Commitment.

Eckel, F.M., 2013. Five Major Issues Facing Pharmacy. Pharmacy Times, 12 December.

Jimenez, J.. & Sanz-Valle, R., 2011. Innovation, organizational learning and performance. Journal of Business Research, pp.408-17.

Johnson., 2009. Realities of working in virtual teams. SGR.

Jung-ran, P., 2008. Linguistic Politeness and Face Work.

Malhotra, N., 2011. Marketing Research: An Applied Orientation. Pearson.

Marzuki, P.F., Permadi, H. & Sunaryo, I., 2012. Factors Affecting Job Satisfaction of Workers in Indonesian Construction Companies. Journal of Civil Engineering and Management, 18(3), pp.299-309.

Paola, S., 2017. UNDERRECOGNITION, LOW WAGES: PHARMACY’S BIGGEST CHALLENGES. Australian Journal of Pharmacy, 27 January. Available at: UNDERRECOGNITION, LOW WAGES: PHARMACY’S BIGGEST CHALLENGES.

Patridge, B., 2011-2012. Series of Management Development Lectures. Landcomb, Parramatta, NSW: unpublished.

Rubera, G. & Kirca, A., 2012. Firm innovativeness and its performance outcomes: A meta-analytic review and theoretical integration. Journal of Marketing, pp.130-47.

Saunders, M., Lewis, P. & Thornhill, A., 2009. Research methods for business students. Harlow: Pearson Education.

Scott, N., 2014. Market Research Reveals Key Challenges Facing Pharmacists in Australia. ACA Research, 20 February.

ShopSmart Medical, 2014. ShopSmart Medical. [Online] Available at: https://shopsmartmedical.com.au/about-us/ [Accessed 16 August 2017].

Sweis, R.J., 2010. The Relationship between Information Technology Adoption and Job Satisfaction in Contracting Companies in Jordan. Journal of Information Technology in Construction, 15, pp.44-63.

Team, T., 2015. Why Is Omni-Channel Retailing So Important For Bed Bath & Beyond? Forbes, 12 February.

Therrien, P., Doloreux, D. & Chamberlin, T., 2011. Innovation novelty and (commercial) performance in the service sector: A Canadian firm level analysis. Technovation, pp.655-65.

Thompson, J.L., 2001. Strategic Management. Canada: Thomson Learning.

Vyas, V., 2009. Innovation and new product development by SMEs: An investigation of Scottish food and drinks Industry. Napier.

Westfield Retail Solutions, 2017. Westfield MT Druitt. [Online] Available at: https://www.westfield.com.au/mtdruitt/stores/all-stores/shopsmart-wholesale-pharmacy/60280 [Accessed 16 August 2017].