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The larger
your business grows, and we are all being told this is what we
have to do if we are going to survive in pharmacy, the harder
it is to manage your communication strategies.
As I move
around large pharmacy groups trying to find the secrets to their
success, one of the major dissents you encounter at staff level
is 'Management told us to do it this way but it isn't working'.
This can relate to workflow, administration duties, rostering
or any other areas of the business.
It is hard not to inflict a 'top down' attitude to managing your
business, as this is the easiest way but not always the most effective
way to conduct a healthy business.
I often encounter managers discussing the rate of turnover of
quality staff-there is always a natural attrition (especially
as the majority are women) but a high turnover level should be
investigated.
The QCPP model
of making you sit down with your staff to develop the team standards
is the first step in establishing an effective communication linkage.
It is hard to keep the momentum going but for your own benefit
and a greater satisfaction as an owner/manager at the end of each
week it is worth the effort.
There should be regular scheduled staff meetings, supervisor meetings,
and management meetings. These do not have to be more than 30
minutes but they should follow a set agenda and be minuted.
You will be surprised how helpful some of these minutes may be
in a later dispute with staff or to clarify a sequence of events
for activities like QCPP.
There is a
fine line to be followed when having 'specialist' staff meetings
eg dispensary technicians.
We schedule these whenever a major decision is being made that
affects their area of the business eg a change of computer software,
a refit etc-their feedback and hands on knowledge is of major
benefit and they are seeing the proposal form a completely different
perspective (they are often not cognisant of costs and Govt legislation
but they sure understand workflow and accessibility problems).
The balancing act here is not to make your staff dynamics into
'clicky and exclusive' groups eg cosmetic ladies versus the front
counter girls.
Watch out for manufacturers 'incentive' programs as some of these
can cause war-in most businesses there are floor staff and cash
and wrap girls and if all the rewards go to the girl who rang
up the sale then this is not an effective incentive scheme-some
of these schemes are also very unethical in the promotion of product.
When developing
your 'position descriptions' be clear in your description of whom
that person reports to and who they supervise-delineate roles
with specificity but also include areas that will interweave eg
the training officer is responsible for organising all training
but when the training relates to areas like armed hold or first
aid up she should consult with the workplace, health and safety
officer.
When writing the position description you do not have to be specific
in minute detail but you must ensure that everyone is clear on
the communication protocol.
Establishing
a staff memo and newsletter system goes a long way to ensuring
communication occurs. In our business the purchasing officer ensures
all new products/ changes to products are communicated to all
staff on a 'new product memo' as soon as the product arrives.
The CEO or the pharmacist manager in our business pre-checks all
staff memos and they are disseminated to all staff on issues such
as changes to procedures, training schedules, problems occurring
in the pharmacy, security alerts etc
Whenever an
absolute major event is going to occur eg GST, Y2K, it is of major
benefit to blow the moths out of the wallet and take the whole
lot out for a meal, perform a presentation on what is occurring
and then facilitate and stimulate feedback-make the staff feel
comfortable in voicing an opinion or an idea.
It is just as important to reward the staff after a major achievement
or a recovery from a disaster.
For example, QCPP reaccreditation completion and awarding of the
certificates is an excellent time to have a major social event
and 'spice' it up with some interesting anecdotes.
We recently
celebrated the fact that our CEO had been with us for 20 years
and I pulled out heaps of old photos from the distant past-put
them into easy to view albums and spread them around at a drink
and nibbles evening.
The comments on how some of us seemed more than a little wider
were not flattering but the other comments were 'how far we had
come'-what we had done to achieve the diversity of pharmacy practice
that we now deliver.
The staff had achieved this -with management's guidance and wisdom-
but at the end of the day it is the boys and girls on the floor
or out on the road who make or break your business.
Make the effort
to develop an effective communication strategy and keep it alive
and working-do not let it slip into the too hard basket.
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